FLIP washing HELP

[amanthony]

I've just gotten my FLIPS and I'm dying to try them, but can't find instructions on how to prep them for the first use? I read somewhere that the covers bleed color and need lots of washes, but am not sure. Wash the liners & covers separate? How many times? The instructions say not to use laundry additives...does that mean no soap? This is probably dumb, but I'm confused and I don't want to ruin these! I'm hoping they'll save me from the leaky CD I've been living in!

 

[mommyof3co]

I washed mine, ribbit, with everything else...well all of my other diapers I mean...and it didn't bleed at all. Do you have the organic or stay dry? For the stay dry you will just need to do your normal hot wash and then dry and it should be ready for use, you don't really have to prep microfiber. For the organic you'll have to wash it a few times or you can boil it on the stove top even then do a hot wash and then dry and it should be ready. Just use your regular diaper detergent and you should be good

 

[amanthony]

Thank you so much! I've been using All Free & Clear. I read that it was a "safe" one for CDs but as I've had so much trouble with mine soaking through so fast I am wondering if perhaps I should switch? I've read about lots of people using Dawn dish soap 100% of the time (not just to strip them). Any thoughts? From what I gather looking around on these forums, you seem to be the CD pro.

 

[mommyof3co]

Haha thanks, I think there are quite a few very knowledgeable ladies on here

I did use All F&C for awhile but I prefer Purex F&C or even some WAHM made ones from DS. All should be just fine though Just make sure you aren't using too much and that it's rinsed completely, if it's not it can cause build up and then they will leak. I personally haven't heard of people using Dawn for all washing, just stripping and then you also use it when you boil prefolds, just a drop. I've heard alot of ladies have really good luck with just regular Tide but then others say it's a big no no. So I think it's just figuring out what works best for your routine and your water.

How quickly are they being soaked and what brands are they? New or preloved when you bought them? It might not have anything to do with your wash routine but what is that...maybe I can help you figure out why they are leaking?

 

[amanthony]

Oh my goodness, THANK YOU for the help thus far and for offering your advice on my diaper drama! I'll try to include all of the details...

I bought 36 diapers new from a WAHM. They're AIOs without pockets, with microfiber soaker and suedecloth inner & liner, snap closures. We have some bamboo fleece & peached suedecloth liners, and they don't seem to make a huge difference to be honest. My little guy seems to be a heavy wetter (though he's my first, so maybe I don't know how much babies pee & it's normal). These are my first CDs and I haven't tried other kinds, so I don't have a point of comparison really.

He soaks all the way through (not just around the legs or at the top where there's no PUL layer even)--and I mean COMPLETELY through--in about an hour! Every once in a while I'll change him at the hour mark and he hasn't soaked his clothes as well, but usually his clothes are wet so he's getting completely changed every hour. She gave us some PUL covers, but they don't work too well. I just got some Thirsties (actually after you recommended them to someone else on another thread) yesterday and they are a GODSEND! His diapers soaked through but at least the Thirsties contained it!

I love the WAHM who I bought these diapers from, but I don't know if her diapers aren't great or if I'm doing something wrong.

My washing routine is:

-about 24 diapers at a time in a top loading machine
-1 cold rinse cycle with 1/4 cup of baking soda (also sprinking the CDs with baking soda when they go in the dry pail)
-hot wash cycle with 1/4-1/2 recommended detergent & 1/4 cup of baking soda (All Free & Clear detergent)
-cold rinse (sometimes add white vinegar to this last rinse, sometimes a drop or two of tea tree oil)
-dry on low heat
*all wash/rinse cycles are gentle

A friend suggested a pocketed AIO with a bamboo insert, but wouldn't that be about the same as the liner?

 

[mommyof3co]

The diapers don't sound like AIO..they sound more like fitteds. If they were aio she shouldn't have sent you covers because they shouldn't need them? Some PUL is very thin or isn't sealed well so it won't hold well. That's why I love thirsties they are great! The soaking every hour or so seems pretty normal for a fitted, the cover is great because then it doesn't get his clothes wet. At his age I really wouldn't go coverless because he probably sits alot in one spot or position...the compression is probably what's soaking his clothes.

Your wash routine sounds pretty good, I don't wash or dry on gentle though. Also I don't use baking soda, I don't think you need that much, I'd probably cut it out in the wash with detergent, you don't want too much in at once and it not get rinsed well enough.

Depending on the liners they are usually very diff from inserts, the inserts usually have more layers and will be more absorbent. Who is the WAHM you buy from?

 

[amanthony]

I am NOT trying to throw this woman under the bus, as she's been nothing but wonderful in helping out and her diapers seem to be made well and are cute. Maybe it's something I did wrong

I got them from:
https://www.threemonkeysclothdiapers.com/products-page/cloth-diapers/

My wash routine is per her instructions, and I often wondered if it was too much baking soda but figured that she was the expert.

They are supposed to be AIO and not supposed to need the PUL covers because they have the PUL layer in them, but I wrote her a pretty desperate email one day and she sent me a couple of covers, the thicker soakers (the bamboo fleece and peached suedecloth), a wool shortie and 3 A12s (which work much better for us) for free to try to help out. I have a bunch of regular suedecloth liners too, just to protect the diaps and make the cleanup easier, though they don't help with absorbancy. Now that I have the Flip inserts and a couple of the Thirsties hemp inserts, I see what a huge difference there is (even from her thicker soakers) in absorbancy.

Her PUL covers helped some, but the trim around the edges is some other kind of fabric that does absorb liquid and that's how his clothes end up getting wet. Not like the Thirsties, with the gusset...the fit isn't as good and when the trim gets wet his clothes do too. Though really he shouldn't need the cover with an AIO, right?

On the plus side, I can use her AIOs as fitteds with the Thirsties covers and go a couple of hours between changes! And the Flips seem to work really well for us, lasting through a breakfast outing and nap (we both fell asleep, so he ended up in that diaper for almost 4 hours by accident and no leaks!!! A little bit of poo did get on the cover, but NO LEAKS!!!)

Bottom line...
I'll cut the soda in the wash tomorrow & try a regular (not gentle) wash to try to agitate out any built-up soda/soap

New questions to make sure that I don't mess up my new diapers...
-Can I wash the covers, inserts, liners, my old AIOs, cloth wipes, etc. all together?
-I plan to hang the covers to dry as the instructions say to do and dry the AIOs and inserts...I think one or both said to dry no higher than medium heat, but I only have low or high so I guess I'll do low? Sometimes they don't quite dry on low though...if I run a second low dry or half cycle would that be what could be causing the problem? I don't have a line to dry everything on, unfortunately.
-Can/should I add other things (towels, blankets) to the load after the diapers have rinsed to fill it up (especially if we start doing the Flips more, I'm thinking that a couple of day's worth wouldn't even make a small load full)?
-Should I be washing every other day religiously, or is it okay to go 3 days between?
-Any other inserts you'd recommend?

THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU for your help! You're a godsend!!!

 

[NattieLou]

Coincidentally, I was looking at threemonkeys just yesterday. Her nappies look really cute and I was going to try either the pocket or flap AI2 options. Maybe I'll give it a miss now. Hope you get your issues resolved soon, amanthony.

 

[amanthony]

Coincidentally, I was looking at threemonkeys just yesterday. Her nappies look really cute and I was going to try either the pocket or flap AI2 options. Maybe I'll give it a miss now. Hope you get your issues resolved soon, amanthony.

Thanks NattieLou!

I feel awful to drive any business away from her because she's SO nice!

I have 3 of the AI2 tri-fold soaker diapers and they work out much better than the AIOs for us. For all I know, the flaps or pockets might be great! It seems that the AIOs are for other people. The fit of them is really great, I will say...

 

[mommyof3co]

I don't think you are throwing her under the bus, don't worry. It looks like she makes a good cheap option. Her quality of materials isn't going to be as good as say the BG aio that are more expensive because they are using better stuff. But these are a good option when you want to get something inexpensive but don't want prefolds and covers. They are def a good price. I think she'd probably have more luck using them as fitteds since it seems like the PUL she is using isn't actually doing it's job, so people being aware that they would need a cover would probably be better. It looks like for heavy wetters/overnight she has an upgrade to better or more PUL and she should probably have that in all of her AIO because people don't expect to have to add more...that's the point of an AIO. It even says that no extra PUL would be required on those, kind of like saying she knows the others might. Just to me that doesn't make an AIO if you have to use something else. But it sounds like she has wonderful customer service to have sent you all that extra stuff!!!


New questions to make sure that I don't mess up my new diapers...
-Can I wash the covers, inserts, liners, my old AIOs, cloth wipes, etc. all together? Yep you can wash everything in one load
-I plan to hang the covers to dry as the instructions say to do and dry the AIOs and inserts...I think one or both said to dry no higher than medium heat, but I only have low or high so I guess I'll do low? Sometimes they don't quite dry on low though...if I run a second low dry or half cycle would that be what could be causing the problem? I don't have a line to dry everything on, unfortunately. Which covers say only line dry? I think thirsties say you can do both? I can't remember for sure but I know I have ALWAYS done them in the dryer and have had them for over a year no issues But I only dry on low heat, most of the time it takes two cycles on low heat to get everything dry because I do pretty large loads.
-Can/should I add other things (towels, blankets) to the load after the diapers have rinsed to fill it up (especially if we start doing the Flips more, I'm thinking that a couple of day's worth wouldn't even make a small load full)? You can add other stuff, just be careful what you do since you have to wash diapers on hot some things can't be washed on hot or will shrink, I think towels and blankets would be a good option to put in there though cause those it won't matter how you wash them
-Should I be washing every other day religiously, or is it okay to go 3 days between? You can go 3 days in between, I probably wouldn' tdo more than that on a regular basis but I have occasionally had to do wait longer due to vacations and stuff and it's been fine but on average I do every 2-3 days
-Any other inserts you'd recommend? I really haven't bought many other inserts besides what comes with the diapers so I can't say for sure. I know I really liked Cotton Babies one size (the ones that come with bumgenius pockets) until I started having stink issues with them. I really like my fuzzi bunz so I would say their inserts are great too

 

[amanthony]

Which covers say only line dry? I think thirsties say you can do both? I can't remember for sure but I know I have ALWAYS done them in the dryer and have had them for over a year no issues But I only dry on low heat, most of the time it takes two cycles on low heat to get everything dry because I do pretty large loads.

You're right, Thirsties say either or. Good to know that yours have held up and good to know I'm not the only one having to do 2 dry cycles on low! It's the Flips that say line dry only, so although they seem to be the same fabric as the Thirsties I guess I'll just hang them to be safe.

THANKS AGAIN!!!

 

[mommyof3co]

No problem, I hope they work well for you! I dry my flips haha