Pocket Diaper Reviews ~ BumGenius 4.0

So, yesterday I reviewed Sunbaby because they are the majority of my stash. Today I am looking at the diaper that is probably in the majority of cloth diaper stashes: BumGenius 4.0.

I have to admit that I giggle a little bit whenever someone posts in a cloth diaper forum "Does anyone use BumGenius diapers? Are they any good?" It's a little bit like taking a poll of Americans and asking, "Has anyone ever tried a hamburger?" I get it though, the cloth diaper world is so overwhelming and when most people get into it, they don't expect to have to sift through so many brands and types and styles. Why would they have heard of BumGenius before? It's not like cloth diapers do mass marketing like disposable diaper companies. I have 6 of them that I bought while I was pregnant with Reagan on their famous Buy 5, Get 1 Free deal that runs all but maybe 3 months out of the year.

Anyway, about the diapers and why just about everyone who cloth diapers uses them. They are a PUL outer with a microsuede inner. They come with 2 microfiber inserts: a large one that snaps down to a small and medium setting and a small 2 layer insert marketed as a "newborn" insert. The one size insert is great, but the newborn insert is pretty much useless. My non-heavy wetting 1 month old soaked through it in about an hour when it was brand new. However, it is good as a doubler later on. I put them in a drawer for about a year and then started using them with the one size insert when Reagan hit about a year old. You can also get the BG 4.0 in snaps or aplix (velcro), making both sides of that debate happy. They come in a variety of colors and prints. Unfortunately for me, most of the colors and prints that I like, were released after I made my purchase.

Reagan (2 years) in a bumGenius 4.0

The Good:

1) Good quality diaper. Bum Genius are generally made of quality materials and hold up extremely well. Since Reagan is potty training, I am cleaning and organizing all of my girly diapers to sell and looking at my Blossom (light pink) diaper in aplix, it looks almost the same as the day I bought it. Minor wear and tear, but after 2 years of use, that's pretty amazing.

2) Resale Value. Since they hold up so well and are so popular, you can usually count on pretty great resale value. I see some bumGenius go for $12-$15 used if they are in excellent condition.

3) Reliable. I can almost always count on BG to not leak. It has long been my naptime staple diaper because I know that they will wake up dry.

4) They fit larger babies longer. I'm pretty sure that most 3 year olds could still fit into bumGenius. For moms looking for a diaper with longevity or just have bigger kids, this is a pretty good pick.

5) Good features. I like the back inside pocket and flap system - BG and Sunbaby are basically identical here. It makes for easy shaking out of the insert. I like the 3 across rise snaps because it gives a smooth look when snapped down to the smaller sizes without poofing out in the middle. And again like Sunbaby, PUL along the inside front prevents wicking.  Perhaps my favorite feature of the BG 4.0 is the stretchy tabs that make it so that you do not have to choose between pulling too far or gaping in the front. Genius! Oh, and the elastic is quite easy to replace and can be done without ripping seams or sewing. I haven't had to do it, but I'm glad it's an option.

6) Easy to use. Gotta love a one step diaper change that anyone can do.

Noah (4 months) in a bumGenius 4.0

The Bad:

1) Too wide for smaller babies. It took me about 18 months to love this diaper because they are just so darn wide! The bulk on little ones can be hard to overlook. Plus, they get so bunched up. They aren't great under clothes. Now, once my daughter hit about 18 months, they started to be a nice fitting, trim diaper. Since she stopped wearing diapers at 23 months, that means I got five months of use when I actually liked them.

2) Microsuede is not as soft as fleece. They just don't feel as cozy to me and I really do prefer fleece. Plus, some kids (including mine) can react to microsuede and get rashes more easily.  If either of my kids is in a microsuede inner diaper for more than 2 hours, I can count on some redness. This seemed to lessen on my daughter as she got older. However, they clean well and look great for a long time.

3) Terrible aplix. I almost never bought other velcro diapers because the aplix on the BG is just not good. My daughter could take them off by the time she was 7 months old. Not only is it not sticky enough, it just doesn't look good after awhile. Now that I've tried others with stronger aplix, I realize this is just a quality issue, not a necessary evil of velcro.

4) Shells manufactured in Egypt have sticky PUL. I have 6 of these diapers, four were manufactured in the USA and two were manufactured in Egypt. The ones from Egypt have really sticky PUL that makes stuffing pretty annoying.

5) Price. $18 might be considered a high price for a diaper. Although some would argue that you get what you pay for, I have not found that to be true in the cloth diaper world at all.


Overall:

I feel this diaper is a good staple to have in your stash. Most people like it, it does the job, it's easy to use and easy to clean. However, I feel like for a few more dollars, you can get diapers that are MUCH better and for 1/3 the price, you can get diapers that work just as well. Since it is kind of the hamburger of cloth diapers, I recommend at least trying them. Many cloth diaper families love them and think they are the best, I just suspect that many of those families haven't tried much else.

My Cloth Diaper Journey Part 2 ~ The Evolving Stash

Before my first child arrived, I had built what I thought was a complete stash. Ha! My first stash consisted of:

12 Sunbaby

6 Bum Genius 4.0

6 Econobum prefolds and covers

3 Rumparooz pocket shells without inserts

2 small Bum Genius 3.0 all in one

1 Flip cover and stay dry insert

2 Kushies "on the go" wetbag

2 Kissaluvs pail liners

Ok, so it wasn't a very smart stash. First of all, I didn't realize that econobum were a prefold/cover system until after I bought them. I wasn't interested in using prefolds, but I'm glad I ended up with them anyway since I used them at night for a long time. However, I didn't need 6 covers. There were on a bogo sale, and I didn't really know any better. I also didn't understand the ai2/hybrid system. One flip insert and one cover is pretty pointless. I don't even know why they sell them that way.

I started using cloth when my daughter was four weeks old. It didn't take long to figure out that I needed to make some changes. I bought a Flip daypack (2 covers and 6 inserts) and 3 Bottom Bumpers.

I went back to work when Reagan was 3 months old. I was sending pocket diapers to her babysitter because it seemed easier for her. Well, the pockets were getting used at daycare and that left me with my prefolds and flips. Wait a second, part of the appeal for me had been that new cloth diapers are as easy as disposables, but I was using 2 part systems. So, I decided that I needed more pockets. I sold a flip cover and 3 inserts and bought 12 more Sunbaby.

I probably would have left it at that if I didn't get involved in talking to other cloth diapering moms online and in my local group. When Reagan was 7 months old, I heard about the Little Bee Co. They are a company that for each diaper purchased from them, they donate one diaper to an orphanage somewhere in the world, or to a region struck by disaster. I couldn't help it, I needed to be a part of that even if it was a small way. So I bought a Little Bee Co. diaper.

When she was 9 months old, itti bitti tuttos were on sale on Zulily. I had heard such good things about them and at $10 off, I had to give it a try. I think it may be the only diaper that I regret spending the money on.  When you hate a cheap diaper, you can forgive it. When you hate an expensive diaper, forgiveness is hard to come by.

That was supposed to be my last diaper purchase until we had baby #2. And it was, sort of. I found out we were expecting #2 a couple weeks before Reagan's 1st birthday. Since the first time I regretted not using newborn diapers, I was determined this time to have a newborn stash. The only question at that point was, girl prints or boy prints. It was a long wait to October to find out that Noah was going to be joining our family in February, but October is such an awkward time. I was torn between the desire to go all out and buy newborn fluff and cute diapers with monsters and trucks on them or waiting until . . . Black Friday. The year before, I was not in the market for new diapers and was super jealous of the awesome deals people got on Black Friday. So, I decided to wait.

Maybe I shouldn't have waited.

Black Friday was fine, but I really felt like there weren't that many good deals. I've found better deals at other times during the year. But something else that I had discovered since the early days was pulling at me: co-ops! I hadn't known about co-ops when I bought my first stash and I'm still not convinced that they are that good of a deal, but this time, I gave them a try as well as trying out new brands that I had been waiting for a new baby to try. In preparing for Noah's arrival, my new stash included:

Newborn:
12 infant prefolds from cottonbabies
6 osocozy flats
3 thirsties duo covers
2 bummis nb covers
6 thx newborn diapers
4 xs fuzzibunz
2 tots bots tiny fit
1 swaddlebees newborn
1 kawaii pure and natural

One Size:
32 sunbaby
6 bum genius 4.0
6 econobum prefolds
5 alva
4 Flip stay dry
3 tots bots easy fit
3 bottom bumpers
3 jc trade
1 little bee co.
1 itti bitti tutto
1 swaddlebees simplex
1 grovia aio
1 kawaii
6 econobum covers
2 flip covers

Since Noah's birth 4 months ago, I have sold my newborn stash with the exception of the prefolds, flats and kawaii. I have also purchased another one size bottom bumpers (it was 40% off! How do you say no to that?) and 2 Bum-ware extreme. Now that Reagan is 90% potty trained, I am cleaning up all the girly diapers and getting ready for another de-stash. Of course, then I will have more money to spend of diapers.

I always find it funny when people want to know how many diapers you should have and how much a stash costs. Of course, these are natural questions, but given my own experience, a cloth diaper stash is never complete, it is constantly changing, growing and shrinking to meet your family's needs.

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