Environmentally Friendly Disposable Nappies?

[Nickbar]

Our beautiful two month old daughter is producing a lot of disposable nappies, as they do. The black bin used to go out every two month or so but now its every two weeks, and 80% of it is nappies. I hate the thought of all that going to landfill, but don't think we have the time, energy or inclination to go down the terry cloth reusable nappy route. Just seen the (allegedly) biodegradable moltex nappies from ecobaby. But Dublin council won't accept them in the new brown bins, although other co. councils apparently will. Our compost bin would be full within a few days using them too. So has anyone used them and what are they like both for baby and environment? Can they be disposed of easily and in a green way? Or are there other alternatives I'm missing
Thanks
Nick

[sidhe.eire]

hey nick
I have used moltex nappies for the past 2 years, they work fine just like any other nappy maybe not as absorbent but no major difference...they have less plastic in them and their not bleached, but i would imagine they still take a while to break down..the bags they come in still haven't really broken down properly in my compost bin though they say they should??

i didn't even realise that some councils take them for recycling but it makes no difference now as i have started using towelling nappies and i love them!!
It feels so much better not throwing out so many nappies all the time and even though it takes a bit more work its worth it, as well as the money it saves you, i got all mine on jumbletown and freecycle too...

i do a wash every 3 days and one day to dry so you need about 20 - 25 inners and around 5 outer wet proof covers also cutting up old fleese clothing into small rectangles to put on top of the inner cotton keeps the urine away from their skin, with the liner on top for the solids...

it only takes a while to get used to and my son doesnt seem to mind at all infact im hoping because they dont hold the urine away from the skin as good as regular nappies, that he'll toilet train quicker for me!! but time will tell on that one :)

If you decide to buy moltex buy them in bulk because they can be anything from 17 - 19 euro depending on where you get them, i used to get them off the wholesalers who supply the health food shops (not much cheaper though), but i found a place in the UK that sell them in bulk and they work out at 10 euro a pack which is brilliant and you wont run out as much either...their website is www.spiritofnature.co.uk

sorry about the essay!! Hope it all works out for you
take care
sidhe.eire

[paprika]

Hi Nickbar,

first congratulations to the little girl!
I use the washable nappies, too as sidh.eire and they are no hassle at all. Many people think it is really tyring and so, but all the extra work you have to do is to chuck them into a pail instead of the bin and when it's full put it into the washing machine and it washes them for you, then you put them on the line to dry and that's it. I have a load every 2-3 days, and they dry in front of the fire during the night. They are very comfortable, I use mostly bambino mio ones, I think they are from the UK, and for short times kushies ones from Canada. I have a load from a Hungarian brand too, MoNaPel, they are very good too, and as they are adjustable you can use them up until your baby is 16kg, and as my girl is really small, that's until about she's gonna be potty trained. I actually found these to be the best (and the cheapest...).
The kushies and MoNaPel cost about 10-16 euros per nappy and the pants are 14 euros. Not sure about the bambino mio, as I got those as a present.
I heard about the biodegradable disposable nappies only recently, but I doubt they would degrade much faster then the normal nappies. Plus the washable nappies are made of cotton and coconut fibre (some) and they can be reused in the garden against weeds or just as plain wash rags in cleaning the house.
Oh, and when she is on solids for the "big thing" there are flushable biodegradable liners, so just lift them out with the contents and put into the loo.
They worked out fine for me in the last 14 month and my little one seems happy with them. As I change them frequently no nappy rash, she had it only twice during this time. Have to admit though, if I'm away from the house for more than one nappy change-time I use disposables...
Sorry, for the lengthy reply, but I just simply love these nappies :)

Regards,
p

ps: the ad for the kushies said they can be used for the second child too, and now after one year I think it's true, also the others keep in shape qiute well, so for the second baby I'll have to buy only a few extra nappies and the pants, as the rubber in the pants dies after a while and you have to replace those.

[el_loco_blanco]

Boots have their own brand eco nappy that is worth looking at. Why not just use cloth nappies and then there is no dumping or composting! We use ones called Bum Genius and they are genius. We bought ours up North and paid £250. Thats not bad for something that will last them their whole nappy life! They look like a nappy and are very easy to wash too.

[Nickbar]

OK thanks for all the advice