Everything You Need to Know About All-in-One Cloth Diapers

So you’re thinking about cloth diapering? That’s awesome! I think it is important to look at all options before making a final decision when it comes to anything baby-related. You will be dealing with diapers for ~ 2+ years, or more if you choose to have multiple children. Time should be spent considering the pros and cons of each diapering option.

After much research, I personally decided to diaper my kids with all-in-one cloth diapers. Below I’ll discuss my reasons why I chose cloth diapers, why I love all-in-ones, my cloth diapering supplies, how to clean the diapers, and give you tips I’ve learned along the way. I hope you find this information helpful in making your own decisions about diapering!

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The Decision to Cloth Diaper

There are tons of reasons to cloth diaper instead of using disposables. I’m sure you already know them so I won’t go into detail. But for me, the environmental impact, the money savings, and the health of my babies were the leading determinants for me.

Read More: Disposable versus Cloth

After more than two years of cloth diapering I couldn’t be happier with my decision. I even cloth diapered two kids at the same time for six months and it was no big deal!

Why All-in-Ones?

I’m a planner, as you can probably tell from the title of my blog. I knew I wanted to cloth diaper but how did I decide to select all-in-ones (also known as AIOs)? The convenience factor.

All-in-Ones

All-in-one cloth diapers are so simple to use. After washing the diapers there are no extra steps, unlike the other cloth diaper options. All the material is attached. There’s no stuffing, pinning, or inserting. Once the diaper is soiled you just toss it in the diaper pail. Easy!

Read More: Types of Cloth Diapers

For me, I find that AIOs are closest to disposable diapers in terms of convenience but with the benefits of cloth diapers.

Pockets

Pocket cloth diapers would be my second choice. I have two and use them regularly in my rotation. I don’t feel that they are as absorbent but you could always stuff them with more inserts it just gets bulky. They are still easy to wash. I don’t take the soiled insert out. It comes out in the wash. A pro is that pocket diapers dry fast!

Hybrids

I think hybrids completely defeat the reasons why people choose to cloth diaper. I am not a fan at all. You would have to have two diaper pails. One for the biodegradable insert and one for the washable cover.

All-in-Twos

All-in-twos are fine but there is the added step of snapping the insert to the diaper cover. I found the all-in-twos took forever to dry and they stained the worst of all the cloth diapers I’ve tried. I have two but only use them if I absolutely have to.

Flats

Flat diapers I actually use on my changing pad to reduce how often I need to wash the changing pad cover. Sometimes in a pinch, I use a flat diaper for a burp cloth – works great. I’ve never used them as actual diapers. It seems like a lot more work and not as absorbent.

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Supply List

All-in-One Cloth Diapers (~30 – remember I had two kids in cloth diapers for six months so I bought a few more)

Cloth Wipes (36)

Wipe Warmer (1) 

Diaper Pail (1)

Diaper Pail Liners (2) – These fit perfectly in my diaper pail (see above).

Diaper Sprayer (1) – Also awesome to have when potty training!!

Wet Bag (1) 

First of all, if you are going to cloth diaper why would you use disposable wipes? Then you would need two methods of disposal. Second of all, cloth wipes are the greatest! I love my cloth wipes.

Read More: DIY Easy Cloth Wipes

The few times I have to use disposable wipes (when out of the house and on vacation) I hate them. You always have to use more than one, they rip, and the package never stays closed.

You will want two diaper pail liners. When you remove a liner with all the dirty diapers and wipes, you throw that liner in the wash with all the soiled items. A clean liner is obviously needed to place in the diaper pail.

Until your baby turns six months old you can just throw the dirty diaper in the diaper pail. No extra steps needed. But once you start introducing solids the baby’s poops will also start to become more solid.

At this point, you will want to shake or spray (see diaper sprayer above) the poop into your toilet. It really is not a big deal. Often just a quick flick does the trick. I have found the diaper sprayer is amazing to use during potty training for cleaning out the little toilet’s bowl!

A wet bag is essential when traveling with cloth diapers. Unlike disposable, you don’t throw your diapers away so you will need somewhere to store the soiled cloth diapers until you get back home. Wet bag to the rescue! It’s also great for swimsuits, dirty clothes, etc – you may want more than one.

Laundry Time

Not going to lie, cloth diapers do require more laundry. If you are a person who loathes doing laundry I might suggest that cloth diapers are not for you.

I don’t mind the chore of laundry and really cloth diapers only add about three extra loads a week. Plus, with all-in-ones there are no extra steps involved after drying (no snapping, stuffing, or fancy folding).

Here is the process I use to wash my cloth diapers:

My biggest mistake when starting to cloth diaper is that I put in WAY TOO MUCH laundry detergent. Read the bottle you use to make sure you are using the correct amount. I personally use Tide Free & Gentle and it works great.

I’ve only had to strip my cloth diapers once in more than two years. At the time, the smell emanating from them was crazy when my daughter would urinate. It was very obvious when the cloth diapers needed to be stripped.

Read More: How to Strip Cloth Diapers

I think my cloth diapers got a lot of build-up because I was using too much laundry detergent. Since I have corrected the amount I have had no issues at all.

Pros and Cons

Pros

There are a number of advantages to choosing all-in-one cloth diapers.

• Cute patterns and colors

• Fewer blow-outs (by far!)

• Saves money

• Grows with the child

• More environmentally-friendly

• Less diaper rash (if any!)

• Easy to use

• And more!!

Cons

There are some cons of course to selecting all-in-one cloth diapers.

• More laundry

• Slightly longer drying time

• Bulky (but cushions their falls better!)

• Hard to travel with on long vacations

• Less overnight protection

• Expensive up-front costs

Final Tips

Lastly, learn from my mistakes;

1. Don’t buy the newborn size. Skip right over it because the babies will outgrow them in the first two weeks of life.

2. Don’t purchase the all-in-ones with velcro, always get the snaps!

3. It is okay to use disposable diapers when you need to. We use disposables overnight and on vacations. Don’t beat yourself up about it.

Have any questions about All-in-One cloth diapers? Ask in the comments below.