DIY Plumbing Project: The Cloth Diaper Sprayer

So I'm going to do it:  I'm going the cloth diaper route with baby #2.  I've got my supply of prefolds, covers, pocket diapers, liners, reusable wipes, the whole lot. I'm feeling pretty good about it, too. I'll be sure to report how it's working for me once baby gets here. 

Anyway, as I was researching cloth diapering, one recommendation was to get a diaper sprayer. The hose of the sprayer just attaches to the toilet's water supply so you can spray everything off the soiled diaper into the toilet. When I was convincing my husband to try cloth diapering, getting a sprayer was one of the things that finally got him to concede: "Well, if this will keep me from having to stick my hand in the toilet..."

Diaper sprayers cost anywhere from $40 to $60, plus shipping (if you buy online). The reviews of the sprayers were mixed, depending on the brand. There was one, manufactured by a cloth diaper company, that only had 1-star reviews on Amazon, saying it leaked terribly. A few of the other sprayers had similar complaints. As I was figuring out which one to buy, I found a website that suggested making your own diaper sprayer for less.  Could it be done? Would doing it yourself be worth the savings? The answer is YES! Not only did we make our diaper sprayer for less than the ones that you can buy online (it cost $33.76, to be exact), but it also only took about 20 minutes, from start to finish, to construct and attach.

{Of all the instructions we looked at on various sites, the tutorial that stood out as the easiest was on the blog, Gidget Goes Home. So the parts and instructions are adapted from their tutorial. Gotta give credit where it's due, after all.}

We found all the parts necessary for the project at Home Depot, all of it (except one part --see explanation below in the supply list) in the same plumbing aisle. I'm proud to say that I found all the parts by myself. Is it weird that I find pride in that?  Here's what you need:

{Clockwise from top left}

• Ice-Maker Supply Line (also called 'filter connector splicer')  -- 1/4" OD Compression x 12"
• Kitchen Sink Spray Hose & Head Assembly
• Teflon tape (optional)
• Ander-Lign Compression Connector -- 1/4" OD x 1/4" MIP w/insert (it will have all these measurements on the outside of the bag)
• Adapt-a-Valve T-fitting  -- 3/8" x 3/8" x 1/4" (again, all of ths is right on the bag)
• 1/4" Full Port Ball Valve  (This serves as a shut-off valve and it's the part that wasn't in the plumbing aisle with everything else. I found it in the section with the air compressor supplies.)

After I brought home all the parts, my ever-obliging (and, might I add, handsome) husband put them together.

On one end of the ice-maker supply line, he attached the t-fitting. On the other end, the compression connector, then the full port ball valve. Don't attach the compression parts too tightly because it can shred the washers and cause leaks at the connections.  See below for a close-up of the order of parts (FYI: there will be a couple little parts of the compression connector that you won't use):

Attach the sprayer hose to the valve and the sprayer is fully assembled.

Note: As I mentioned in the supply list, the Teflon tape is optional, but my husband thinks it's a good idea to use it since there are so many connections. This will help combat any leakiness. He used it on all the connecting areas. The tape only costs about a buck and doesn't take that much more time to put on, so it's worth considering.

Now that it's all assembled, it's time to attach it.

First, turn off the water supply to your toilet by turning the knob. Very important. I took this staged picture after everything was all done because I forgot to take a picture while the husband was doing it. Also, it's a good idea to put a towel under the area where you'll be working, just in case.

With a crescent wrench, unscrew the toilet supply line. From what I've read, you have to have flexible supply lines for this whole project to work. If yours are rigid, you can replace them with the flexible ones. The flexible ones seem to be the norm, though. Also, please excuse this blurry picture. I was trying to take pictures over my husband's shoulder.

Install the t-fitting on the end of the tube to the area.  Re-attach toilet supply line by screwing it onto the other end of  the t-fitting.

A quick aside about the ball port valve:

Since the sprayer will be under constant pressure from the water supply, the ball port valve serves as a shut-off valve for the sprayer.  When you want to spray, push the red lever so that it's in-line with the tube. To shut off the water supply, pull the red lever away from the water line, so that it's pointing out.

That's it. Now just spray away!

The Latest Concoction: Homemade Bathtub Scrub

I maintain that baking soda cleans a bathtub just as well as anything, if not better. It seriously gets my bathtub sparkling clean. There are no chemical fumes or residue when you use baking soda. Even better, it costs next to nothing. Baking soda and vinegar are my bathroom cleaning staples.

But I hate cleaning the bathroom. Using baking soda may give me the results I want, at a price I really like, but it does take some effort. It can get pretty wet and messy scrubbing with the baking soda & water paste. My bathtub cleaning routine works, though, so I've stuck with it for the last couple years. That is, until I came across a better, still baking soda-based, method.

The new method is using a homemade soft scrub recipe that I found on the blog, Live Renewed, in a post all about natural bathroom cleaning. The bathtub in my son's bathroom needed a cleaning in a bad way and I happened to have all the ingredients for the homemade tub scrub, so I made it.

Here's the recipe:

3/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup castile soap (I used Dr. Bronner's hemp almond soap. I love this stuff. It's really versatile - you can use it for cleaning, laundry, even on your body. A bottle of it goes a long way, too -- you don't need to use much to get results. I picked mine up at the local natural food/health store for around $8.)
1 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. vinegar  (turns out, since I wrote this post, I learned that you really shouldn't mix vinegar and castile soap. For an explanation why, check out this post.)

Mix the baking soda and castile soap -- I reused a washed-out 16-oz. yogurt container (since you want something with a lid, it worked really well). Add the water and stir with a fork. Add the vinegar and mix. According to the recipe I followed, you need to add the vinegar last or the scrub won't have the paste consistency that you want.  Also, the recipe says to only make this scrub in small batches because it can get dried out when stored.  This recipe makes enough for anywhere from 2-4 cleanings, depending on how much you use and how big your tub is.

Then Superman and I went to work...

One of the things that drew me to using natural cleansers a couple years ago is that they're safe for kids. I don't have to worry about his skin getting irritated or about him inhaling toxic chemicals. I was more than happy to let him help me clean his bathtub. After all, I've got to make the most of these years when he thinks cleaning is fun and grown-up.

Anyway, the scrub worked so well! It wasn't nearly as messy as my old baking soda and water routine. Plus, it smelled so nice as I cleaned.  I just got some of the scrub on my cleaning brush (that is, before the boy took it, as you can see above) and cleaned. The grimy bathtub ring (I know, ewwwww) came right up. After a little bit of scrubbing, we rinsed out the tub with the shower and wiped down the sides with a wet rag. From start to finish, it maybe took ten minutes at the most. I'm converted.

Functional, Not Fancy: Homemade Nursing Pads

It's been over four years since I had my son and I'm surprised by how much I've forgotten about those first weeks and months after birth.  I'm sure it will all come back to me as I do all of this baby stuff again, but I definitely feel a little rusty.

Take breastfeeding, for example, and all the changes that come with it. My sister-in-law just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl a couple weeks ago and as we were talking about all things baby, the topic of nursing pads came up. I hadn't even thought about those in my preparations for baby #2. Suddenly, I remembered waking up to a big wet spot on my bed -- what inevitably happens when a lactating stomach-sleeper actually gets a few consecutive hours of sleep.  Not the ideal way to start your morning.

After talking to my sister-in-law, I went home and checked my hall closet -- I still have three Lansinoh disposable nursing pads left from my first go-round. Add those to the list of things to buy. Then I thought, "I wonder if I could just make some..." So, of course, I turned to the Internet, and, sure enough, there were plenty of instructions on how to make them. In fact, they're really, really, really easy to make. Better yet, instead of forking over $10 for a box of the disposable ones, I can make these ones for free because I just use scraps of fabric I already have. Plus, these homemade ones are softer and feel nice against the skin (I tested it out).

To make homemade nursing pads, you'll need:

• Flannel -- I used an old, faded flannel receiving blanket someone gave me years ago.  You could also use flannel from a pair of worn-out pajamas or flannel sheets. Really, no one's going to see these, so use whatever you've got, I say. You could also go buy some flannel -- you won't need much. It all depends on how many you want to make.
• Fleece -- Fleece is waterproof, so it will keep wetness away from your clothes. I had some extra fleece on hand from some project I can't remember. I don't even remember buying it. If you don't have some of this on hand, it is fairly inexpensive and you won't need much of this either (you use less fleece than you do flannel for these pads).
• A CD, chalk/pen/pencil, scissors, thread, and a sewing machine 

On both the flannel and fleece, trace the edge of a CD and cut out.  This makes the nursing pad about five inches in diameter, which is pretty standard. If you need to adjust, feel free. I folded the material in half so I could cut two circles at a time.  For each nursing pad, you'll need one circle of fleece and three circles of flannel.  It sounds like a lot, but once you sew the layers together, it's pretty thin. You can also adjust the thickness of the pad depending on your needs -- one site I read suggested using the 3:1 ratio for nighttime use and to use 1-2 pieces of flannel on top of the piece of the fleece for the daytime.  I'm making mine all with the 3:1 ratio so I don't have to separate them and I can just grab one when I need it.

Note: I used this darker blue fleece for mine. Since the fleece is the part that faces out, light colored fabric is good if you're worried about the pads showing through your clothes. I'm not too worried about that since my bras are lined pretty well and I know the blue won't show through (again, tested it out). Plus, if history repeats itself, I'll only really wear these at night. In any case, it's something to consider.

Stack the three circles of flannel on top of the fleece.  You want one side of the finished pad to be flannel and the other side to be fleece.

Topstitch all around the edge of the pad, staying as close to the edge as possible while still catching all four layers. Follow that with a zig-zag stitch around the edge.

Trim off excess fabric and you're done. So easy. They're not much to look at, I'll admit, but I can tell they'll do the job. When you wear the nursing pad, you will have the flannel side touching your skin; the fleece will face out and protect your clothing, and, if you're like me, your sheets, too.

Stretching Out the Soap

File this one under a couple headings:  "Why didn't I think of this before?" and "Is this too obvious to post?" 

I finished reading a book about cutting down your grocery bill a couple weeks ago (book review to come soon) and among the many suggestions in the book was how to stretch out your dish soap by {gasp!} watering it down. Rocket science, I know.

According to one site I read, most dish soap is far too concentrated to begin with. In fact, cutting dish soap with water allows the soap to emulsify and spread out quicker on your dishes. This also makes rinsing easier -- no big (undetected) globs of soap that require extra rinsing.

I have a friend who says that we're twins except for the fact that she doesn't have kids and that she "uses normal dish detergent." Yes, I splurge for the eco-friendly stuff (though I do try to buy it on sale and sometimes even with a coupon). To me, it's worth an extra dollar or so. BUT, I would love to cut my costs, especially since I go through the stuff pretty quickly - I can use up a bottle of dish soap in about a week and a half. Sometimes, when I've been baking and cooking a lot, I can use it up faster than that.

The soap I use is pretty concentrated. With a few squirts, I can get my sinkful of dishes quite soapy. In fact, I often use more than I need. The dishwater is usually, to my son's delight, overly bubbly. So I decided to try watering it down. In the past, I've successfully used watered-down dish soap (as in, when the bottle is basically empty and I'm trying to get the last of the soap out).


Once my bottle of dish soap was empty, I grabbed the new bottle I'd just bought.  I filled the just-emptied bottle half-way with the new stuff, added some water, and -presto!- I have two bottles of dish soap instead of one.  You could also buy a new bottle for your watered-down soap -- my mom uses a tall olive oil dispenser for her soap, which looks nice next to her sink. 

Depending on how concentrated your dish soap of choice is, you'll have to determine how much you can water it down and still have it be effective.

So does it work? After a few weeks, I've hardly noticed a difference. Well, except that I've been buying dish soap less.

Hiatus Explained

It's been a couple weeks since the last post.  While the no-bake cookies are delicious, I don't think they're good enough to hold the top spot on my blog for as long as they have.  In any case, I've been meaning to post, but have been totally wrapped up in a class/project.  It's a mix of nesting, mother-daughter bonding, and unexpected craftiness. 

For my birthday (which I celebrated yesterday, hence the all the cake and frosting in the picture above), my mom signed us up for a beginner's quilting class. At first, I was interested -- I don't know if I would have signed up without my mom's suggestion, but figured it would at least be a fun thing to try. Four classes later, who knew I'd find so much satisfaction in piecing together squares of material in various patterns for a baby quilt? (Only 24 more days left until my due date, not that I'm counting or anything)  There's something so old-fashioned and traditional about quilting that totally appeals to me. And like with most sewing projects, I have to concentrate since it doesn't come to me. So, really, it's a sort of brain workout, too.  Plus, it's just fun. A couple times a week, I head up to my cute little hometown, set up all my sewing stuff in a 100-year-old house with my mom, along with our super-patient instructor and two other women, and we just chat as we sit and sew for a few hours. Maybe it sounds kind of grandma-ish, but I love it. Then there's the satisfaction of seeing the project actually come together - not only my own, but also my mom's. My late grandma, an incredible seamstress, would be so proud of Mom and me.

To think that just over a year ago, I was terrified by my sewing machine...

So that's the reason for the hiatus. When I'm not doing my regular, everyday activities (which seem to take much longer when you're waddling around the house), I'm trying to catch up with my quilting class 'homework'. I'll be sure to show you my finished project (keep your fingers crossed for me -- I'm going to machine quilt it tomorrow and I'm a little freaked out), along with some insights and ideas of how you can give this generations-old art a try.  Then I'll be back to regularly posting my parsimonious ideas. Well, at least until the end of March.

Sweet Surrender: The No-Bake Cookie

What do these pictures have in common?

The latest of my pregnancy cravings: oatmeal anything. I'll take the instant kind, or in the yummy granola I made a week or so ago, or my breakfast standby of steel-cut oats, or the oatmeal cookies that once filled my cookie jar -- as long as there are oats involved, I'm happy. It's a fairly healthy pregnancy craving (much better than my mad craving for Coca-Cola that I fought for months. Oh boy, why did I mention that? Mmmmm....Cherry Coke...), except when it comes to the recipe I made yesterday.

At my bridal shower years ago, my twin cousins gave me a cookbook that their elementary school had compiled for a fundraiser.  Those cousins have since graduated from high school and I'll admit, in all those years, I've only made one recipe out of that cookbook: no-bake cookies.

This recipe isn't healthy by any stretch of the imagination. To be honest, they don't even look that good. But I had to have them last night, so I figured I'd document the process and share the recipe with you. How does it fit on a frugal blog?  Ummmmm....you don't have to bake them. That saves energy, right? 

Okay then, on to the recipe!

No-Bake Cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3 cups oats

Mix sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa in a saucepan over medium heat; boil 1 minute. Remove from heat and quickly add peanut butter, vanilla, and oats.

It may look like glop, but it's tasty glop...

Spoon onto a baking sheet lined with waxed paper or, better yet, a Silpat baking mat (they slide right off it when they're done). Let the cookies cool -- I usually stick them right into the fridge to expedite the process.

Once the cookies are firm, remove from the baking sheet and store in an airtight container. Like I said, they're not much to look at, but they're easy and tasty. A nice cure for a sweet tooth -- or a craving for oatmeal.

Shower of Savings: Is Low-Flow a No-Go?

As you can imagine, I'm always on the lookout for frugal ideas and tips. Shocking, I know. And whenever the subject of saving money on utilities comes up, one inevitable suggestion is to switch to a low-flow showerhead. Of course, I instantly think of that Seinfeld episode, when all the showerheads in Jerry's building are switched to low-flow and Kramer ends up buying a black market showerhead.

It's hilarious until you have to use a low-flow showerhead yourself; only then you can understand Kramer's desperation. My experience with low-flow showerheads has mostly been at hotels. I'm sure you can agree -- it's pretty frustrating to finally figure out how to use the bathtub faucet, only to get a wimpy stream from the showerhead in return. Who would want to bring that experience home by installing a low-flow showerhead?

Not too long ago, I came across the low-flow suggestion again and decided to look into it this time. I figured someone must have come up with a low-flow showerhead that isn't crappy, right? There's a demand just waiting to be supplied. So I Googled just that: "low-flow showerhead not crappy".  Amazing what Google can find for you.

I read through some of links and forums that returned with my search specifications.  I learned that the average showerhead puts out 2.5 gallons per minute; a low-flow showerhead reduces that amount to 1.5 gallons a minute.  Basically, a low-flow showerhead can make your shower 40% more water efficient. If your shower is more water efficient, the less heated water you need. So not only do low-flow showerheads save water, but they also help you save on energy costs.

But are the savings worth buying a low-flow showerhead? Water isn't expensive and it doesn't cost that much to heat shower, right?  In my perusal of various low-flow blog posts, I came across this shower water and energy use calculator. Just fill in the applicable information and it will calculate how many gallons of water you use and how much it costs to heat that water (it adjusts the cost per kilowatt depending on the rates where you live). 

I'll share my calculations and findings with you:  I loooove taking long showers. That's where I do my best thinking. And I like my showers ridiculously hot.  To take a 15-minute hot shower, it costs about .57 cents a shower. The estimate on the calculator is that my showers cost about $208 a year. Now say I install a low-flow showerhead that puts out 1.5 gallons of water per minute, without changing the duration or temperature of my showers, my annual cost goes down to $125 a year, a savings of $83.  I haven't calculated the cost of my husband's showers (which are shorter and much cooler than mine), but I'm sure that will tack on even more savings. According to my research, the average household saves $55 a year per person by using a low-flow showerhead.

I know, I know...I've left the most important part of my research out: is there a low-flow showerhead out there that doesn't leave you feeling like Kramer?
{"I just took a bath, Jerry. A bath!"}

After checking out some suggestions and reviews, one of the more popular low-flow showerheads is made by a company called High Sierra Showerheads.  Almost every review I read was enormously positive, saying that most people couldn't tell a difference between High Sierra's showerheads and their old ones. They said the spray was powerful, but that it didn't sting. I would explain the technology behind the showerhead, but the inventor does a much better job (just check out the short video on the High Sierra homepage).  The design of the showerhead is definitely simple and they're inexpensive (only $26-29). 

So I ordered one -- just the basic, minimalist one. It doesn't look fancy, but it does the job and it's easy to install. The thing is made of metal and, as a result, won't clog like regular and other low-flow showerheads do.

My husband and I have both taken our turns testing out and we've both come to the same conclusion: it definitely doesn't feel like a low-flow showerhead. The stream is powerful, even more so than the one we had. Even though the stream is more intense than our old one, like the reviews said, it doesn't sting. I was able to wash and rinse my long hair thoroughly with this showerhead. In all, it might take a little getting used to but only because it sprays differently, not because it's sub-par.  At $26 (they do free shipping nationwide), the new showerhead will pay for itself.

Lesson learned: give low-flow showerheads a second look. Do some of your own research. You may be pleasantly surprised at how effortless saving water and energy can be.

Update 2/13/2012 : We still love our showerhead! Two years since I wrote this, it works really well and I often forget that it's even low-flow. Highly recommended.

Note: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have disclosed.

Canned Heat: How to Make an Emergency Heater

It seems that just about every part of the U.S. has been slammed with severe winter weather lately. Just the other I day, I was watching the news and saw the lines of stranded cars buried in snow outside of Chicago. The severe weather stretched over 2,000 miles, leaving a lot of people without power.  No power can mean no heat and that can be a scary thing with the temperatures being as low as they are. So what do you do if you're stranded on the highway in the dead of winter or a severe winter storm knocks out your power for an extended period of time?

I attended a class held at my church a couple days ago where we learned about and made emergency heaters.  They don't cost much to assemble and they could make all the difference in case of an emergency. Since I think emergency preparedness goes hand-in-hand with self-reliance and frugality, I thought I would share what I learned. You never know when something like this could be useful, after all.

To make your emergency heater, you'll need:

• A new, quart-sized paint can with a lid. These can be purchased at paint stores and home improvement stores like Home Depot for around $2-3.
• A roll of unscented toilet paper (I say, the cheaper the better. I bought a package of the rough, store brand stuff for around a dollar. It wasn't hard to fit into the can -- others at the class had a difficult time because they were using their nice, multiple-ply stuff.)
• A bottle of unscented, 70% isopropyl alcohol
• A box of matches (I just learned that you can waterproof matches by dipping the heads in wax. Pretty cool.)
• A quarter and some tape (I suggest packaging tape)

Making the heater couldn't be easier. Simply remove the cardboard tube from the center of the toilet paper (that's the hardest part) - don't unroll the toilet paper; just bend the cardboard tube, and pull out. Stuff the tube-free roll of toilet paper into the can. Fill with 2 cups of isopropyl alcohol, leaving 1/2 inch headspace (you want it to have room to expand and contract with temperature fluctuations). This may take a little time since you have to wait for the toilet paper to absorb the alcohol. The toilet paper and alcohol should be below the rim of the can. Seal tightly with lid.  Tape the box of matches and the quarter to the side of the can. That's it.  If you prefer, you can store all the components of the heater in a plastic bag and assemble the heater when you need it. Personally, I like having it ready to go.

When you want to use the heater, pop open the lid, using the quarter as leverage. Place the lit match or lighter carefully against the alcohol-soaked toilet paper.  A small flame will develop.  The flame only uses the alcohol as fuel -- the toilet paper shouldn't burn. If it does start to burn, that means you need more alcohol. To do this, replace the lid to extinguish the flame. Once out, add some more alcohol and light again. Once you've used this heater, the only thing that ever needs replacing is the alcohol since the TP doesn't burn. Assembling the heater is a one-time thing, really.

Important: if you're going to use this heater in a car, crack open the windows for ventilation. Even though the alcohol doesn't produce carbon monoxide, you still want fresh air in such an enclosed space.

The teacher of the class said that she burned her heater (to test it out) in her kitchen and it lasted for five hours. According to one site I checked, you can keep a car heated at 60-70 degrees for 24 hours with 4 pints of alcohol.  These heaters can get hot, so be careful how you handle them and be sure to keep them away from anything that could catch (obviously). Another site I read suggested sliding the passenger seat in the car as far back as it can go and placing the heater on the floor.

You can also use this heater in your home in the event of an emergency.  Since the area isn't as small as that of a car, the instructor of the class said that you should be fine without cracking the windows (if you're in a small room, it couldn't hurt to crack it a little). This small heater, of course, won't keep an entire room at 60-70 degrees, but it will keep the chill off enough.  These heaters are great for 72-hour kits.

For under five bucks, you can create a heat source for you and your family in the event of an emergency -- and five dollars is a small price to pay for a little extra peace of mind.