Eight Reasons to Make the Switch: Cloth Wipes

So you use cloth diapers, but you haven’t yet taken the plunge into cloth wipes? The ‘hard’ part is already done and the switch to cloth wipes can be just as rewarding and liberating as when you switched to diapers. Is it really worth switching though? Wipes are pretty cheap after all and they don’t add that much to landfills do they?!? I personally believe cloth wipes are far superior to their disposable counterparts and I probably find them even more efficient than I do my cloth diapers. Don’t get me wrong, I love my diapers, but the wipes, those babies have a million uses! Still on the fence? Here are my top reasons why you should make the switch.

1. Savings - $$$. One of the biggest reasons I chose to cloth diaper  was to save money.  I was about to have two babies in cloth and we’re a single income family.  Diapers are expensive!  Now growing my third baby, I’m so glad to already have a stash of diapers and wipes readily available.  It’s one new baby item I don’t have to even think about.  So how much can cloth wipes save you?  Well, let’s say at the minimum you use one $2 tub of wipes a week, now that’s on the highly conservative side.  At that rate, you’re saving $104 per year that you use cloth wipes.  If you make your wipes out of old receiving blankets, you don’t even have to take away the investment in cloth wipes. 
2. They help keep our earth clean.  If you use disposable wipes, you have to throw them in the garbage.  Sure, there are brands that are biodegradable, but many aren’t.  And as many wipes as babies and toddlers go through, that’s a whole lot of extra waste in our landfills.
3. They’re easier.  Seriously.  If you already cloth diaper, it’s so much easier to throw both dirty diapers and wipes in one place.  If it’s just a pee diaper, you just toss the wipes and diaper into the diaper pail and you’re done. No trip to the diaper pail AND the garbage pail. 
4. They’re softer and gentler on baby’s bottom.  Depending on the material you choose for your cloth wipes, they can be some of the softest, buttery-est (yes, I made that word up) pieces of cloth to touch your baby’s bum.  You choose the solution you put in the cloth wipes so you control exactly what touches your babies bum.  No rashes from wipes that irritate sensitive bottoms!
5. They work better.  I was so disappointed in disposable wipes when I had my first child. It could easily take ten wipes to clean up one poop and that many wipes really started to add up cost wise.  When we made the switch to cloth wipes, I was amazed!  No more ten wipe poops.  One cloth wipe can do the work of MANY disposables because they’re sturdier and hold up better.
6. On that note…no poopy hands!  I know you’ve all been there.  You go to wipe a poop and bam, goes through that flimsy disposable wipe and onto your hand!  That simply doesn’t happen with cloth wipes.  They’re thicker and I can honestly say, poop’s never soaked through a cloth wipe and onto my hand.
7. They multi-task like no disposable wipe ever will.  Sure, you’d wipe your kids face and hands with a disposable wipe.  But would you use one for a nosebleed, a scrape, a washcloth?!?  Nope!  But cloth wipes can do all that and more.  They will long outlast your diaper days giving you even more of your money’s worth.
8. They’re highly customizable. With cloth wipes, you can really get a wipe to suit all your needs.  You can choose everything from the fabric type down to the print.  You can choose the thickness, even the size. You even get to control the solution the wipes get used with.

Have I convinced you yet? Are you thinking about switching to cloth wipes? Give it a try, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Bio: Ashley is a stay at home mom with two crazy, fun loving little boys and one surprise on the way. She blogs about life with young children and her adventures with them including sewing, cloth diapers, green living, and every day parenting at: MabeWithLove.WordPress.com.


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