AIO vs Pre-fold with Cover

Someone asked me today what my thoughts on this topic were so here's what I told them!!

Good question! I have owned 1 AIO and never got around to using it, and let a friend have all my cloth diapers with the directions to return when done and 1 they never used them and 2 threw them away (needless to say it's a good thing he was one of my best friends cuz I wanted to kill him!!) . That being said at this point in time I have no plans to buy any AIO.


So from my readings this is what I think of AIO diapers:

Pluses!! They are the closest to a disposable diaper as you can get! They are a water proof cover, diaper and a liner all sewn into one, no stuffing just one thing to strap on to the baby. That being said you can buy diaper doublers, inserts or prefolds to add absorbency if you have a heavy wetter (in that case to me it seems like just as much work as a pre-fold with a cover).

AIO draw backs. They are like the ultimate diaper & so is the price! Also never having used one they seem like with everything sewn together it will take longer to dry and just like disposables you only get one use out of each diaper once used it has to be washed again. Lastly if something goes wrong with it that's a whole diaper gone :-(

Pre-fold/flats/contoured or fitted diapers can all be used with a cover. The reason I'm going to be using pre-folds and flats is because you are able to customize the fit as your baby as it grows and your baby's shape better than with an other diaper. The folding techniques are really really easy to do and with most covers you can just fold the pre-folds up like a newspaper and lay in the cover and go! Unlike AIO during every diaper change all you have to change out is the diaper not the cover unless it gets soiled so you need less covers. I also like the fact that if a cover does get dirty I can wash it in my sink really quick if I need it asap and they line dry in like 15 mins! The only cons I can think about for this type route of diapering is 1. not everyone knows how they work so you'll have to teach who ever might have to change your baby how to do it and 2 it takes maybe a few seconds longer than and AIO to do (I'm just assuming this since like I said I've never actually used and AIO but have used disposables before but with practice I'm sure prefold and cover will be just about as fast as AIO diapers).

And for an example I'm going to use BumGenius' products for pricing:

AIO (I was told you need 24 diapers to get through 2 days of diapering)

BumGenius 3.0 deluxe AIO (these come in x-small, s,m,l so you will have to buy more as your baby grows) $382.80

Organic option

BumGenius Elemental One-size AIO (fits baby from 7-35lbs) $598.80

Pre-Fold (you need 24) & Cover (you need 6)

BumGenius Flip One Size Diaper Cover (they are supposed to fit baby 7-35 pounds and I was told you need only 6 for 2 days) 6=$83.70

BumGenius Flip Insert Stay Dry (these aren't pre-folds but these are their non organic option) 24=$118.80

Organic option

BumGenius Flip Insert Organic (it's an actual prefold) 24=$190.80

Summary

AIO $382.80 vs Prefold & cover $202.50 and these AIO don't grow with the baby so you'll have to buy more as they get bigger! That's a $180.30 difference

Organic AIO $598.80 vs organic prefold & cover $274.50 with a difference of $324.30

So for me Prefold and Cover is a much economical option for me and I'd have less of a problem replacing them than an AIO if something did go wrong. I put in the two different price options because I plan to use as much organic products as possible and from what i've read organic cotton is more absorbent than regular cotton. So this is all just my personal opinion so take it for what it is lol bet you didn't think you'd get a novel for an answer :-D