My mathematically-inclined sister wanted to verify the claims that disposable diapers would save money over cloth. The source of the data she was pointed to included the cost of a brand new washer and dryer as part of the cost. Of course, those two items amounted to about 90% of the overall cost of using cloth diapers.
I doubt if the cost included the number of hours spent actually doing the washing and drying, but the cost of a set of cloth diapers + water + detergent + bleach is nothing compared to the cost of disposables.
There were times when dunking a diaper seemed like it just wasn’t worth it but after pricing disposables “one more time”, we just kept on doing it. We figured they weren’t going to be in diapers forever and we were right. Rolling up a yucky disposable and tossing it does seem easier but there’s that whole biohazard thing of human waste in a landfill people forget about. I don’t think home-laundered diapers for one baby are that labor intensive; at least they weren’t for us. Plus, we already had a washer and dryer (been married since 1982) so we didn’t have to invest in that. Also, when babies are no longer wearing the diapers, those cotton things are great for other uses around the house. It may not be practical for everyone but we still think we made the right choice.
There were times when dunking a diaper seemed like it just wasn’t worth it but after pricing disposables “one more time”, we just kept on doing it. We figured they weren’t going to be in diapers forever and we were right. Rolling up a yucky disposable and tossing it does seem easier but there’s that whole biohazard thing of human waste in a landfill people forget about. I don’t think home-laundered diapers for one baby are that labor intensive; at least they weren’t for us. Plus, we already had a washer and dryer (been married since 1982) so we didn’t have to invest in that. Also, when babies are no longer wearing the diapers, those cotton things are great for other uses around the house. It may not be practical for everyone but we still think we made the right choice.