In addition to direct costs, Gretchen and her staff were concerned whether cloth diapers would involve more work. After the study, this concern soon vanished. It took some time to learn how to put the cloth diapers and outer covers on correctly. Washing Cloth Diapers Other cloth factors to be considered along with diaper procurement costs were the related supplies, utilities and labor required to wash cloth diapers. When all factors were considered, these costs still proved to be less than the purchase price difference between cloth and disposable diapers.
Most infants leave the center in disposable diapers because few parents use cloth diapers at home.
Cost savings would have been 13.4 percent if substitution of cloth diapers had been 100 percent. Many times, two cloth diapers are used on an infant to provide extra protection from wetness and diaper rash. One of Gretchen's concerns was whether two cloth diapers were really needed per change. She had read that a nationally known research firm had indeed concluded that an average of 1.9 cloth diapers are needed per change to prevent soaking through. However, at Gretchen's House III, outer covers were used along with only one cloth diaper per change.