Leaky diapers

[piratecat]

I have a leak problem. My Bumgenious pockets were leaking at daycare several weeks ago and it didn't appear to be a repelling issue so I replaced the bamboo inserts with prefolds and that seemed to have solved the problem for a little while. But now they're saying they're leaking again. What gives? I don't use them at home so it's hard for me to assess the problem but also I want to try something before the weekend when we might have enough time to try them out at home. The fit seems fine to me but I don't know? More insert? 

[charlotte]

I wonder if you could have detergent build-up on your inserts.

I’d put them on a rinse (no soap) and once they’ve been agitating for a bit, peek and see if there are suds. If so, you’re either using too much detergent or maybe just need an additional rinse in your cycle.

If your little guy is a toddler, are they leaking always or just when he takes a big pee? Sorry I can’t remember the exact ages of your kids!

[tj]

Are they soaked when they are leaking? How frequently are they changing them?

[tj]

Oh, and where are they leaking from, top (front or back) or legs?

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 8:45:03 GMT -6 charlotte said:

I wonder if you could have detergent build-up on your inserts.

I’d put them on a rinse (no soap) and once they’ve been agitating for a bit, peek and see if there are suds. If so, you’re either using too much detergent or maybe just need an additional rinse in your cycle.

If your little guy is a toddler, are they leaking always or just when he takes a big pee? Sorry I can’t remember the exact ages of your kids!

I'll try that, thank you. I do two rinse cycles but with cold water -- do you think the water temperature makes a difference? 

He's 8 months. It started with just one leaky diaper and then two (he typically goes through 4 in a day) -- but I only hear about it when the teacher has time to tell me about it so the details are fuzzy. 

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 8:49:02 GMT -6 tj said:

Are they soaked when they are leaking? How frequently are they changing them?

All the diapers are pretty heavy when I get them back. They change him every two hours but sometimes less since the leaks. 

[mapleme]

Aug 31, 2021 8:51:44 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:45:03 GMT -6 charlotte said:

I wonder if you could have detergent build-up on your inserts.

I’d put them on a rinse (no soap) and once they’ve been agitating for a bit, peek and see if there are suds. If so, you’re either using too much detergent or maybe just need an additional rinse in your cycle.

If your little guy is a toddler, are they leaking always or just when he takes a big pee? Sorry I can’t remember the exact ages of your kids!

I'll try that, thank you. I do two rinse cycles but with cold water -- do you think the water temperature makes a difference? 

He's 8 months. It started with just one leaky diaper and then two (he typically goes through 4 in a day) -- but I only hear about it when the teacher has time to tell me about it so the details are fuzzy. 

Hot/warm water does pull out more suds faster

[mapleme]

Aug 31, 2021 8:53:03 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:49:02 GMT -6 tj said:

Are they soaked when they are leaking? How frequently are they changing them?

All the diapers are pretty heavy when I get them back. They change him every two hours but sometimes less since the leaks. 

If he's over saturating you might need more absorbency in there (maybe an additional flat). They also could be fitting when dry, but the heavy prefold could be making them sag. Where is he leaking from?

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 8:49:34 GMT -6 tj said:

Oh, and where are they leaking from, top (front or back) or legs?

Hm, when he's leaked on the way home it was the top front and maybe also around the legs? Not the top back though. 

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 8:56:28 GMT -6 mapleme said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:51:44 GMT -6 piratecat said:

I'll try that, thank you. I do two rinse cycles but with cold water -- do you think the water temperature makes a difference? 

He's 8 months. It started with just one leaky diaper and then two (he typically goes through 4 in a day) -- but I only hear about it when the teacher has time to tell me about it so the details are fuzzy. 

Hot/warm water does pull out more suds faster

That makes sense, I will start doing warm water rinses.

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 8:58:19 GMT -6 mapleme said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:53:03 GMT -6 piratecat said:

All the diapers are pretty heavy when I get them back. They change him every two hours but sometimes less since the leaks. 

If he's over saturating you might need more absorbency in there (maybe an additional flat). They also could be fitting when dry, but the heavy prefold could be making them sag. Where is he leaking from?

Oh, the heavy prefold making the diaper sag makes sense. How would I solve this problem though? I was thinking of trying the larger size prefold for more absorbency but that could potentially lead to the same sag problem? 

[mapleme]

Aug 31, 2021 9:22:20 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:58:19 GMT -6 mapleme said:

If he's over saturating you might need more absorbency in there (maybe an additional flat). They also could be fitting when dry, but the heavy prefold could be making them sag. Where is he leaking from?

Oh, the heavy prefold making the diaper sag makes sense. How would I solve this problem though? I was thinking of trying the larger size prefold for more absorbency but that could potentially lead to the same sag problem? 

If you don't mind spending some money to solve the problem, I would use bamboo flats. They can hold more in a smaller space, so there is more allowance for the sagging, if that makes sense. BG elastics have always been so flimsy too. Do you have other pockets that you can use that might stay snugger longer? Overall it sounds like he's oversaturating though, so more absorbency is probably what you need.

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 10:11:50 GMT -6 mapleme said:

Aug 31, 2021 9:22:20 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Oh, the heavy prefold making the diaper sag makes sense. How would I solve this problem though? I was thinking of trying the larger size prefold for more absorbency but that could potentially lead to the same sag problem? 

If you don't mind spending some money to solve the problem, I would use bamboo flats. They can hold more in a smaller space, so there is more allowance for the sagging, if that makes sense. BG elastics have always been so flimsy too. Do you have other pockets that you can use that might stay snugger longer? Overall it sounds like he's oversaturating though, so more absorbency is probably what you need.

I was using bamboo inserts before the prefolds because they're so much slimmer... maybe I can double up on those? I did tighten the elastics, but didn't replace... I wonder if I should try replacing them instead. I did look at some tutorials and it didn't look too complicated, except for the fact that it gets in the way of my laziness. 

[piratecat]

Also, why does he poop so much?! 😭

[tj]

Aug 31, 2021 10:27:41 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Also, why does he poop so much?! 😭

Probably Bc you like feed him and stuff and he’s all growing and healthy and stuff. Kids, man.

[tj]

Aug 31, 2021 8:53:03 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:49:02 GMT -6 tj said:

Are they soaked when they are leaking? How frequently are they changing them?

All the diapers are pretty heavy when I get them back. They change him every two hours but sometimes less since the leaks. 

Yeah it sounds to me like he just needs either more absorbency or more frequent changes. It doesn’t necessarily sound like there is a problem with the diapers. I mean, maybe check them to see if they are fully saturated or not. But if they are fully saturated then they are doing their job, they just need to be changed. You can’t base diaper change frequencies on a clock. When a diaper is full, it needs to be changed. I mean, I get it, Bc daycare. But I’m just saying that it’s not necessarily the diapers fault.

Maybe see if you can squeeze a profold and a bamboo in there at the same time, the help get you through the week till you can experiment. But if that makes the pocket too tall, then the legs will gap. Does he still wear onesies? Sometimes having something tight around the legs will get in there and wick wetness as well which isn’t great.

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 11:11:19 GMT -6 tj said:

Aug 31, 2021 10:27:41 GMT -6 piratecat said:

Also, why does he poop so much?! 😭

Probably Bc you like feed him and stuff and he’s all growing and healthy and stuff. Kids, man.

I should have splurged for the non-pooping variety. 

[piratecat]

Aug 31, 2021 11:16:19 GMT -6 tj said:

Aug 31, 2021 8:53:03 GMT -6 piratecat said:

All the diapers are pretty heavy when I get them back. They change him every two hours but sometimes less since the leaks. 

Yeah it sounds to me like he just needs either more absorbency or more frequent changes. It doesn’t necessarily sound like there is a problem with the diapers. I mean, maybe check them to see if they are fully saturated or not. But if they are fully saturated then they are doing their job, they just need to be changed. You can’t base diaper change frequencies on a clock. When a diaper is full, it needs to be changed. I mean, I get it, Bc daycare. But I’m just saying that it’s not necessarily the diapers fault.

Maybe see if you can squeeze a profold and a bamboo in there at the same time, the help get you through the week till you can experiment. But if that makes the pocket too tall, then the legs will gap. Does he still wear onesies? Sometimes having something tight around the legs will get in there and wick wetness as well which isn’t great.

He does wear a onesie and I do try to be mindful of it not being too tight, but it is possible some of the onesies he was changed into from the daycare stash may have been smaller. 

His daycare teachers really do try their best but I think he is their only cloth diapered kid and I really want to make it as easy as possible for them. But yea, there's only so much the diapers could do.