Reuseable wet wipes

[Earlyyearsbc]

Morning!

 

Could I ask what other preschools plan to do when the wet wipe ban comes in please?

Particularly those settings where children are generally toilet trained (no nappies,) but still have accidents, upset tummys and muddy faces!

Really interested to hear everyone's thoughts on how they're going to manage this.

 

thanks

[FSFRebecca]

I'd be interested to hear this too. One of our ex-parents has the 'cheeky wipes' business and whilst it seems very manageable in a home environment, when we talked to her about it we struggled to see how we could make it work in a large day nursery. The main problem as we saw it was the washing of the soiled items - we were told that we would have to have a separate washing machine to deal with the 'offensive' waste (waste disposal terminology, not mine). We don't have the room to have a completely separate washing machine and drying arrangement - so for us it was a 'No'. I completely understand why the disposable wipes are a problem and I'd be really happy to hear of any solutions others have found. We have had babies in the past using the non-disposable nappies but they work by flushing the liners and sending home the worn nappy to be washed at home - not practical on a large scale.

[finleysmaid]

well i guess we will have to do what we did before wet wipes which is to use water and paper ? would have to say that we don't use many wet wipes so i guess it won't be tricky to change. I didn't use wet wipes most of the time on my children because both had very sensitive skins. I did use cotton wool though...how would people feel about that now?

[Mouseketeer]

A spit on the edge of your sleeve it is then   

We don’t get through many wet wipes either, was also going to suggest some sort of soft, strong tissue type paper and water for face washing (or those little cotton wool makeup pads ...until they ban them to?) 

not sure about the other, at the moment we use the so called ‘flushable’ wipes.

I know we have to save the planet but there are going to be a lot of people out of work when everything is banned unless real alternatives are produced to replace these things.

[Panders]

Think we can very well assume someone will come along and find a replacement to wet wipes, tis the nature of people to be inventive.

When my children were very young wet wipes weren't really available like they are now and those that were available were for faces.

At home I used terry nappies and nappy liners (think they would not have been good for the environment)  I used cotton wool and baby soap for the mucky job and flannels for faces.   I had a stack of flannels and looking backwards I think these were better for a few reasons, not least, that wet wipes must make the food children eat taste awful, given that some parents are constantly  wiping faces while children are eating, or wiping hands.

Perhaps we could initially research what nurseries did say, 50 years ago, or during the second world war when many young babies and children were in nurseries - go back and ask your grannies what they did

Edited May 13, 2018 by Panders

[sunnyday]

3 hours ago, Earlyyearsbc said:

Morning!

 

Could I ask what other preschools plan to do when the wet wipe ban comes in please?

Particularly those settings where children are generally toilet trained (no nappies,) but still have accidents, upset tummys and muddy faces!

Really interested to hear everyone's thoughts on how they're going to manage this.

 

thanks

Is this just a proposal at the moment, or is already written in stone?

As with all the changes we are asked to make - we will find a way - us early years peeps are nothing if not adaptable 

[Mouseketeer]

15 minutes ago, Panders said:

Think we can very well assume someone will come along and find a replacement to wet wipes, tis the nature of people to be inventive.

15 minutes ago, Panders said:

Johnson’s need to go back to the drawing board since changing their cotton buds, cheaper ones that aren’t plastic are way better (before anyone crucifies me this is not a work observation) 

[Earlyyearsbc]

4 hours ago, Rebecca said:

I'd be interested to hear this too. One of our ex-parents has the 'cheeky wipes' business and whilst it seems very manageable in a home environment, when we talked to her about it we struggled to see how we could make it work in a large day nursery. The main problem as we saw it was the washing of the soiled items - we were told that we would have to have a separate washing machine to deal with the 'offensive' waste (waste disposal terminology, not mine). We don't have the room to have a completely separate washing machine and drying arrangement - so for us it was a 'No'. I completely understand why the disposable wipes are a problem and I'd be really happy to hear of any solutions others have found. We have had babies in the past using the non-disposable nappies but they work by flushing the liners and sending home the worn nappy to be washed at home - not practical on a large scale.

Yes, exactly, it's the washing of soiled items that bothers me too. Unless it's bagged for parents to deal with just like soiled underwear at home? Not very nice.

Not sure when the ban will come in, but I think it will. Having watched the "fatberg autopsy" I don't think I fancy using them and flushing them again anyway. Yuck.

Not sure how effective water and paper will be on a soiled 3 or four year old.......this will be interesting to watch I think!

Thanks all.

[Cait]

Well I guess us 'oldies' will remember that we managed with soap and water before wet wipes came into being.   I don't know how environmentally friendly cotton wool is though.   Back in the day we didn't even use rubber gloves to do nappy changes, although I shudder to think of that now.  All those rubber gloves sitting in landfil as well has to be considered.   Hmm.  It's quite a minefield.

[Stargrower]

You can already get biodegradable wipes, although they're quite expensive.  I don't think the ban is proposed for several years yet, so I'm sure there will be hot competition and the price will come down.

Edited May 13, 2018 by Stargrower

[finleysmaid]

bit of info here.....

http://www.beashadegreener.com/eco-friendly-alternative-baby-wipes/