As we are not getting time to answer questions during the episodes, we will be publishing an episode at the end of the month devoted to questions and answers. If you have a problem, you would like Vicki and Vashti to answer go to the contact page at Nappy Leaks

This week's questions are.

What is the difference between microfleece and microfiber?
Do I need to use liners?
You had a long hose on your squirt, didn't you?

 

Transcription: Q&A for May 2018

Andrew: Welcome to Nappy Leaks with Vicki Simpson and Vashti Wadell.
Hey there Vicki.

Vicki: Good, you did me first, because I had a whinge.

Andrew: How are you Vashti?

Vashti: I am awesome.

Andrew: So I have managed to pull another 10 minutes time of the [00:00:30] girls' time and what we are going to do is, we are just going to answer a few questions, it is not going to be a large podcast, it's just going to be a short one, and I have got a bunch of questions here to get the girls talking.
So the first one is, what is the difference between micro fleece and microfiber?

Vashti: Well both are synthetic fabrics, micro fleece is a waterproof, sorry a-

Vicki: Stay dry.

Vashti: Yeah stay dry fabric, thank you, brain isn't working.

Vicki: And it's fleece, it is soft and fluffy.

Vashti: Yep [00:01:00] so it's actually used against the baby's skin to help draw moisture away from the skin. So it's similar to like your track suit pants and things like that, that is the type of fabric that it is.

Andrew: So, let me put that into perspective, so in one of the nappies you make, you have actually got that liner?

Vashti: Yeah, oh well similar.

Andrew: Similar.

Vashti: And that is what sits against the skin.

Andrew: Right.

Vashti: Microfiber is an absorbent [00:01:30] fabric and most microfiber has that prickly feel, like when I touch microfiber, I really-

Vicki: It catches on your skin.

Vashti: Oh my God, it feels like a spider.

Vicki: It's like your cleaning cloths.

Vashti: Yeah it is, but you can't have it against the skin because it draws the moisture out of the skin and will actually cause nappy rash. So it is really important to understand the difference between micro fleece and microfiber, so that is the difference.

Andrew: So microfiber is the one that you want against the baby's [00:02:00] skin?

Vashti: No.

Vicki: No.

Andrew: Okay, microfiber is the one you don't want against the baby's skin.

Vashti: Yes.

Vicki: Yes.

Andrew: Micro fleece is the one you want against the baby's skin.

Vicki: Yes.

Andrew: Okay, now I understand the question because I was a bit confused before if somebody would have asked that question.

Vicki: Well micro fleece isn't absorbent, microfiber is.

Vashti: Is, yeah.

Andrew: Do I need to use liners?

Vashti: You don't have to use liners. Liners can definitely help, look, I like one use liners for the meconium, so those first couple of days, because no one wants to deal with that sticky mess, so I [00:02:30] always suggest one use liners for that because you can just pick it up and bin it.
Fleece liners or stay dry liners are great for drawing the moisture away and keeping baby feeling dry. One use liners are great for when you are starting on solids because that change from breast fed poo to solid poo is pretty foul, it's like a peanut paste, but it stinks. But I mean, liners are just there to sort of help you clean up the poo, but they are not necessary.

Andrew: We discovered liners, nearly [00:03:00] towards the end of Gabriel's nappies.

Vicki: No, no we used to use micro fleece liners and then we changed to single use liners.

Andrew: Right, because that was like, oh, why haven't we been doing this the whole time type.

Vicki: I am pretty sure the little squirt, the nappy sprayer on the toilet broke.

Andrew: Oh that's right, that's why we did it. That's right, it didn't squirt anymore.

Vicki: Yep.

Andrew: Well, it did squirt but it didn't squirt in the right way. No offence to the company who makes the little squirt, no offence.

Vashti: [00:03:30] Oh okay, my mind was going completely elsewhere and I'm like-

Andrew: It went through three babies and three houses, we moved the three houses over the years and it finally gave up the ghost just before Gabriel was out of nappies, so we never bothered to replace it.

Vashti: That's pretty good run.

Vicki: It is.

Andrew: Yeah it is a good run, yeah.

Vashti: Considering how often those things get used.

Andrew: That's right, a couple of times a day and I tell you what though, when you are cleaning the toilet, it was fantastic to help you clean the toilet, it was brilliant.

Vashti: Yeah it is great isn't it?

Vicki: It gets [00:04:00] up underneath the rim.

Vashti: Yes, yeah you are right.

Andrew: I was talking about hosing the tiles.

Vashti: Oh were you? There is that too. Do you know what the little squirt is really good for? You know, high pressure water hoses that hook onto your toilet, so doesn't matter what brand it is, they are really good when your partner has pissed you off and they are in the shower because you just open up the door and hit them with cold water.

Vicki: Nice.

Andrew: You had a really long hose on your squirt didn't you?

Vashti: No, the shower and the toilet are just really close together. [00:04:30] Well they were in our old place, in this one, it's too far away, but, you know, you can still get a good reach.

Vicki: Nothing that a bucket won't fix.

Vashti: Yeah, that's true.

Andrew: Our toilets were always in a separate room, for good reason.

Vicki: Yeah because you stink them out.

Vashti: Well we have always had our nappy sprayer attached to our en suite so that our guests don't have to deal with the nappy sprayer.

Andrew: Hey, you visit a family that has got a baby, you are going to get hurt.

Vashti: Yeah I know but I have just always had my nappy sprayer in my en [00:05:00] suite.

Andrew: It's like the C word rule, first three, I honestly can't get wet. How do you use cloth wipes?

Vashti: Same way you use disposable wipes really.

Vicki: Just a lot less of them.

Vashti: Yeah.

Andrew: Technically that is not true because disposable wipes are already wet.

Vicki: Oh true.

Vashti: Oh there you go. Okay, so cloth wipes, I only use plain old water so I wet them as I go. I have always been lucky that my change [00:05:30] table, well not always lucky but at the moment, my change table is in my dining room, kitchen so I have just always grabbed a dry wipe, wet it at the kitchen sink and cleaned up the bum and then the dirty wipe and the dirty nappy get washed together.

Vicki: Whereas we used a foaming solution on bub so that goes straight on bub with the dry wipe.

Vashti: Yep, there you go.

Vicki: So there is multiple different ways.

Andrew: One of the advantages I saw with the foaming wipes wash was the fact that you didn't have to be ready, like-

Vicki: [00:06:00] Yeah, yeah, it was right there.

Andrew: You didn't have to go and pre wet the washers.

Vashti: Yeah.

Andrew: Yeah could just, you know.

Vicki: Actually, I found the best part about that was you could squirt a couple on the kids hands and so then all of a sudden, they have got this foaming bubble and like Gabriel would just clap and play with it rather than playing with his dirty nappy area, you know? Because boys, and I really found this with boys, once they find it, they never let it go. So as soon as the nappy is off, straight down in the pants.

Vashti: Boys are born with [00:06:30] their own toy, that's it. So, there are other ways to use your cloth wipes though you know like you can buy a cheap spray bottle and just fill it with water and have it sitting at the change table and just spray the wipe or the bum, you know, with the plain old water. I have customers who have little plastic containers sitting at the change table.

Vicki: Like the Huggies container.

Vashti: Yeah a Huggies container and they would just put in enough wipes for the day and enough water to moisten those wipes. You can use cloth wipes while you are out and about. I always had a water [00:07:00] bottle while I was breast feeding so I just wet straight from the water bottle.

Vicki: And the wipes don't have to be anything fancy either.

Vashti: No, plain old face washers from K Mart.

Vicki: Face washers are fine, you know. Like even, we sell you know, beautiful bamboo velour wipes but do you have to do that? No, not at all.

Vashti: But they are nice, they are really nice.

Vicki: Of course, they are really nice but you know, in the same sentence, a five pack of face washers from K Mart. That's the beauty [00:07:30] of cloth nappies and cloth wipes is you can do it as expensive as you want or as cheap as you want. You just find the solution that suits your budget.

Andrew: So my tip there would be, always be ready for number twos.

Vicki: Yes.

Andrew: Even if you think you are not going to be changing a number two, always be ready for a number two, never be under prepared when you are going to change a nappy.
This is a broad question, and I know it has got many answers but if you have got a nappy that is leaking, what have you got to watch for?

Vashti: Fit.

Andrew: Is it the way you put it on?

Vashti: [00:08:00] Fit.

Vicki: A lot of it will be fit.

Vashti: Yep and then if you think you have got a good fit on your nappy, have a look at how wet the inserts are. If you take the nappy off after it has leaked and the inserts are completely soaked, then there is a good chance that it is a capacity issue. But if you take the nappy off and the front half of the inserts are soaked but the back half is dry, it could be that your child is flooding, like they are holding on and then letting go in a rush [00:08:30] and it is just not having enough time to soak through the entire insert. And it could come down to fit, so it just-

Vicki: You have got to remember that wee is looking for the fastest route out so if you have any gaps around the legs or around the waist, that is, you know, that is where it is going to leak.

Vashti: Yep.

Vicki: So you need to make sure that you have got a really nice, firm fit around the legs and around the waist and you know, I would probably say 90% of leaks are caused by fit.

Vashti: Fit.

Vicki: [00:09:00] And then the other 10% will be absorbency.

Vashti: Yep.

Vicki: You know they are the two main reasons.

Andrew: When you say absorbency, you mean how quickly the fabric can absorb the moisture, is that what you are saying?

Vicki: A bit of both, either as Vashti said, flooding and what we tend to find is if you are using those stay dry fabrics like the suede cloth and the micro fleece against the skin, and a baby is flooding, sometimes that actually pools on the fabric and goes over the edge and touches the [00:09:30] shell before the insert has an opportunity to soak that up. So there is ways to combat that by popping the natural fibres against the skin instead of the stay dry layer or just simply, there is not enough absorbency, you know, back to the microfiber inserts or bamboo charcoal inserts generally aren't enough on their own.

Andrew: I do know we have actually done a video on that.

Vicki: Did we? Oh right, [00:10:00] oh yeah, how to flip your insert.

Andrew: How to change your insert around just in case you are having, yeah that's right.

Vicki: Yeah flooding issues.

Andrew: Excellent ladies. Anything else you want to say?

Vicki: Not in that time I think.

Andrew: Okay, so we have got to go because it is time for Vicki's Nanna nap.

Vicki: Yep.

Andrew: Thank you Vicki.

Vicki: Thanks Andrew.

Andrew: Thank you Vashti.

Vashti: Thanks Andrew.

Andrew: See how I did you first again?

Vicki: Yeah but you do me first at the end all the time, it's like you want to say goodbye to me really quickly.

Vashti: Yeah well he lives with you.

Vicki: I am starting to get a complex. [00:10:30] Or it's maybe, oh hurry up Vicki and cook me dinner.

Andrew: It's not just that he lives with her, he works with her now too.

Vicki: Yes.

Andrew: Thanks girls.

Vashti: Bye.

Vicki: Bye.