Finally going cloth for night time

[wayne]

Yes, finally finally, I'm going to try cloth for night time. The easiest way for me to start seems to be this diaper from my supplier:

https://healthwick.ca/collections/washable-and-reusable-incontinence-items/products/rearz-super-snap-fitted-adult-diaper

Pricey enough but it won't break the bank at $49.99 Cdn, allowing me to try one for a start. Over time I can invest in more if it works out. I have simply got to the point where I know I need to sometimes have overnight protection that doesn't leak. Paying $3+ a night for disposables seems like a huge waste especially when most of the time, I will awake dry. Compared to $90/month for disposables, I can afford a couple cloth/month. Washing should be manageable at this stage since I expect that it won't need it often.

My wife has suggested I get a plastic bucket from a hardware store to put them in when they need washing. I hope to find one that has a sealable lid to keep the odour down. Maybe someone has suggestions.

The referenced website says:

Prewash in hot water with vinegar. Do not bleach. Machine dry until completely dry to allow for some natural shrinkage (approximately 10%) for the optimal fit.

I assume after the "prewash" is the normal "machine wash" and then drying.

My next question is about size. My hips are about 38 inches but my waist is 36. The website lists sizes that overlap:

S: Fits 22"-36"
M: Fits 28"-44"

I expect there will be some shrinkage (they mention 10%), so I'm concerned about ordering small. I usually order Medium disposables.

So, now I feel like I'm starting my IC journey all over again.

Attachments

[Patrick]

I recommend starting with the medium. If, even after shrinkage because of laundering, they are still too large, they will still accommodate the added absorbency of a pad or two.

[Ellyn]

Let me suggest a fool proof, basic solution that is simple and nearly guaranteed not to leak.
Two prefold nighttime weight diapers in Birdseye weave. Try one diaper or two (double diaper), depending on your leakage volume. I use two.
Two large (jumbo) pins
A pair of waterproof pants. Your choice in materials but vinyl is cheapest for a first try.
All from adultclothdiapers.com
Follow their sizing recommendations.
In the morning, put them in the washer and do a quick wash or rinse and spin. Then let them stay until you do laundry (in one day max). No pail. No smells. No mess.
If it works out for you, order more diapers and pants, keeping in mind that you can rinse out the pants a few times before a need to machine wash. NEVER bleach or put in dryer. Some people here can recommend diaper and pants quantities and brands to try, though I’ve had very good luck with ACD over many years. Angelfluff, not so much.
I usually wash diapers as a load by themselves, washing as few as 8 to as many as 12 at a time. Hot water, 1/2 cup borax, tide pod, non-chlorine colored bleach. Occasionally, lite bleach when they appear dingy or develop an odor.

[Patrick]

Although I second your laundry advice, a newbie needs to be careful with laundry. If your washer is the vertical pivot type, using it to full advertised capacity can cause a problem. Full capacity causes my washer to bang and rattle; you would think it's auditioning for a heavy metal band. Experiment carefully with the size of your first several loads, until you find what works.

[Ellyn]

Patrick,
Yes, of course, you’re right.
I’ve had high capacity, super heavy duty front load pairs forever. I would never attempt to wash more than maybe 6 diapers at a time in a top load washer.
By the way, I use around 12 diapers in a two day span, but only overnight diapers are newest and super bulky. Day wear are generally well used and much less bulky.

[wayne]

Thanks Patrick and Ellyn for your advice. I have ordered one medium for now and should receive it in a couple of days.

Ellyn, that domain adultclothdiapers.com is up for sale, when I did a search moments ago. I wonder if that website has moved or gone out of business. Or perhaps they forgot to renew their domain. Google suggested I try an Alibaba source.

In any case, I'm going to start simple and see how that goes. I'll likely order some solid pins, prefolds and additional plastic pants etc. later. One thing I like about the diaper that I ordered is that it supposedly can be easily removed like a pull-up for using the toilet.

I like the wash, rinse and spin idea. But given that our laundry machines (for the 3 of us) are often in upheaval, I best look for a pail.

[HumanFly]

Ellyn, that domain adultclothdiapers.com is up for sale,

It's diaper, singular.

[Padded53]

Wayne:
Try adultclothdiaper.com , I believe you added an "s" at the end of diaper and I think that was your problem. I just checked the website and it is there as usual and I've had very good service from them.

BTW... I highly recommend the Leakmaster PUL pants, they are the same great quality as the Gary PUL pants but they have a more generous cut and high rise and really cover nighttime cloth (or disposable) diapers perfectly. I would recommend buying at least one size larger than indicated, they will look a bit baggy but it will give you even better coverage and more freedom of movement while sleeping.

[Steve M.]

I agree with Ellyn.....keep it simple. Two cloth twill or birdseye prefolds and waterproof cover pants would be good to start with. I am definitely not a fan of fitted or hourglass shaped cloth diapers. They don't have as much capacity in the middle as standard rectangular prefolds. Velcro closures and flannel and microfiber materials are not worth the bother.

[wayne]

Thanks Padded53 for the website correction (I should have thought of that). I had actually copied and pasted it verbatim from Ellyn's message, but no matter. That company looks pretty good. I'll certainly follow up with other cloth needs in the future there since our healthwick.ca has very limited cloth offerings here in Canada.

Thanks to everyone who responded! You all deserve a commission, if there was one.