How to Cloth Diaper While Traveling
For many new parents who are interested in cloth diapering, it's easy enough to imagine doing it at home. On the other hand, the idea of cloth diapering while traveling may be enough to persuade some parents that they'd be better off with disposables. Many parents even cloth diaper at home, but use disposables while traveling. While this works fine in a pinch, all it takes to make the cloth diapers work is a bit of extra planning and preparation.
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Instructions
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If you use a bucket system at home, get at least one large, water-resistant diaper storage bag to cloth diaper while traveling. These bags fold up small but hold plenty of diapers, keeping your other belongings clean and dry. You can also throw them in the laundry with the diapers, which is very convenient.
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Do laundry as shortly before leaving home as is workable, so that you will have the largest possible number of clean diapers for your trip.
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Pack detergent, especially if your diaper system requires anything special or can be harmed by normal detergents. If you'll only need to wash diapers once, you can add a scoop of detergent directly to the diaper bag and then dump the whole thing in the washer. If you'll be doing laundry a few times, bring a small box or bottle of detergent, or measure out as much as you will need into a reusable container.
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Pack pre-moistened wipes to cloth diaper while traveling, since you may not have access to a sink when you need to change diapers. Buy a small package of disposable wipes, which are very convenient and create much less waste than disposable diapers, or fill a reusable water-tight container with damp cloth wipes.
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Keep track of your stock of diapers while traveling, and make sure to take the opportunity to do laundry if you have access to facilities at a laundromat or in someone's home. Don't wait to think about the wash until you're down to one or two clean diapers, since at that point it may be too late to figure out how to do the laundry.
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Tips & Warnings
Two reusable diaper bags can be even better than one. With this system, you can keep the clean diapers in one bag and transfer the dirty ones to the other. Wash the dirty bag along with the diapers, and repeat the entire process.
In a pinch it is possible to wash cloth diapers by hand. Use hot water, plan to rinse many times, then wring each diaper out thoroughly to reduce drying time.
