Raging. Please, please help me to keep using cloth nappies...

[ThatGhastlyWoman]

Have been using cloth nappies of various sorts since our daughter was born 9 months ago.

We started with flat nappies, and have gradually introduced more 'shaped'-style nappies until we made an investment just before Christmas in a load of BumGeniuses (mainly because my OH found flat nappies difficult to use and prefers using disposables really).

Disaster. The only shaped nappy I currently own which does not leak like the Titanic is a random Totsbots one we got in a bag of samples. It doesn't matter what I do with the Bumgeniuses:
-I have recently stripped them as per instructions
-I use almost no barrier cream, and use a fleece liner at all times in any case
-I have tried them on both the smallest and the medium setting
-I check around the edges every time I put one on, religiously, in case any fleece is poking out

I have had to change my daughter's entire outfit roughly every two hours today. It's actually tipping me over the edge here.

She is very wriggly and active, so flat nappies are much harder to use now she is crawling as she won't stay still! She is quite stocky, I don't know if that might be a factor?

Also, have you actually read the full instructions for Bumgenius care? They are insane. They suggest two full washes every single time. How is that eco? I have been using a 50 degree wash that has a prewash and takes quite a while. I use a small amount (1/4 normal amount) of a non Bio supermarket own brand. I don't use conditioner, even in our normal washes (I use vinegar and a few drops of lavender essential oil for those).

We do have other nappies- the Mothercare 'own brand' ones - but I can't use them on her continuously as they seem to leave red marks on her skin. Also, I mind less about those as they weren't nearly as bloody expensive!

Please tell me if there is something I may be doing wrong, as this is too much like hard work and I am really struggling now: bad enough trying to persevere when my OH isn't keen, without constant leaks!

I have recently had to stop breast feeding as I just wasn't producing enough any more, so this just feels like yet another failure. :(

Yes microfibre is useless for us. Bamboo's fab, and our inserts actually dry in no time on the radiator. Not sure how it'll be when the heating's off as we've not got a garden to dry them in. Never tried cotton though as we don't want to tumble dry and I thought it'd go too crispy. Also does anyone have an older DC who wears bumgenius? We've got to the largest setting already and DS is only 4 months old!!

We use one of these when we need to. It folds down to half size and flat, and has been really handy. We have a garden, but live in Scotland so we'd never get anything dry otherwise!

I do tend to try to only turn it on if I am in a rush, and make sure I put a couple of loads of laundry on it so it's worth it. It's pretty cheap to run, though...

Your son must be HUGE! I'd be interested too, though, if anyone can report how they've got on at the larger sizes. My daughter's bigger than average too...

He he, yes he's big. But not ridiculously so, which is why I'm wondering if other people's DCs have grown out of them. He can still fit in the second popper setting but I've let most of them out to full size as it gives a bit of extra coverage.

Ah yes, drying stuff in Scotland!! I remember trying that in August once it took about 4 days to dry a perfectly ordinary T-shirt. Might have been a particularly humid summer...

Ladies (or gents if you are reading this) I have an announcement to make. Last night we stuffed a bum genius with a bamboozle and it lasted a full 12 hours of DS power wees with no leaks at all. I am so impressed I had to share. DH is excitedly stuffing tonight's as I type. Might now have to search for night nappy threads to spread the joy. It's an expensive but excellent solution.

Ooh! Exciting stuff. Do you mean that you used a Bamboozle shaped nappy inside a BumGenius outer? They're currently on sale (Bamboozles) so I may look into getting some for night time...

You must all try the new easyfit. The inners are so absorbent and with an easy peasy hemp booster will last nearly forever! They also don't have a built in liner so you can carry on using your fleece liners too.

Op, wrt bumgenius, I found the easy peasy (or any other) hemp booster to be better than the newborn microfibre insert the nappy comes with for really heavy wetters. My dts used them like this until they became responsible for their own fluid intake when I swapped back to both bg inserts as they didn't wee as much. I would also recommend ditching the poppered vests. John Lewis sell ones without poppers which are so much better with cloth.

Ghastly that's right. Seems kind of decadent but it really works (both nappies on fully opened out size) At least it did last night. I'll report back after the next couple of nights in case it was a fluke...

bagpuss now I want to try an easyfit

OP - where are you? We are looking to recycle our Bamboozle cloth nappies. They are brilliant - really absorbent and we just doubled the built in extra flap. I could go into lots more detail. Would you like them? The only drawback is that they do dry a bit slowly.

www.babykind.co.uk/bamboozles.htm

Sorry - missed the mention of Scotland! Just trying to be helpful without reading whole thread!

I had a really heavy wetter that was huge for her age and the only thing that worked was easy peasy bumbles double boosted with motherease air flow wraps.

I never got a pocket nappy that came close to them!!

We resorted to a disposable overnight in the end, partly because she liked 14 hours undisturbed sleep from early on

Hope you get it sorted hemp and bamboo are so much more absorbant but yes take ages to dry.

Actually I think I have a new hemp booster or 2 somewhere that you can have FFP if you pm me

We have two clothes horses for drying clothes now, which is dead useful.

mummy have you got a bannister? In our house, it gives the quickest drying time (lots of air circulating and hot air rises, too) - things on the bannister (we got those over-the-radiator rails for it) dry overnight compared with 2 days elsewhere (nappies take about 24 hours, and you have to turn them over halfway through)

Nickel sadly we don't have stairs (small flat in the city). We do have radiator rails though which are fab while the heating's on. Oh and we have a washer dryer but I try not to use it much for drying.

Update on the bum genius stuffed with bamboozle. DS wore it for 14 hours last night, still seemed good! Will compare with bamboozle+motherease wrap next...

If it's any help, my DS is 11mo and in BGs. Never had any problems with wee leaking. I think we moved onto the largest setting when he was about 7 or 8 months old, but he hasn't grown that much longer since then so they still fit fine. In fact if anything they fit better because his tummy is slimmer now he's crawling.

I also find that he wees less now than he used to - maybe because his calories are mainly from food rather than milk?? A BG with both inserts will probably last him 6 hours, although I try to change every 3 or 4 anyway.

For nights we use either a bamboo stretchy and blueberry coverall wrap or a disposable plus bamboo booster round the waist (side sleeper) and a wrap. Rarely get leaks even after 13ish hours.

DD is 2 and has been in BG since she was a few weeks old. I like the convenience of an AIO. I use both inserts in at the same time, and wash on a 40 wash cycle. I do have to change them every 2.5-3 hours as the wee leaks at the legs onto her vest. I assume that this is because the inserts aren't the same shape as the nappy.

I was using a two parter overnight but have had to resort to disposables as we were getting leaks even with a hemp booster.

sorry not read the rest of the thread, but bum genius are my go to night time nappy, i use the microfibre insert and then a hemp one undernesth, they keep dd dry all night. they also were my go to with the hemp liner when she went thorugh a stage of wetting every other brand.

the tots bots stuffable ones are fab as well.