Myths and Misconceptions: Cloth Diapers Always Leak

I've decided to do a series of blogs all about common myths and misconceptions about cloth diapering! If you have any ideas feel free to comment here, share on my twitter, or post to my facebook page any myths or misconceptions you have heard, especially ones that really drive you nutso!

 

Myth #2: Cloth Diapers Always Leak

 

Today we are going to talk about another myth of Cloth Diapering. That they always leak. This is simply not true. Yes, cloth diapers can leak. They can also repel liquid, but if you are taking proper care of your diapers, cleaning them correctly, changing as often as is needed, and getting the right fit, you shouldn't experience leaks.

 

An Improper Fit

 

One of the leading causes of leaks, and what I would look at first when troubleshooting leaks, is the proper fit. You want the diapers to be snug enough to keep the contents in while loose enough to not leave marks on baby's legs and waist. You should take notice of when and how much the leaks are happening, and where they come through. For instance if I don't use the correct snap setting on my son, I will get leaks out his belly and legs. If I am using the proper snaps but not the proper hip snaps on diapers with hip snaps, I get leaks out the legs because while the waist is the proper fit, the legs are too loose causing leaks. Sometimes some diapers just will not fit right on a baby's body. This is one reason I don't suggest stocking up on one brand or type before baby gets here, or buying only one type to try. I suggest trying many different brands and types of diapers because what works on one child may not work for another. Even what works on your first cloth diapered baby won't always work on your second or what did work for your first few cloth diapered children won't always work for the next. Also, as your child grows and change you may find you get different fits from diapers that did fit well or didn't fit so great before. If you think fit is the issue, try experimenting with the fit, how tight or loose you have it, the rise, how long it is, etc. They try experimenting with different brands or types.

 

Repelling

 

Repelling happens when something is introduced to the diaper that causes it to repel. This can be caused by hard water buildup, where the minerals in the water build up in your diaper, making them not as absorbent. This can also be caused by detergent buildup, when you are using too much detergent, not the right detergent, or not rinsing enough and the detergent builds up, causing the diapers to not be as absorbent. It can also be caused by using non cloth diaper safe rash creams or too much of any diaper safe rash cream which can also cause your diapers to become not as absorbent. If you think repelling may be your issue, try taking a clean, dry diaper, and pouring some water on it. If it rolls of, you have repelling issues. If it's absorbent, it could be either starting to repel, or that may not be your issue. If you think repelling may be an issue, try striping the diapers. If you think it's because of a rash cream, use liners in your diaper when you use cream. If you think it may be a detergent issue, try switching your detergent, using less, and/or rinsing more. To strip I recommend GroVia Mighty Bubbles, which you can find at Mama's Emporium. You can also find flushable liners at Mama's Emporium, I suggest EcoSprout flushable liners. I also suggest using CJ's BUTTer rash cream and EcoSprout Detergent, all of which can be found on Mama's Emporium. If you think hard water buildup is the problem, try using GroVia Mighty Bubbles to strip once a month. I have VERY hard water and that is what I do. LOVE it!

 

Not Enough Absorbency

 

Another issue you can run into is that you don't have enough absorbency for how much your child is wetting. Some children are light wetters, others are medium/normal wetters, and others still are what I call super heavy wetters. My son is a super heavy wetter. He eats a lot and is very hydrated, so he pees a lot. Therefore, I need extra absorbency in his diapers. You might try adding a booster to your diaper if you suspect this may be the problem. Anything made of natural fibers like bamboo and hemp works great and can be right next to baby's skin. Synthetics like microfiber should not touch baby's sensitive skin. Any type of diaper can have a booster added for extra absorbency. Pockets are especially easy to add absorbency to though, you just stuff more or less depending on your needs. I like to stuff my pockets with an OsoCozy Better Fit prefold. If I need even more absorbency like for nap times, I add a bamboo insert or two either inside the pocket or inside the diaper. For my GroVia AI2s I found my son was too much of a heavy wetter for them, so I added two GroVia boosters and it did the trick! You can find all sorts of boosters to add extra absorbency here. When in a bind, anything can really be added. You can always add a prefold, flat, receiving blanket that has been stripped, flour sack towel, etc to give your diaper the extra boost.

 

Not Changing Enough

 

One thing that can be a little difficult to get used to when switching to cloth is how often you sometimes must change your child. Depending on the child, you may need to change as often as every hour and a half to two hours, or as little as every four. I encourage you to pay attention to when your child wets or soils the diaper and change as soon as possible. Just because the baby isn't uncomfortable and the diaper isn't completely full, doesn't mean a rash cannot occur, or that it's good for your little one to be sitting in that. Even with disposable diapers, just because it's not full doesn't mean it doesn't need to be changed. I am of the belief that no child should have to sit in a diaper for 6 hours or more unless they are asleep. It just cannot be comfortable or healthy, in a disposable or cloth diaper. I know sometimes if my son sleeps a little longer than usual for a nap, he will leak. If you don't change the baby soon enough, they will eventually leak. Obviously this makes a mess for you but is also not very good for the poor baby. So if you think this may be your issue, try to change your little one a little sooner. If it's happening to the point of you needing to change every hour or less, I would suggest adding more absorbency because your baby is probably a heavy wetter. You should still change after every diaper is used, but this will keep it from leaking out.

 

Bottom Line

 

The bottom line is if you do run into leaking issues, there are ways to fix them. Try troubleshooting before you give up, and do not let the fear of leaks keep you from trying. Cloth diapering can actually prevent blowouts and other leaks as long as you are using them correctly. Find and use a good wash routine and detergent, use liners when you use cloth, strip if you think there is buildup, change your baby often enough, use the right absorbency,  and experiment with fit, type, and brands of diaper until you find what works best for you and your little one. Leaking doesn't have to ruin cloth diapering for anyone!

Something You Should Know: Stripping

Something you should know about with cloth diapers, you may need to strip. Stripping is a process to get rid of buildup caused by hard water, detergent buildup, using non safe rash creams, ammonia, stink issues, and just to make sure your diapers are at their freshest and most absorbent.

 

Why Strip?

 

Stripping can solve multiple problems. One such problem is repelling, when your diaper is having leaks because the fabric is not at it's most absorbent. This is usually caused by hard water mineral buildup or detergent buildup from using too much detergent and/or not rinsing enough. Another reason to strip is if you are having stink issues. Stink issues can be caused by not using enough detergent, detergent buildup, hard water buildup, ammonia, and other causes. Usually if your diapers smell like a barn, you aren't using enough detergent and you should play with how much you use. If they smell like pee or burn your eyes and nose after they are dirty, then it's ammonia buildup. Another culprit of stink is not using the right detergent. Some people have problems with some detergents that others find amazing. You have to find the right detergent for your diapers, water, and washing machine. Also, make sure you aren't using dryer sheets or fabric softener, as well as detergents that contain dyes or optical brighteners. It may also help to switch from a liquid detergent to a powder detergent. Liquid detergent has been known to cause buildup.

 

So you think you have to strip, now what?

 

Now you decide what kind of strip you want to do! There are multiple ways to strip your diapers and each has their benefits. I suggest you play with it and decide what way is best for you. I also think stripping can fix the symptoms, but you have to also find the cause of the problem and cure the disease so to speak. If you find yourself stripping often, you should tinker with your wash routine and try to adjust it so you can find the perfect routine and products for you! You may simply need to switch to a new detergent, you may also need to adjust how much detergent you are using, or you may need to add an extra rinse or adjust the temperatures of your washes. Whatever it is finding it is key and may take some Patience, trial, and error. Eventually though you will get it and you will be one happy cloth diaperer! I however live in an area that has VERY hard water and because I'm renting I'm not allowed to have a water softener. Plus on top of that our pipes are very old and my washer isn't the greatest. So I have settled for stripping every couple of weeks, especially now that we are fighting ammonia. One day I'll get a better machine and live somewhere with a water softener and all will be well, but stripping isn't hard to do so for now it's a good system we have worked out.

 

Different ways to strip

 

1. RLR - RLR is my go to stripping method. It's ingredients list is super secret so we don't know exactly what is in it but we know it is safe for cloth diapers and we know there is washing soda. I have heard people swear by adding washing soda to their wash and it stripping just like RLR but I have also heard of people's diapers being ruined because plain washing soda makes them rough and nothing gets the diapers soft after that has happened. So if you want to try that use caution and do so at your own risk, I won't risk it. Anyway back to RLR. It's very simple to use, you just put your clean diapers, weather dry or wet, into the washer with a packet of it (half a packet if you are using a HE washer) and wash on hot with a couple extra rinses and then voila, you're done! You should notice a difference right away.

 

2. GroVia Mighty Bubbles - GroVia Mighty Bubbles comes to us from the makers of GroVia diapers. It's a newer laundry treatment and is super convenient. It comes in a little packet that you just toss into the wash, kind of like a tide pod.The ingredients are Sodium Carbonate (washing soda), Sodium percarbonate, Sodium Polyitaconate, surfactants, Enzymes, Oxygen bleach activator, and Sodia sillicate. To use you place in the washer with diapers (clean or dirty, doesn't matter, but I always put them in clean), No other detergent is needed. You wash on hot and do a hot rinse and voila, you should notice the difference as soon as they are dry.

 

3. Bleach - Bleach is controversial. Some people say don't use bleach because it can damage your diapers. Some diaper companies recommend you use bleach. I personally use bleach on all my diapers that I buy used or am given, and occasionally to do a really deep strip. You KNOW they are clean and nothing is going to be wrong with them once you strip with bleach. It's kind of like starting over! I use 1/4 cup of bleach. How I do it without bleaching the color from my diapers is I fill my washer up [maximum water level] with hot water and 1/4 cup of bleach. It will bubble a little. Then I let the washer run a minute or two so the agitator mixes the bleach in, then put my diapers, inserts, wipes, etc in. The general consensus is this should be done no more than once a month. I recommend doing this to all your diapers after thrush, yeast, sickness, or if you get used diapers.

 

4. Blue Dawn - Blue dawn! This should be used with caution. I have heard you can also use Dapple Baby Bottle and Dish Liquid sold here. The Key to stripping with dish soap is to only use a little as it's very hard to rinse out. Some people just put a few drops in a bath tub and soak overnight then do a bunch of rinses until there are NO bubbles. Or you can do the same thing in your washer. Fill your washer with hot water and about 5 drops of the soap. Then put the diapers in and wash on hot, and keep rinsing until it's all out and there are no bubbles. I've heard this is better for oil buildup, not mineral buildup, such as if you use the wrong diaper rash cream with your cloth diapers. I have never used it, so I can only tell you what I've heard, such as it is very difficult to get them completely rinsed when using this method.

 

Bottom Line

 

The bottom line is, if you need to strip, I suggest RLR or GroVia Mighty Bubbles which are sold here. We are battling Amonia and the only thing that has worked is the bleach strip and the Grovia Mighty Bubbles, not RLR.