Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Traveling with Cloth Diapers


The holiday season is now in full swing. Whether it be local family gatherings or longer car and/
or plane rides, almost everyone will be going somewhere during the holidays. With this travel
comes the decision every cloth mom or dad needs to make… “Will I be taking my cloth diapers
with us while traveling this holiday?”

At first the decision to travel with cloth diapers may be overwhelming and even a little
daunting, but don’t let the fears and worries overtake you. Cloth diapering on the road is a lot
easier than it seems. Add in a few helpful tips and you will have a fully mobile cloth diapering
experience for the holidays! Check out these suggestions to make travelling with cloth diapers a
joy this holiday season.

1) Pack what you need, don’t exceed. Now this depends on how long you will be traveling
for. If it is just overnight, then you don’t need to worry about washing until you get
home. But if this is for an extended period of time, and you will have access to a
washing machine, you will only want to pack enough diapers for 2 days at a time. If
where you are staying allows you to wash your diapers on a daily basis, you can pack
even fewer diapers. But remember, you don’t want to spend your entire holiday
washing diapers. The key is to pack enough so you won’t be doing laundry every day,
but not so many that they take up all of your luggage.

2) Don’t be afraid to supplement with disposables. It is ok and perfectly fine to
supplement with disposables. Don’t feel guilty. Using disposables may be practical for
the actual travel time itself, or maybe just at night-time. Whatever the reason may
be, don’t feel that you need to use your cloth diapers the entire time you travel. Give
yourself a break, traveling for the holidays should be fun, you shouldn’t have to worry
about the how’s, why’s, what if’s of your cloth diapers. If it causes too much stress just
supplement here and there.

3) Biodegradable flushable liners are a great option for. If you are addicted to your diaper
sprayer like me, you are totally lost when it comes to traveling with cloth diapers. I have
learned that sometimes it is easier to use a biodegradable flushable liner in your diapers
to catch the poop. Simply lay the liner over the diaper. Once baby poops simply dump in
toilet and flush away.

4) Hanging Zippered Diaper Pail is very helpful when traveling. Instead of having to set-
up an entire diaper pail, just hang the bag up, toss the diapers, zip up and you are done!
This will keep the smell of your diapers sealed while looking neat and tidy. These pails
fold up nicely too.

5) There are many options for washing your cloth diapers. Washing your cloth diapers is
probably the most challenging part of traveling with cloth diapers. You are most likely in a new place with new washing machines, or lack of washing machines. Here are some
options for washing your cloth diapers while traveling. Figure out which works the best
for your particular situation:

a. Hand Wash – This would probably be best if you only have a few diapers and
have practiced hand-washing before. Might not want to try this out for the first
time while traveling for the holidays. I was able to hand wash my cloth diapers
in the bath tub of a hotel we were staying at. It worked very well. The only thing
I recommend is bring some cleaning solution for after the wash if you intend on
using the tub or shower.

b. Ask to use a Family or Friend’s Washing Machine – If they agree, you are all set.
Just remember that the amount of detergent and the settings may differ slightly
from what you are used to depending on the type of washing machine you use
or the type of water they have.

c. Use the Laundromat – This will be similar to using a friends or family member’s
washing machine except you will have to pay for the wash. To avoid doing 3
loads of laundry (Rinse, Wash, Rinse), you might want to do a thorough rinse
with cold water where you are staying, then you only have to pay for 1 Hot wash.
If you have access to a drying rack, you could even air dry to save a few bucks on
the dryer.

d. Wait until you get home – if you will only be gone for 2-3 days, you might be
able to wait and wash when you get home. I will leave this up to your best
judgment. You can easily rinse out each diaper in the toilet or tub and do a full
wash when you get home.

I hope this article helps you to realize that traveling with cloth diapers can be done and is easier
than you might think. With a little planning and some cute fluff, your cloth diapers can travel
with you this holiday season.

Contributed by: Julie

1 comment:

  1. I really appreciate #2 - we definitely do a combo while traveling. This proved important when it turned out that we couldn't use the dryer where we were staying and had to hang dry.

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