What are the best real nappies for mobile babies?

[drjane]

Hi - I've been using real nappies for my ds since he was born - he's now 11mo. I use the plain cotton kind of nappies with Bambino Mio waterproof covers.

These have been fine until recently when he's started to spend much more time standing up (he's very active!). The problem is they slide down, so you have to do them up really tightly which can lead to sore patches where they rub. Or if you leave them looser you end up with leaking poo - not nice!

Have others had this problem? Is there a different type of nappy I could use? Or are disposables now my best bet?

I gave up on prefolds and bambino mio wraps when dd got mobile for the same reasons. Since then just about anything shaped under a motherease airflow wrap has worked fine - the elastic round the waist of airflows stops leaks at the top, you can adjust both the legs and the waist independently, and dd (now 2) still has not worked out poppers, whereas she got the hang of velcro about the time I abandonned the bambino mios

Ah, okay - I've seen those wraps. So can you use any nappy under those wraps then? Or does it need to be a specific shape?

I have an assorted collection of bumbles, totsbots, geobel, clwt twt and cottontails, and the cottontails are the only ones that don't really fit under the motherease wraps (I've used both med and large size wraps with the rest). The cottontail wraps are good, but they are velcro, so I have to be careful what clothes dd is wearing otherwise she undoes them (ie velcro wraps under dresses without tights are a disaster!)

Message withdrawn

drjane - the first thing you should try is buying one Motherease Rikki wrap. These are very reliable wrap which can be used with prefolds (because they are gussetted). See if these solve the problem with your prefolds - if they do you can buy more, if not you can seel on second hand easily enough (they are very popular wraps). Other than that then the Motherease Airflow is your best bet (as already mentioned) - these are excellent containment-wise and, hard for little fingers to take off (as already mentioned again ) and best of all the leg and waist are independantly adjusted so if you have a chubby legged thin waisted child they'll still fit very well! . You can use pretty much any shaped nappy under an airflow wrap - they are very versatile but, you shouldn't use them with prefolds (because they have no gusset) or terry squares (becasue they are quite baggy and unless your folding skills are very good you may find you fold comes apart under the wrap).

There is no need to swap to disposables - they are easier to remove than an airflow wrap and they may not contain as well as a two part cloth system. What shaped nappy you use under your airflow wrap is up to you - if you want any further advice on which to choose then let us know your circumstances with regard to drying facilities, budget etc...

hth

Sorry that previous post was from me!

Thanks for the advice! I use a nappy laundry company at the moment and they provide cotton prefolds, so ideally I need a wrap that will go over those - so that would be the Motherease Rikki wrap? But they seem to have a velcro fastenings, so presumably he will probably figure out how to take these off?

Alternatively I could move to washing my own, and buy some different shaped nappies (I was considering ditching the nappy company anyway as it's become less cost effective now he goes through fewer nappies). Do you think this might be worth it? How many would I need to buy? I don't mind spending more to make my life easier but we don't have a tumble-drier - is it a lot of hassle?

Without a tumble drier, I was advised to go for a microfibre nappy. microfibre dries really fast and doesn't go crunchy with line drying like cotton does. It's probably best to avoid bamboo, as they dry incredibly slowly (unless you don't mind buying a larger stash, sothat there are always some dry and some drying)
Some microfibre ones are Tots Bots Fluffles and Bambinex Teddies. Little lamb also does microfibre ones I think. I'm no great expert though, there are other ladies on here with much more experience, I'm just relaying what a nappy adviser recommended for me!

I'm surprised your laundry company is using bambino mio wraps! IME they tend to use the pro wrap (it's quite a good wrap and bit bot more reliable and harder wearing than the mio wraps). That said yes, the pro wrap, rikki and mio wraps are all velcro fit. Is he taking his nappy off atm? If not you may find it is never a problem for you - my DD2 is a serial streaker and hardcore naturist but many people use velcro wraps right up to potty training without any problems.

I don't know what your nappy company charge you so I can't really say if a switch to DIY is the best bet but if you are getting leaks with their only offering then it is your best bet really. Prefolds have a tendancy to leak a lot more once your child becomes more active (but you can pin them to try to overcome this if you want to).

We don't use a tumble drier for our nappies - it certainly isn't a neccessity. Where are you located? If you had a local nappy project that operated a trial kit system then that would be great. How many nappies you need depends on how long they take to dry, how often you want to wash and how many you go through per day.

Microfibre is a quick drying option but quite bulky and prone to holding smells. Little Lamb do microfibre nappies - they are less bulky than fluffles (which are discontinued but still available in some places for now). Bamboo does take a while to dry but some bamboo nappies dry quicker than some cotton ones as you have to take the style of the nappy into account. Avoid hemp if you do not have a tumble drier.

It really isn't much hassle at all to DIY your own cloth nappies. I have two in cloth and I hardly notice having to wash them in amongst all the dirty clothes 3 young children and DH produce. I do 3 extra (nappy) washes a week at most atm with two in cloth but I wash a fair few of DS's nappies in with his clothes.

Would you be happy to buy second hand? Are you on a limited budget (bear in mind if you get good quality nappies they can be used for subsequent DCs), is a thin fitting nappy a priority.

The best advice is DON'T buy lots of one type but just try one or two of each that takes your fancy and see what you like best before buying in bulk. Buying second hand makes this a cheaper option as you can often resell for what you bought them for if they don't suit. If you want some advice on what might be best to try then let us know if you are on a limited budget (bear in mind if you get good quality nappies they can be used for subsequent DCs), and if a thin fitting nappy a priority. What do you like/dislike about prefolds? Do you have drying facilities outdoors? (who does in this weather????)

Sorry that is probably a bit long winded and rambling...

yes it is rambling isn't it? Worse still, I am repeating myself

The laundry company don't provide the wraps - you have to buy them yourself. Initially I bought the ones they sold, but they were pretty rubbish so I swtiched to using the Bambino Mio ones which had been okay until fairly recently. They charge about £40 a month for washing the nappies.

I had a look at the council website (I'm in Cambridge) but unfortunately they only provide sample packs in newborn size.

He hasn't actually managed to remove a nappy yet, so I might buy one of the Rikki wraps to see how that fares with the prefolds first...

It might be worth trying Elliepants wraps here - they have 'pockets' on the inside at either end to tuck the nappy into (they're are designed for use with pad folded terries or prefolds). I've not used them, but I have heard that they are very effective.