Frugal Friday

[ecosophia]

Welcome back to Frugal Friday!  This is a weekly forum post to encourage people to share tips on saving money, especially but not only by doing stuff yourself. A new post will be going up every Friday, and will remain active until the next one goes up. Contributions will be moderated, of course, and I have some simple rules to offer, which have changed as we've proceeded. (As things have settled down to a nice steady conversational pace, for example, I've deleted the rules about only one tip per person per week and about limiting the length of comments; I was worried early on about people flooding the forum with too much too fast, but I think we're past that risk.)

Rule #1:  this is a place for polite, friendly conversations about how to save money in difficult times. It's not a place to post news, views, rants, or emotional outbursts about the reasons why the times are difficult and saving money is necessary. Nor is it a place to use a money saving tip to smuggle in news, views, etc.  I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.

Rule #2:  this is not a place for you to sell goods or services, period. Here again, I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.

Rule #3:  please give your tip a heading that explains briefly what it's about.  Homemade Chicken Soup, Garden Containers, Cheap Attic Insulation, and Vinegar Cleans Windows are good examples of headings. That way people can find the things that are relevant for them. If you don't put a heading on your tip it will be deleted.

Rule #4: don't post anything that would amount to advocating criminal activity. Any such suggestions will not be put through.

With that said, have at it!

Comments

Cloth Diaper recommendations

[(Anonymous)]

We just finished using cloth diapers; week three with only training pants! :)

We used disposable newborn diapers, then size one fitted diapers with size one covers for the first few months, then due to surgery switched to disposables, then finally went to one-size pocket diapers with cotton pre-folds wrapped around bamboo boosters as inserts. I didn't use a service and laundered all the diapers myself.

If I were to do it again I would use flats with hook and loop sized covers. This is due to ease of laundering. Flats are just a large fabric square and the hook and loop sized diaper covers don't have the second layer of TPU that snaps require. It is significantly easier to get soiling out of a single layer of fabric.

The covers are reusable (usually 3-4 changes) so you should be able to get away with only 3-4 for each size and 36 should be a good starting number for flats. Thirsties makes good diaper covers, Osocosy is a affordable brand for flats, pre-folds, or fitted diapers, and Snappi is considered to be the best fastener for flats or pre-folds (but if you're willing to add plastic snaps to the flats, I think those are the best.)

As for laundry routine I suggest a 5 gallon bucket with a screw on lid and a hand held shower head on a extra long shower hose. Add detergent to the bucket and fill half full with hot water. Rinse each newly dirty diaper out in the tub and add them to the bucket. Don't forget to screw the lid back on with enough force that the baby can't get it off. When the bucket is full or every second day empty the water into the tub, rinse again if there is a strong odor, and wash in the machine. Pre-treated diapers can be washed with other laundry. Covers can be washed in the machine, but should be hung to dry out of direct sunlight.

If staining is an issue I suggest getting a small hand held wash board (the kind that hooks around your thumb) and scrub the area with soap before adding it to the bucket.

When diaper rash happens don't use a cream or paste because it will "waterproof" the flats. What I have done is use provodone-iodine in a spray bottle and just sprayed the red areas. It seems more effective that using zinc creams and has the added benefit of washing out of fabrics easily.

Laundry detergent choice matters, but I've found that the unscented Kirkland brand detergents liquid or powder work well and have no long term build up issues. This home-made detergent recipe is also diaper safe:

https://www.budget101.com/do-it-yourself/3993-original-moms-super-laundry-sauce-laundry-soap-recipe/