the diaper dilemma...solved!

Like many people facing parenthood, d.w. and I have spent months mulling over the various financial and environmental costs of diapering, given the estimated 6,000 diaper changes we face over the next couple of years. We immediately dismissed disposable diapers as an option, because the environmental cost is simply too great. While their post-consumer environmental impact isn't as great an issue for us (because garbage goes to our town's power plant for electricity generation — I know, it surprised me to hear that too), I just hate the idea of using petroleum-based plastics unnecessarily. We thought about the happier Seventh Generation ones, but that would probably leave us with the financial choice of paying for either diapers or heat. In an Iowa winter, I have a feeling I'd vote for heat.

And besides, they all (Seventh Generation notably excepted) have those goddamn cutesy TV cartoon characters all over them. I mean really, how early does branding need to begin? I would rather be mauled by a pack of ravenous chipmunks than hear the words, "Hey, look at my Dora the Explorer(R) ultrasound pictures! I'm so excited about my Disney(R) baby, brought to you by Barbie(R)!"

And they reek. We bought a pack of newborn-size diapers (Ohmigod! They're so tiny!) to use during the first week or two, and now the zygote's room smells like some demented chemist's approximation of "baby powder meets formaldehyde, with a touch of Lysol". And you expect me to stick that diaper WHERE?

That said, I feel it necessary to stick in a good word for disposables. After all, my father-in-law spent his career as a chemist in the paper division at Proctor and Gamble. So in a way, Pampers put d.w. through college, and for that I am grateful. Of course, even he used cloth diapers on his kids. Perhaps he was a little too familiar with all the crap they put in diapers during manufacturing. At least, that's the logic behind his not eating mayonnaise anymore...

I haven't asked too many specifics about that one. But I must say I can never look at potato salad the same way again...

So for us it was a choice between cloth and gDiapers. (Well, I suppose we could try the whole infant-potty-training thing like the good people at Green Parenting, but I really haven't the will.)

If you haven't yet learned of the awesomeness of gDiapers (Um...did I just use "awesomeness" and "diapers" in the same sentence? Yikes...), they are an Australian concept employing a washable nylon outer cover and a flushable liner made from sustainably-harvested wood fiber. They're even Cradle to Cradle-certified. Simply brilliant. They've been discussed a lot more thoughtfully at I Hate Snaps, Treehugger, and Daddy Types (and I'm probably missing a few places), so I'll keep the expounding to a minimum.

So it was either that or cloth. And while I won't reproduce the entirety of the debate here, I'll give you the one sticking point to which we kept coming back: the expense. I know, can you believe it wasn't the thought of washing human feces-laden diapers several times a week? The thought of heightened fecal involvement isn't nearly so bothersome as is coming up with many hundreds of dollars' worth of diapers at the same time as, HELLO???, we're also trying to get everything else ready for the little guy. Yes, yes, I know they're less expensive in the long run, but we won't be on food stamps in "the long run." We're on food stamps now. And now is when we also need diapers.

(Just an aside: do you have any idea how fucked up the food stamp system is? You could buy absolutely nothing but Mountain Dew and Twinkies, and that would be just peachy — and believe me I've seen it, more than once. But you can't buy vitamins. Or energy bars. It's mind-blowing, really. And another thing: remind me to NEVER EVER EVER complain about taxes. EVER. Thank you, taxpayers of Iowa. Your generosity will not be forgotten.)

Anyway, here's the deal: in the end we didn't have to make any decision at all. A garage sale and thrift store phenom, d.w found a complete set of all the cloth diapers we will ever need at a garage sale around the corner. For forty bucks.

Now all we need is a baby.

Comments

[Papa Bradstein]

Yes, you do need a baby. When is that zygote ever going to arrive out here, where we can see cute pictures of it? OK, I'm done being impatient...for now.

As for the diapers, if you're like us, all the fecal involvement will integrate with your lives faster than you imagine possible when you get started. However, you'll never say, "Holy crap!" the same way again.

[Amy]

Jackpot! Then as the babe outgrows them, sell them on eBay and buy the next size up there too.

Also, just for fun, cut one of those disposables in half and pour water on it. Amazing, but creepy.

[Kaz]

Hey, congrats on making one of the tougher decisions in pre-parenting!

Good luck with it! We started with cloth, but didn't have the will power to stick with it. Especially not once we found gDiapers.

We were fortunate, however, to not have to factor cost in as such an important factor.

Either way, you are doing better for our planet (and our children's planet) than if you used disposable!

[dear wife]

Actually they are the Motherease one size fits all diapers, so we really are set for the rest of the diapering years, just need to upgrade cover sizes.

[NYC Dad]

What's the cost break down on the gDiapers? We've got our 2nd on the way and this is going to be an issue for us.

[samantha jo campen]

I already have it planned out that we are going to use Motherease one-size diapers. Let me know how it goes. And that is AWESOME you found a whole set for ONLY $40!! New it's almost $400 (which is still a bargain considering disposables would be $2000 in the long run). SO super congrats on a wonderful choice and a fabulous bargain. Can't wait to hear how it goes!!!

And hurry up with that baby!

[zygote daddy]

NYC Dad: From a brief look on Froogle, a starter kit (2 covers and 10 liners) is $25, and the liners themselves work out to about 35-45 cents apiece.

That's 2-3 times the cost of most disposables, but if you factor in two years of accumulated karmic debt (and man, those interest payments will just kill you), it works out about the same... :)

[miah]

we do cloth. you can wash them at home easily, by the way. also...you could consider ecing. elimination communication, potty whispering, whatever you want to call it. we haven't changed a poo diaper of lila's in several months & she's just ten months old. it's easier than you'd think, makes the kid happy, and definately, i cannot imagine choosing to change poopy diapers everyday...they sell little pottys at the ec store.

[miah]

btw...if you want to read about our ecing, its at http://www.grizzlybird.net/2006/04/index.html#elimi

or there are lots of sites out there.

[Henitsirk]

I did cloth diapers until baby #2 came. Then I didn't want to deal with that much laundry. I used Nikky wool diaper covers with great success, they let the skin breathe but don't get really wet, and they handled poop blowouts well. Had to buy multiple sizes though. And I kept all those cloth diapers, they still make good changing table covers and I'm using them as night time inserts in the 4-year-old's paper diapers until he's totally dry at night.

We used Seventh Generation until our income could no longer support them, now we get paper diapers at Target, because they're affordable and they're unscented.

As far as the characters, my kids have never noticed them, probably because they have zero exposure to media anyway. Target diapers have Care Bears in pretty muted colors and we just go with a "don't ask, don't tell" policy!

The environmental question is a big one, probably impossible to answer. Your trash goes to your local power plant...so I'm assuming that means the trash is burned? And how well are the emissions scrubbed? And does that power plant then produce the electricity to heat all the hot water to wash those cloth diapers, or does it come from some lovely coal or nuclear power plant? How much petro energy did it take to get my diapers to my local Target compared to shipping my Nikky diaper covers from Japan? Where does the energy come from to power up the water treatment plant that handles the poopy wash water?