Cloth Backed Disposables

[speedy_d's]

Hello all, I hope everyone is doing well.

I've recently developed an issue, that is partly related to the warmer weather we have been beginning to have here in the states. This issue is in the form of a nasty rash in my private quarters. In trying to alleviate this problem, I decided to put the plastic backed disposable briefs away for the warmer months, and switch to cloth backed disposable. Purely cloth briefs are not an option as I don't think my main care taker(who is 22 mind you) wants to have to deal with washing them. Since I am fairly new to incontinence, I don't have much experience in the "cloth backed" area, and was hoping you guys could help to shed light on this issue.

I've done a little research and narrowed i down to three specific brands(all of which in size small): Molicare Air Active, Attends Breathables, and Tena Ultras. I will be mainly using these at night, and require moderate/high absorbency, and it is a must that the taping system is reliable. At this point I am leaning towards the Molicares, as they seem to have gotten the best reviews, and seem to be the most absorbent. Cost is an issue, but I can scrape up some extra money for the sake of the "well-being" of my rear end ;-).

Any information that can be shared on this topic is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Speedy_d's

[paradox]

Hello all, I hope everyone is doing well.

I've recently developed an issue, that is partly related to the warmer weather we have been beginning to have here in the states. This issue is in the form of a nasty rash in my private quarters. In trying to alleviate this problem, I decided to put the plastic backed disposable briefs away for the warmer months, and switch to cloth backed disposable. Purely cloth briefs are not an option as I don't think my main care taker(who is 22 mind you) wants to have to deal with washing them. Since I am fairly new to incontinence, I don't have much experience in the "cloth backed" area, and was hoping you guys could help to shed light on this issue.

I've done a little research and narrowed i down to three specific brands(all of which in size small): Molicare Air Active, Attends Breathables, and Tena Ultras. I will be mainly using these at night, and require moderate/high absorbency, and it is a must that the taping system is reliable. At this point I am leaning towards the Molicares, as they seem to have gotten the best reviews, and seem to be the most absorbent. Cost is an issue, but I can scrape up some extra money for the sake of the "well-being" of my rear end ;-).

Any information that can be shared on this topic is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Speedy_d's

Look into molicare or Abena's those are gonna be your best bet. They are a little more pricy but if you gotta wear all the time it is worth the dough.

[Guest YkDave]

Abena x-plus's are available with the cloth type backing (air plus i think they are calling them). If they are anything like the regular plastic x-plus they will hold a TON, but the tapes did leave some to the imagination...

[grayfile]

I would deffinatly look into either the Molicare, Tena or other higher end cloth backed diapers such as the Abena. Personally I like the Prevail PM as they hold two large wettings, and the tapes hold pretty well. They are usually avaliable at local medical supply stores and are usually priced at around $19.00 a bag for 18 (but then again, I'm a Prevail fan )

I did not like the cloth backed Attends when I tried them. They did not hold anything and would leak after just a little bit of pee, and they cost more than many of the better products. The local medical supply store in my area sells them for $20.95 a bag, and you should be able to get better products for a lower price than that.

Hope this helps!

[Floaty_Boy]

Hello all, I hope everyone is doing well.

I've recently developed an issue, that is partly related to the warmer weather we have been beginning to have here in the states. This issue is in the form of a nasty rash in my private quarters. In trying to alleviate this problem, I decided to put the plastic backed disposable briefs away for the warmer months, and switch to cloth backed disposable. Purely cloth briefs are not an option as I don't think my main care taker(who is 22 mind you) wants to have to deal with washing them. Since I am fairly new to incontinence, I don't have much experience in the "cloth backed" area, and was hoping you guys could help to shed light on this issue.

Any information that can be shared on this topic is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Speedy_d's

Just remember that the idea of a "cloth-backed" disposable is kind of misinformative. ALL so-called "cloth-backed" or "cloth-like" disposables are covered in plastic around the main pad (that's what makes them waterproof). Then they more-or-less glue a paper towel to the outside of the plastic (it's more like a flocking gun procedure). The wings, though, are the spun fibers (and that's where the "breathability" factor comes in). If the rash is in your private quarters, "cloth-like" will stay slightly cooler than plastic-backed, and you won't sweat as much under the wings, but its not an optimum situation. Your best bet is to try to go without any covering whenever possible to let things air out.

And for what it's worth, every time I've ever worn "cloth-like" disposables, I could smell urine after the first wetting. But then, I only ever wore the cheap ones, so take it for what it's worth.

--Floaty

[speedy_d's]

Thanks for the great replies guys, it's really appreciated. I did see the Abena X-plus air plus online, but I am apprehensive to get them as I have used the plastic backed x-plus's and supers before. Now, don't get me wrong, they were a great brief, but the tapes were constantly coming off. Strong tapes for me is of the utmost importance as size small are still a little too large for me, meaning I need to have really strong tapes to tape the brief as tight as possible to prevent any leaks. I have used the Tena cloth backed briefs(the green ones) before, and worked well enough for my needs, but I heard they recently switched to velcro "tape" tabs, which worries me as to how strong they will be.

Grayfile: Are the prevail PM's available in a size small?

Floaty: Thank you for sharing that information, I was wondering how the briefs are cloth back, but yet don't leak through the cover. Do you think the Molicare air active brief would be any better?, as it does advertise that it is the first completely breathable brief, but after reading what you wrote, I have my doubts. I do try to let things "air out", but most of the difficulty I am having is located at the bottom of my buttocks. Because I am in a wheelchair, it's really hard for me to allow this place to "breath". The only time I can do so is when I am sleeping, and I am always wearing a brief then.

I went to Rite Aid yesterday, and got a tube of Desitin(sp?), so hopefully that will help.

Thanks again everyone,

Speedy_D's

[speedy_d's]

I think I may give these a try...

http://www.metromedicalonline.com/ib011.html

[Angela Bauer]

Speedy D, since you shared about disposables sold on-line, then I suggest you at least try Attends Breathable. In Small (which I wear) those are only made as Extra Absorbent. Sometimes in ABDL sites Attends get bad reviews because they are as non-babyish as possible and also designed for incontinent people, meaning the expectation is they will be change on schedule.

I have been happy with Attends briefs since 1981. The Breathable have very good Velcro tabs. Attends customer support is generous sending samples. I purchase my Attends from Care Giver Partnership, but most of the on-line vendors sell Attends.

A point to discuss with your care giver is that all cloth-like diapers cling to sheets and bedding. This is why so many institutional adult diapers still use the poly-plastic layer which slides. The folks at Attends have known me for a long time, so when I asked about Breathable they mentioned that some care givers did not like them. That customer service lady did not know I have no physical challenge, just urinary incontinence, and have always changed myself. At my urologist's office I have talked to several experienced care givers. All said they just needed some practice when cloth-like products for adults appeared. By now none who have spoken to me have any problems. Here in Southern California all my friends who are in chairs say they much prefer cloth-like except in bed.

[speedy_d's]

Hi Angela,

I tried Attends Youth(the blue kind with two sticky tapes per side) a while back, and I did not like them at all. While I found that the fit was decent enough for me, they greatly lacked in absorbency and I found them to be very "clammy" and "plasticy" on the inner padding. Because of this I am worried to try the breathable briefs. Also, you brought up a good point about the breathable covers clinging to bed sheets, I would have never thought of that myself. I do have a set of washable bed pads that are slippery on one side, so I could always start using those again to help with maneuvering in bed.

Time is of the essence for me, so I can't really fiddle around with samples even though I would like to. I just need to take care of my problem as soon as possible before it gets any worse, and I just don't want to spend $50-$70 on a case of briefs that turn out to not work too well for me, so I need to be absolute sure before I buy. I now feel that the attends breathables, the prevails, the tenas, and the molicares would all be good choices. All I really need to find out now is the capacity that each brief can handle, and then I can order with confidence.

Also, I should mention that I almost exclusively sleep on my side, so that may impact my choice of briefs.

Thank you,

Speedy_D's

[ultrapampers]

I found them to be very "clammy" and "plasticy" on the inner padding.

That was called the "Micropore" lining, and you're right, it doesn't feel good. I don't know what brain surgeon came up with that awful idea, but it was used on the Attends "Classic" briefs and Youth briefs for a while. I'm not sure if they still use it on any of their products.

Interestingly, it was also used on Luvs Stretch baby diapers for a short period. I'm not surprised they quickly switched back to the soft inner liners.

[Repaid1]

That was called the "Micropore" lining, and you're right, it doesn't feel good. I don't know what brain surgeon came up with that awful idea, but it was used on the Attends "Classic" briefs and Youth briefs for a while. I'm not sure if they still use it on any of their products.

Interestingly, it was also used on Luvs Stretch baby diapers for a short period. I'm not surprised they quickly switched back to the soft inner liners.

Yeppers, it's still used on the Youth and Small in the classic design, same blue plastic, same Micropore stuff inside. They never gave the smaller sizes a upgrade as they did the other sizes with the attends 10 series. However as Angela described they did include us with a upgrade in the Breathable version....and from what I hear they are quite better than any previous Attends.

I personally stick with the Molicare line, I find they tend to wick the moisture better than other diapers, thus spreading out the flood and able to contain the wetness over a broader area. I haven't used any of the breathable brands past a sample and didn't find them to my liking for various personal reasons. I have however used Tena, before the velcro switch a few months but never was able to get them to fit very well.

I think my concern would be your mobility issue. Your rear end is in constant contact with the diaper and not allowing a whole lot of air to circulate, so I question the fact that a "breathable" diaper would be of any significant benefit other than perhaps night time. Which would give your bottom side a break.

The side sleeping is a possible issue, but if the brand you currently use doesn't give you a problem then, I would guess a higher end diaper like those you mentioned wouldn't either. I think your best course of action is to try two things. First you need a barrier cream, almost all sites that sell the diapers sell the products that you will need and many of them can give you a recommendation of better and best.

Secondly go ahead and get a sample pack of various brands of the breathable. Time is only a week for you to try and find the comfort and security that you seek. Then you can make a more informed decision at what best fits your criteria, most of us are not in your unique situation and it's variables. Lastly go ahead and try to find a brand that might carry a Youth size, such as the website you pointed to, I have found a better fit is just as important as absorbency, if they aren't sealed correctly then no amount of absorbancy is going to help...Best of luck and let us know what you arrive at in the end (Pun Intended )

[Floaty_Boy]

Floaty: Thank you for sharing that information, I was wondering how the briefs are cloth back, but yet don't leak through the cover. Do you think the Molicare air active brief would be any better?, as it does advertise that it is the first completely breathable brief, but after reading what you wrote, I have my doubts. I do try to let things "air out", but most of the difficulty I am having is located at the bottom of my buttocks. Because I am in a wheelchair, it's really hard for me to allow this place to "breath". The only time I can do so is when I am sleeping, and I am always wearing a brief then.

I don't have any personal experience with the Air Active, but it looks to me like Medline is the only place calling it a "fully-breathable brief". I found a video from Hartmann selling their product to institutional buyers in Australia, and the video only talks about the "breathable side panels". It also shows that the center pad has a poly (plastic) backing, and it doesn't look like they even tried to cover it in the "cloth-like" stuff.

When it comes to side-sleeping, I've found that the breathable side panels will leak. They're water-resistant, not waterproof.

--Floaty

[storzech]

I honestly think the cloth backed diapers are rougher on the skin especially on my legs compared to the plastic backed diapers

[ultrapampers]

Indeed, storzech, the traditional plastic backsheet (cover) is smoother against the skin than the cloth-like (spunbond) one. Anybody can prove it to themselves: just drag a folded plastic diaper across the sensitive part of your wrist, just below your palm. Then do the same with a cloth-like diaper. It's easy to feel which one has less friction against the skin.

Also, cloth-like does not equal breathable. While some diapers claim to be breathable all over, the vast majority of cloth-like diapers are only breathable on the sides, if at all. Honestly, I think Molicare got it right with their latest Supers: a soft, stretchy plastic backsheet with porous, breathable sides.

The cloth-like trend that Huggies started way back in the mid '90s is just marketing hype. Parents were led to believe the diapers were softer, or more environmentally friendly, or breathable. In fact, they were none of those things. They still had a plastic layer underneath and, since that layer was made much thinner, they often had pinholes in them. Now you know why many cloth-like diapers will feel damp to the touch outside when wet. When it comes to diapers, a thick poly cover is simply best.

Okay, I'll stop there and get off my soapbox! Can you tell that the cloth-like hype really gets to me?

[ABC]

I'm quite late to this post but it's a good topic!

I've recently decided to wear 24x7. I've been wearing at night and occasionally all weekend for the last 20 years but have finally realized and accepted the fact that I need diapers. Not physically, but emotionally

Anyway, back to the topic at hand! With wearing to work I need something that's both effective and discrete. I'm willing to change a couple times a day, but I want something with cloth backing -- which I normally can't stand either! That said, being able to change without a tell-tale diaper crinkle is important.

So I've been on something of a quest for a good daytime diaper with cloth backing. This week I've tried the cloth-backed WalMart Assurance (maximum absorbency) briefs, Prevail Breezers, Prevail PM, Tena Super, Tena Ultra, and Tena Classic Plus. Surprisingly, Assurance seem to be the best for me. They're comfortable, very absorbent, and thin enough to wear under a pair of loose-fitting jeans without really showing. Prevail came in second for me. They're absorbent and fit about the same as the Assurance but there's something about the way the fabric rubs against itself when I move that gives me the heebeejeebies. The Tena Super and Ultra were just too thick to feel safe wearing to work, and the Classic Plus didn't fit (I got a small cuz my waist is 31" and they're supposed to fit up to 36" - shoulda got a medium).

I haven't had any problem with wetness seeping through any of these diapers, btw. I prefer the cut of Attends over all of these diapers, but I think I've found my daytime diaper - Assurance. I've worn them to work the past two days and changed twice both days. No problems!!! It was a bit nerve-wracking but the diaper is quiet enough that if someone walks in I can sit down on the toilet and wait til they leave. Luckily I haven't had that experience, yet

[RocketKid]

Apologies for bumping this topic by about a month, but I have something to add as well.

Like ABC, I have been wearing Wal-Mart's Assurance "maximum protection briefs" at work and in public off and on throughout this year. At first I was disappointed to discover that "Assurance" was no longer the plastic-backed Tyco/Kendall diapers (which I had always found to be a great value for the price), but now cloth-backed diapers that appear to some variety of Prevail. However, I was quickly sold on them, by how quiet and discreet they are, and they can hold up very well if I stuff a Size 5 baby diaper inside as a liner. In addition to the quietness, I quickly came to appreciate the velcro fasteners -- no more worrying about the tapes losing their stickiness at just the wrong time -- although I've found that I have to keep them a little bit loose, because otherwise they have a tendency to "pop" and detach from the side panels while remaining affixed to the front.

Unfortunately, it looks like Wal-Mart is starting to phase these out -- not a surprise, seeing as how Depend is now pushing their new gender-specific lines of protective underwear -- and as of July 1 both local stores have stopped stocking them in Medium (they now only carry the Large). So now I'm trying to find a good replacement. In the meantime, I've had to resort to wearing Depend Refastenable Underwear with cotton undies and plastic pants over the top, because they almost always leak out the leg holes, but the plastic pants are very uncomfortable in the summer.

I'm in the process of evaluating a bag of Tena Classic Plus, which appear to be intended for institutional use on bedridden individuals (if their placement on Tena's website is any indication), and there are several details they could have done better for active, mobile adults. The cover is the papery-plastic type that cloth-like covers have under their cloth-like covering, but without the cloth-like covering (it isn't fuzzy); I'm rather ambivalent on this point. It can hold a good wetting, but it lacks stand-up leak barriers, and this is especially problematic since the backsheet has the pinprick problem that ultrapampers described above: the backsheet is not waterproof, so the fancy leg elastics are practically worthless, because although they do manage reasonably well to keep wetness from escaping through the openings down the legs, instead of trapping wetness inside the leg gathers until it can get wicked into the padding, the wetness will seep directly through the cover in the unpadded areas of the legs. It wasn't a huge amount of seeping, but it was enough to wet the legbands of the cotton undies I was wearing over top -- and the giveaway was when it was still happening after I made sure that the diaper material was extending 1/4+ inch beyond the openings of the undies.

The other thing that gets on my nerves is -- well, if Tena have supposedly switched to velcro tabs, then I must have gotten an older product, because these have narrow little sticky tapes, and a huge (and noisy!) taping panel across the front -- rather like Bambino's taping panel, but a bit taller. I've had to wear cotton briefs and spandex "compression" shorts on top to muffle the sound. To be fair, I haven't had any problems getting the tapes to stay in place, and I've been able to untape and retape several times without any trouble.

Still, I get the impression that Tena (or rather, the SCA Personal Care company who have been licensed to use the Tena brand name in the U.S.) have cut corners on this. Like most adult diapers that are not "premium, extended-wear", there are no stand-up leak barriers -- apparently these are absolutely essential in baby diapers, but expensive luxuries in adult products. And I guess it must cost less to slap a huge strip of crinkly plastic on the front than it would cost to put a velcro landing strip there (like Luvs) or put the controversial friction-inducing cloth-like stuff all over the outside. Yay for slightly lower prices.

So now I'm back to the drawing board. I'm not really looking for anything "extended wear" -- since one of my objectives is discretion, I don't want to end up smelling like pee, so I change after one wetting. (I have a private area with a locked door where I can change discreetly.) The packaging on the "Assurance" product that I liked says it was distributed by First Quality Retail Services, which makes me think it's some variety of their "Prevail" line, so I might be willing to try that if I can find a vendor that ships in discrete packaging. Otherwise, I'm open to other suggestions. (Um, other than going back to big-kid undies full-time and using that porcelain thing... )

[ABC]

RocketKid (and others ), I've had a change of heart about cloth-covered disposables. Not so much because of the cloth but because they actually just weren't absorbent enough and the odor control was lacking. I started stuffing them with baby diapers but still found myself changing way more often than I wanted to because I was afraid of leaks and odor.

So a few weeks ago I started wearing Molicare Super Plus (yes, even to work!) and they are so much better. I drink a couple cups of coffee in the morning and they cope with that quite admirably. I change around 10:30 or 11:00, and am set until around 5:30 or 6:00. Most days I only use 3 (and I'm 24x7), but some days I use 4. They're the only diaper I've used where all of the padding gets wet before they leak. I've only had two leaks, and both times I was deliberately pushing the limit to figure out what the maximum capacity is.

Even though they're quite a bit thicker than the Assurance, my wife says they're only a little thicker under my jeans and that you would have to know what to look for to notice them. You might want to consider trying them if you haven't already... the plastic backing is quiet, the tapes hold great and the refastening system actually works (one time only, which for me is enough). I know you said you're not looking for extended wear but if your main reason against that is smelling like pee I don't think you'll have that problem with them. And since you have a private area to change, you don't have to worry about the sound of the tapes peeling off the diaper and such. I get mine from XP Medical - they ship discretely and you can order a sample pack too.

Regardless of what you decide, good luck... I know how hard it is to find just the right diaper.

[drynot]

I was quite disappointed in the quality of some cloth backed disposables such as Tena and Attends. For one I found I could not keep these diapers on while sleeping. As many here have mentioned the cloth backed diapers tend to 'stick' to my bed sheets. I am a very restless sleeper and I have woken up completely diaperless on occasion when wearing these.

Also I found the odour control and absorbency lacking with the Tena's especially.

[Angela Bauer]

Well, that is why the world still needs classic poly-plastic diapers. In other topics we have discussed reasons why diaper manufacturers prefer using cloth-like.

For sure it is easier to learn to put on your own diaper using Velcro re-fastenable tabs than deal with one-shot sticky tapes. When a care provider is changing a patient in bed because of the lack of cling poly-plastic is easier. With practice getting the sticky tapes in the best place is no problem. Nursing homes and similar institutions buy adult diapers in large quantity. The size of the case is not a problem. So for the institutional trade manufacturers do not need to overly compress the diapers. It is the compression that often causes pin-hole flaws in poly-plastic. Cloth-like stands up better when compressed for shipment. Also the Velcro does not lose grip with age, a real problem with sticky tapes.

For these reasons expect fewer and fewer stores to stock classic poly-plastic diapers.