Stripping/Buildup
More from the Abbys Lane Newsletter. This is a good one!!
Often we get e-mails that go something like "My 6 month old is leaking through all of her diapers almost overnight it seems. I have read this is due to detergent buildup, so I have been washing with Dawn, scrubbing them with an old toothbrush, adding vinegar and Calgon, and sun-drying them to help freshen them." My goodness, I am ready for a nap after just reading about all that work. Honestly and truly, odds are you do NOT have detergent buildup is the diapers start leaking on you, with absolutely no other problems going on. True detergent buildup can and does happen, don't get me wrong, but it isn't an "overnight" occurance. It is a gradual process, one that involves stains being left behind, stink issues, problems getting the diapers fresh, slow leaks on some of them, leading up to gradual leaking on all of the diapers. For it to get that bad though, you would have to overlook some pretty serious stink, the diapers really will smell before they get so bad they are repelling completely. I can promise you, from our three girls in cloth, to chatting with thousands of customers now, babies really can become heavy wetters overnight. Something just "clicks", their little bladders start holding more fluids for longer periods of time, and then releasing it all at once. You may not even have a heavy wetter, you may have a "fast wetter", which can flood the diaper before it has a chance to absorb and distribute the wetness.
Please, please, please, do not rely on the "dripping water" test. Many mamas will get a nasal aspirator or a bulb syringe, and drop water onto a diaper. It doesn't absorb quickly, so the vicious cycle of "stripping" begins. This is not an accurate test, what presses urine through diaper fabrics is the pressue of the baby on the diaper, I can take my 4 year old pockets in great condition and try the water-drip test and it will fail. Here is what you look for:
-Is the leaking right away, as in 5-10 minutes of wearing it, and it is running out?
-When it leaks, how wet is the insert or prefold? Wet just in the middle, the back, the front, or saturated all over?
-How old is the child, and what inserts are you using?
-Do the diapers have any odors either out of the dryer, or once re-wet with fresh urine?
These are the questions that help you troubleshoot these problems. If your diaper runs out liquids, doesn't even get wet within 5 minutes, you either have a fit issue, you haven't broken them in (like a natural fiber, hemp, cotton, velour, etc..), or it is true buildup. If some time goes by before it leaks, inserts or prefolds are getting wet, your baby is 6+ months and you only have a microfiber insert in your pocket, these are all absorbency issues. We have been duped by the disposable companies into thinking trim fitting diapers can hold your toddler. Not true with cloth. Older babies and/or heavy wetters will need more absorbency=more layers=usually more bulk.
The easiest way to test this, add more absorbency. Use what you have on hand before buying new things, try doubling up on your inserts, use your prefolds trifolded in your pocket diaper, even try a thin handtowel inside your diapers to see if it helps. If it does, you know you are ont he right track, if it doesn't e-mail me and we will figure it out. Truly, maybe 5 times or less in over 5 years of this business have we seen detergent buildup that bad to the point of all diapers leaking without stink. It was due to some very natural soapy detergents that are on our "no-no" list and did a number on the diapers that quickly. Even then, it was still an easy fix to get the diapers clean. Remember, as long as you don't set them on fire, any diaper situation can be fixed ;)
Often we get e-mails that go something like "My 6 month old is leaking through all of her diapers almost overnight it seems. I have read this is due to detergent buildup, so I have been washing with Dawn, scrubbing them with an old toothbrush, adding vinegar and Calgon, and sun-drying them to help freshen them." My goodness, I am ready for a nap after just reading about all that work. Honestly and truly, odds are you do NOT have detergent buildup is the diapers start leaking on you, with absolutely no other problems going on. True detergent buildup can and does happen, don't get me wrong, but it isn't an "overnight" occurance. It is a gradual process, one that involves stains being left behind, stink issues, problems getting the diapers fresh, slow leaks on some of them, leading up to gradual leaking on all of the diapers. For it to get that bad though, you would have to overlook some pretty serious stink, the diapers really will smell before they get so bad they are repelling completely. I can promise you, from our three girls in cloth, to chatting with thousands of customers now, babies really can become heavy wetters overnight. Something just "clicks", their little bladders start holding more fluids for longer periods of time, and then releasing it all at once. You may not even have a heavy wetter, you may have a "fast wetter", which can flood the diaper before it has a chance to absorb and distribute the wetness.
Please, please, please, do not rely on the "dripping water" test. Many mamas will get a nasal aspirator or a bulb syringe, and drop water onto a diaper. It doesn't absorb quickly, so the vicious cycle of "stripping" begins. This is not an accurate test, what presses urine through diaper fabrics is the pressue of the baby on the diaper, I can take my 4 year old pockets in great condition and try the water-drip test and it will fail. Here is what you look for:
-Is the leaking right away, as in 5-10 minutes of wearing it, and it is running out?
-When it leaks, how wet is the insert or prefold? Wet just in the middle, the back, the front, or saturated all over?
-How old is the child, and what inserts are you using?
-Do the diapers have any odors either out of the dryer, or once re-wet with fresh urine?
These are the questions that help you troubleshoot these problems. If your diaper runs out liquids, doesn't even get wet within 5 minutes, you either have a fit issue, you haven't broken them in (like a natural fiber, hemp, cotton, velour, etc..), or it is true buildup. If some time goes by before it leaks, inserts or prefolds are getting wet, your baby is 6+ months and you only have a microfiber insert in your pocket, these are all absorbency issues. We have been duped by the disposable companies into thinking trim fitting diapers can hold your toddler. Not true with cloth. Older babies and/or heavy wetters will need more absorbency=more layers=usually more bulk.
The easiest way to test this, add more absorbency. Use what you have on hand before buying new things, try doubling up on your inserts, use your prefolds trifolded in your pocket diaper, even try a thin handtowel inside your diapers to see if it helps. If it does, you know you are ont he right track, if it doesn't e-mail me and we will figure it out. Truly, maybe 5 times or less in over 5 years of this business have we seen detergent buildup that bad to the point of all diapers leaking without stink. It was due to some very natural soapy detergents that are on our "no-no" list and did a number on the diapers that quickly. Even then, it was still an easy fix to get the diapers clean. Remember, as long as you don't set them on fire, any diaper situation can be fixed ;)