I am taking part in the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry. For 7 days I will be using only flat cloth diapers and handwashing them in an effort to prove that cloth diapering can be affordable and accessible to all. You can learn more about the rules and why this challenge was started by visiting the announcement post. This year there are over 45o participants from all over the world!
I’m going to start with the obvious. This challenge is much easier when you have
- an older baby.
- a baby that is willing to poop on the toilet.
- older kiddles who can fold flats.
- a plunger for the bucket.
- bright sunny days.
- gloves.
- Wool.
I didn’t expect to still be this happy using flats. Nor did I expect to pick up yet another fold & LOVE IT! Kim posted this fold on DDL yesterday called the Jo Fold & it’s fantastic. You can use it with pins, Boingos or Snappi. Finally, a fold my DH can get behind!
Ah yes, my DH abhors pinning diapers. This has been a pain this week.
My mainstay is normally prefolds and a nice little stash of hemp fitteds. But I could just as easily do without them.
I really do love wool. I love to make soakers & I love to use them. PUL is great, fleece is great, but wool wins me over time & time again. It doesn’t get as stinky as the synthetic covers as quickly so it doesn’t need to be washed as often. It can also absorb a bit if the diaper is a bit too wet. It breathes like no other. Did I mention how much I love wool? This challenge only cements my adoration.
When washing in the washer it’s better to have a more full load. When washing by hand it’s better to have a much smaller load. It’s also pretty easy to know when your diapers are clean & rinsed. When it’s damp, humid or raining, wringing well is your friend – this is where gloves come into play. Also, since I forgot to get a plunger while I was out today, I am still literally washing by hand. I wish my gloves were a little longer, but shorter gloves work in a pinch. It’s a good idea to turn the gloves inside out & put them out with the diapers to dry on a hot sweaty day like today, or, if you got water in them while washing like I did.
I wished I hadn’t waited to try this challenge. If I knew what I know now about this process I would have brought all the flats & used a bucket when we returned to the States last fall while we were in temporary housing. The machines available in billets were awful & often in use. The laundry mat was expensive, often busy & the front loaders I preferred to use were broken more often than not. Handwashing would have been a very viable option during that transition time.
Yes, handwashing takes some time, but it’s doable. Very doable.
eta** In the time it took me to post this entry the flats had dried in the sun. Hooray!**
See what others have to say about what they’ve learned. Clink the link below.
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