So, you decided to give cloth diapering a try. Did you know that there are many cloth diapering accessories available to simplify cloth diapering and make your life easier? Here are a few.
1. Cloth Diaper Fasteners
There are two safer alternatives to the traditional diaper pin that can be used to fasten cloth diapers around your baby – the Snappi and the Boingo. Both are made from stretchable non-toxic materials and have plastic teeth to grip the fabric of the diaper and hold it in place. The Snappi is a single T-shaped piece whereas the Boingo is a pair of rectangular fasteners. The Snappi comes in two different sizes whereas the Boingo fasteners are one-size-fits-all.
2. Diaper Sprayer
Cloth diapers containing urine are not difficult to clean – you just put them in the wash. Poopy diapers, on the other hand, are another story – you need to remove the poop before you wash the diaper. Handling poop is the biggest challenge for many parents, and a diaper sprayer can solve this problem for you.
If you live in Asia like me, you probably already have this in your bathroom under a different name – the handheld bidet sprayer. The bidet forces water out at a greater pressure and is perfect to spray off the poop into the toilet without having to touch the mess.
3. Diaper Sprayer Shield
If you are using a diaper sprayer/ handheld bidet sprayer, you might want to use a sprayer shield to prevent poop from being sprayed all over your toilet cover. It is a plastic device with a clip to hold the dirty diaper over the toilet while spraying with the diaper sprayer.
4. Liners
Liners are another option to make poop cleaning a bit easier. Cloth diaper liners are rectangles pieces of thin fabric-like mesh that you place between the diaper and baby to catch the solid waste and act as a barrier to protect your diapers from diaper balms and creams. Liners can be disposable or reusable – if using disposable liners….just pick up the liner with the poop in it and throw it in the bin.
5. Diaper Pail and Pail Liner:
It may not be very practical to wash dirty diapers every day. So then… where do you store them until you are ready to wash them? Well…. That is where a diaper pail and pail liners come into play. Diaper pails are basically containers specifically designed to store dirty cloth diapers…but you can use any bucket/ container/ trash can with a lid.
Pail liners are like reusable waterproof garbage bags that you put inside the diaper pail so that the diaper pail does not get soiled with pee and poop. These can be washed along with your cloth diaper and reused.
6. Wet Bags:
Wet bags are waterproof and odor-proof bags that are used to store cloth diapers – essentially they are smaller versions of pail liners. Wet bags are useful to store dirty diapers when out and about and carry them back home.
Other helpful accessories
1. Stain removers to remove the stain from poop and pee.
2. Drying rack to dry the wet diapers.
3. Cloth diaper rash creams. Petroleum (Vaseline) can clog up cloth diapers and cause them to not absorb properly. To avoid this, you can either use liners or petroleum-free cloth diaper rash creams.
4. Garment extenders. Cloth diapers may be bulky and cause difficulty in buttoning up onesies or sleepers. Diaper extenders provide a bit more leeway and provide extra space for the diaper to fit.
