Tots Bots Wrap Problems

[AppleAndBlackberry]

I have a 13lb7 baby in flexitots size 2 and flexiwraps size 1. The problem is that I can't seem to get the wraps tight enough around the legs so we've had a few leaks. Does anyone have any tips for this or can you reassure me that she'll grow into them soon? Ideally I'd rather not buy new wraps because I've spent quite a lot already and they don't leak every time.

Also any tips for reducing the smell of the bucket and washing machine? I'm dry pailing and just using non-bio washing powder at 60.

a few drops of tea-tree oil or lavender essential oil in the bucket helps mask the smell and is naturally antibiotic. Otherwise unfortunately the only solution is washing more frequently.

I found totsbots wraps pretty bad, I have to say, and it didn't improve until I changed to rikki wraps from motherease. I'm not sure why the difference because the rikki wraps are also gappy around the legs, but it doesn't seem to be such a problem.

You do get occasional leaks regardless though - as their bladder gets bigger, sometimes they just pee more than a single nappy can hold and there's nothing you can do about that, other than changing more frequently and boosting.

I couldnt get tots bots waterproof wraps to stop wicking moisture around the leg binding, but this was the old style and it sounds like you have the new style i.e. flexiwrap.

Does the fabric of the leg binding retain moisture and therefore act as a wick taking wetness outside the nappy? Or is it just that the legs leak full stop. If the leg fabric is wicking you could try lanolising the leg fabric by rubbing in lansinoh. Sounds odd but it did help. I got sick of this though and bought different wraps.

The other poster is correct, Motherease wraps do seem to stop any leaks and they are the best Ive come across.

Another idea with the nappy bucket is when you empty it, put a drop of Ariel liquid in (or ariel powder would do, must actually be bio!) then top it up with boiling water from the kettle and put the lid on. Leave it for a bit. but obviously out of the reach of babies and children! Then just swish the water round and empty it out and use as usual. I found that the bio detergent gets rid of the smell of urine.

Using bio detergent in your machine will also help with the machine smelling, if you dont want to use it on your clothes run an empty but hot wash, or wash your cleaning cloths and dusters in it

Have you thought about putting size 1 flexitots back on as size 2 may just be too big/bulky under the wrap which is causing the gaps. I like the new covers - work much better than the old style.

I use an xl monkey foot wet bag to store my nappies now and then a teaspoon of sanitiser in the machine with my normal washing powder.

Thanks for your responses - some things to think about...

Alyson - it's not the leg fabric wicking, it's that there's a gap between the leg and the wrap if that makes sense.

Octo - I don't have size 1 flexitots because I didn't want to spend that much money when I had a 9lb baby from birth and the size 2s are supposed to fit from 10lb. They are quite bulky though, perhaps I'll have more luck with the size 2 wraps when she gets a bit bigger.

A friend has lent me two Motherease wraps - I don't know what type, but I don't seem to have the same problem with them because they have separate poppers around the legs to the waist. Perhaps I should just get a couple more of these?

Thanks for the smell tips too!

Meant to say it's mainly poo leaks rather than wee ones if that makes a difference?

hmm... to me poo leaks suggest it's the nappy not fitting right, not the wrap. The wrap shouldn't be the primary thing keeping the poo in.

Possibility 1) Do you use a liner? if so, do you make sure there is no liner poking out the edge of the nappy? If there is, it will encourage the poo to slide out, rather than soak into the nappy. There should always be cloth, not paper, touching the skin at the outer edge of the nappy.

POssibility 2) your dd is doing very big, wet poos and they would leak out of anything! How old is she? If she's still totally milk fed then it's likely to improve substantially when she's on solids as the poo will stick better (however the downside is the evil stench - on balance I prefer the leaks )

Do you have gaps around the legs of the nappy (as opposed to wrap?) The legs on tots nappies are quite high too - I really think this will sort it self out over time - the popper covers would give a better fit - adjust on the legs - would suggest onelife or motherease. I have a nappy mountain here - happy to lend you some covers for free if you want to try some out - or have a look on go real and find a local nappy shop/advisor who can let you try some on for fit.

The nappy seems to fit well and I do check that the liner is contained, so perhaps it's just the big breastmilk poos? We did get leaks in disposables too, but in reusables the Motherease wraps seem to contain the leaks out of the nappy while the Tots Bots ones don't. She is 8 weeks old so a while to go before solids .

Thanks for the offer Octo, it's really kind of you but I have tried Motherease so I know they work well. Maybe I'll just get another one or two of those to last us until she weans.

I was supposed to be using reusables primarily for saving money but they're kind of addictive!

I have the flexitots on the middle setting and I'm not using the booster. Does that sound right for her weight?

it really doesn't matter about weight - it's varies so much according to how chubby their legs are, how heavily they wee, how frequently you change them. Weight is just one variable and not necessarily the most important.

Really you just need to fiddle around and see which combination of poppers/boosters/wraps has the best results, and change it if necessary.

One final thought - I sometimes found that if my DSes were growing out of their baby vests, that could make their nappies leak, because the vest was applying too much pressure to the bottom of the nappy and causing the contents to squeeze out. If you think that might be affecting things, try a looser vest and see if that helps.

Real nappies affect the fit of baby clothes and make the age guides pretty much redundant, so you may need to go up a size much sooner than an equivalent baby in disposables.

sorry it varies. Don't know where that rogue s came from!

My team have found the Nature Babies wraps slightly better than the Popolini/Motherease ones for containment. The giset seems to really help, and some babies seem to be allergic to the binding on the Popolini/Motherease ones.

Thanks everyone.

Think the wrap depends on the baby though. On DD1 Nature babies were best, but on DD2 and DD3 motherease are best and I get the odd leak with Nature babies. The younger two have fatter thighs, DD1 was and is petite all over. Although two of the three have infantile eczema, none of them have had a problem with the leg binding.