How Many Nappies Do You Need?

The number of nappies you will need in your stash will depend on a number of different factors. Some of these factors are:
- How frequently you are using cloth nappies.
- Size of your washing machine and washing frequency.
- The way you are drying your nappies.
- How many children you have in cloth nappies.

How Frequently You Use Cloth Nappies

If you are using cloth nappies full time during the day you will use anywhere between 4-8 nappies. This number will depend on how much absorbency you have in your nappy, how much your baby wees, and needs to account for any of those unexpected incidents throughout the day.

If you are doing cloth nappies part time, you might just use 1-4 nappies each day, depending on what you choose to do.

Size of Washing Machine and Wash Routine

If you have a larger washing machine it will take more days to fill up your machine with nappies for your main wash. For most people in cloth full time, with an 8Kg washing machine a main wash will happen typically every 2 days. If you have a larger machine then this will likely take 3 days to get it full to ensure things are getting washed properly. 

For those doing part time cloth, you are able to wash your nappies with small baby clothes for their second wash, so you may be adding these to your regular washing every 2-3 days.

The Way You Dry Your Nappies

There are many different ways to dry your cloth nappies, but in winter it can sometimes be a slow process! Octopus hangers are a great way to hang your nappies and inserts out and be able to move them around easily.

Inserts are able to be dried in the dryer, however this can be slow due to inserts having lots of layers. Shells are not recommended to go in the dryer due to the heat causing issues with the water resistant layer on the shells.

Drying outside is a fantastic option when the weather is fine, and my nappies will typically dry in a day over summer. It is recommended that shells are hung in the shade to ensure they stay in their best condition.

Over winter my ideal way to dry my nappies is to have them hung out in the room with the dehumidifier running. This helps to remove the moisture within 48 hours so they are ready for use again.

How Many Children You Have in Cloth Nappies

If you have multiple children in cloth nappies, you will need more nappies. It won't be double, as you will be washing more frequently, but you will need more to accommodate the additional use each day.

So How Many Nappies are Recommended?

For anyone wanting to do cloth nappies full time I would recommend having 30-35 cloth nappies. This ensure that you have enough for daily use, and can even have some sitting away in useful places in case of emergency!

For those doing part time cloth, or wanting to try to use a few each day I would recommend having 10 nappies. This would allow you to have a few to use each day, a few in the wash and a few drying, giving you the ability to reach for nappies when you want to use them. 

The good things about cloth nappies is if you start small and enjoy using them you can always add to your stash. This is also true if you find you are a few short, it is easy to add to what you already have to make your supply work for you and your routine.

Each person finds a routine which works best for them and their lifestyle, so I encourage you to experiment to find the routine which works best for you!

How Many Night Nappies are Needed?

If you are doing night nappies full time I would recommend having four night nappies for the dedicated set up. This allows you to wash them every two days, and allows for two drying days before needing to use them again.