The gDiapers Solves the Poopy Diaper Conundrum, Or Does It?
Although, initially I had opted for Organic Cloth Diapers; plans changed when I realized that I would have to wash them daily. Since I do not own a washer or a dryer; this posed a problem. I was still resistant to the idea of disposables, (after the umbilical cord came off that is) so I decided to try out the supposedly Eco-friendly gDiapers. Even Julia Roberts is a fan of them.
Marketing itself as the solution to the poopy diaper conundrum;(disposable diapers are filling up the landfills and cloth diapers uses lots of water) gdiaper is the hybrid of the two. It has the cotton outer pants, with nylon liner, and flushables made out of wood pulp and super absorbing gel (sodium polyacrylate). This is the part that made me weary. Although it’s supposed to be “safe for humans and environment” according to their website, this is the stuff that’s been taken out of tampons because of its link to Toxic Shock Syndrome.
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Further more, Breastfed babies might have a problem with this diaper. Daily (even several) blowouts are notorious in infants especially during the early weeks. Although the website claimed that poop would rarely get on the cotton pants, it happened with every single blow out. So I had the inserts, no clean pants. And I am not the only one who had this gdiaper problem. Although they recommend four, (and I had five) you would probably need about eight or nine. Each outer pants are $16.99 and comes in two sizes. So you would have to get more when your baby reached 14 lbs. It’s a hefty investment to make, and the inserts are $52 per case with 160 small flushables which would run you about over $100 a month. Disposables run about $50 to $80 and Cloth Diapers $25 to $60 per month. It is the most expensive diaper option.
The gdiapers are also very labor intensive. I had to clip on the nylon and then tuck in the inserts. It was too damn time consuming for a mother of a newborn. Ok, it’s obvious, I am not a huge fan of these gdiapers. But it does have it’s good points. To break it down
The Good
- Cotton Outer Pants are Adorable. Baby could wear it with a shirt in the summer and it would be an instant outfit.
- Chlorine Free
- Certified Cradle to Cradle
- The flushables are actually quite ingenious; it doesn’t stink up the house the way disposable and cotton will.
- It does flush down pretty well. Just remember to rip it apart and use the swisher stick.
- You can compost the wet diapers if you are concerned about water conservation.
- Customer service was very prompt in their response and very cordial. Unused inserts can be returned for refund or exchanged for a bigger size if outgrown.
The bad
- Do not like the gel that’s in the insert no matter how much they say “it’s safe” Phthalate and BPA were once considered safe too.
- Expensive
- Poop got on the Cotton pants everytime and had to be washed all the time.
- Too much effort with clipping in nylon and inserts
With these factors in mind, I decided to go with cloth and deal with the daily laundry. I am slowly transitioning into cloth Hemp and Cotton Blend Diapers) and Tushies Disposable Cholorine Free and Gel Free Diaper when convenience is needed. Although gdiapers were good in theory; It just didn’t work for me.
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[...] sure to comment and let us know how gDiapers work for you and your family. And take a peek at this blog for comments from real gDiapers users to learn [...]
I love the idea of gDiapers and can’t wait to try them with my next child. I know they will be more costly than conventional diapers but to me, the safety of my child from chemicals and the benefit to the Earth is worth it. I actually found a coupon for gDiapers and posted about it on Dealio.com. Check out this link to see the post and the coupon details…. pretty good deal!
http://www.dealio.com/blog/2009/01/amazon-coupon-alert-20-off-eco-friendly-gdiapers/
We have used g-diapers since our son was a week old. So far its worked out much better than disposables. He is not as red or rashy, and although I agree that snapping in the liners takes work, it seems like just a little more work than the disposables. Haven’t tried cloth or cloth inserts, but they’re not an option for us right now. As far as blowouts, etc., we have not encountered anything out of the ordinary. Have seen the occasional blowout with disposables, but the odd thing with the g’s is that it seems like blowouts occur more often the tighter the diapers are strapped onto him.
all in all, we’re happy with the gdiapers.
I have used the inserts for gDiapers in regular diaper covers. I purchased proRaps seconds and paid $4.50 each for them. In size small, I have 10 covers and find that there are times when they are all dirty. This way you could have more covers at the beginning when they poop every hour. They are also super easy to hand wash if you wanted to purchase less covers.
As they get older and have fewer blow outs, gDiapers work better if you don’t have a washing machine… or you could make a whole bunch of liners for your gDiapers from receiving blankets.
I just want to say we LOVE g diapers and have been using it for about a month now. I found that they are even selling at Babies R Us and am really excited that it is taking off. After doing many blog readings online, I have found a lot of parents on the fence about this product.
I understand that g diapers were made with the intent to have a flushable liner but we use the product with a basic trifold cloth insert.
With this said, I really know and understand that the product was not made for cloth in mind-but I think it is an amazing product for such a use!
I have told everyone about the cost effectiveness and about the lack of bulk compared to the other cloth diapers out their (due to the elasticity). As well as the lack of washing both the inside and outside every time! So there is less washing, but still no leaking…yeah!
My husband and I found over 2 years:
disposable -$2,000 + and NEVER green
“modern” cloth diaper-$500+ and GREEN
g diapers with cloth inserts-$150+ and GREEN
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We started gDiapers with my son when he was 8 months old, after using every different brand of sposies for most of his life and always battling diaper rash. Within a week of using g’s, his diaper rash was completely gone! One of our biggest reasons for getting the g’s instead of cloth was because we only had a coin-op laundry and couldn’t afford to wash dipes all the time. We used g’s until he was 23 months old and potty trained… the transition went SO well! When our baby girl was born (at almost 9 pounds), we used the 7th Generation until she got to 13 pounds, then started using the medium sized gPants. Still love them for her! I recently bought the gCloth inserts, and use them at home. Love those too! We have our own washer/dryer now and with 15 gPants and 12 gCloths, we’re doing laundry SO much less often than a friend that uses BumGenius dipes. I “sell” everyone I know gDiapers. More and more of my friends and family are trying them and loving them!!
We love these diapers. Super easy to use and great on both my toddler and newborn. Love the fun color! Also, though I always flush, they can also just be tossed in the garbage if you are not sure about your toilet. Since the inserts have zero plastic, they will stil biodegrade in under 150 days, not several hundred years like disposables.
Though they can be somewhat expensive, I have a great coupon for $30 off an Everyday G’s six pack (3 orange and 3 vanilla) So you get 6 covers for only $40, that is less than $7 a cover. Just use coupon code g1492Torres. You can’t go wrong!
Hi! If anyone is still interested in using gDiapers (they now have cloth inserts as well as flushable refills) Everyday g’s six pack, 3 orange and 3 vanilla and now available for just $40!! I promise, this is no scam! the price is usually $70, but until the end of the month, when you enter the code, $30 comes off!!! Go to gDiapers.com and at check-out,Just enter in the coupon code g832Mulhern (case sensitive) and get a great deal! 6 gDiapers for only $40!! i have been using them for months, and I love them. They work just a well as disposables!
I have been using gdiapers with my second since she was a newborn(she’s now 3 months). She is exclusively breastfed and the gdiapers rarely leak even wih those explosive poops. I’ve had a few leaks when the diaper is pretty full when she poops, but only onto the gpant at the legs, never up the back, and never on her clothing, and even this is pretty rare. Maybe you weren’t fitting them quite right? You have to make sure the edges of the liner are right in the creases of their legs, then fasten the pants, then pull up front and back to ensure a good seal.
I’ve been using gdiapers with my newborn (after the cord fell off) and love them. I started using EC at 3 weeks and it has really cut down on poopy diapers. I use cloth while around the house and use the gdiapers while on outing or overnight. No problem with blowouts but HERE’S A TRICK TO AVOID BLOWOUTS - I turn the paper edge underneath the inner, absorbent liner when I’m stuffing them into the plastic liner. you really need to get a seal, if the insert is bunching that is where you will get a blow out.