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Alternatives to Velcro for Cloth Diapers?


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I've just bought my very 1st adult diaper/ nappy.

I opted for a modern cloth contoured design with leg gussets & some elastic at the back of the waistband.

Love wearing it!!... but a major concern is the loud noises velcro fasteners make when I pull them apart or do an adjustment for comfort. Sound travels where I live & the neighbours can be nosey & ask awkward questions.

I'm wondering about the different fastening arrangements which are available & the pro's & cons of each .. Please, could you help me?

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I use large pins, they workd for over 100 years. The last thing in the world I would use if Velcro. it quits after awhile

As for nosey neighbors, Lie once; lie twice and if they do not get it, tell them "Myob"

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The advantage of safety pins or Snappis is that you can wear nappies that are just made of material.  That means there's nothing much to damage so they'll probably last longer.  You can also wash them hotter when you need to (90 degrees C, for cotton).  2-inch pins do the job, but you can get 3-inch pins as well, although I've never tried them.  You need good quality pins that are sharp, don't bend easily, & have a proper locking cap.  It's worth trying Snappis as well (toddler size) - I've not tried them myself yet, but I've just got some & will probably give them a trial on Friday night.  They have 3 "claws" that grab the fabric, & are joined by elastic to hold the nappy tight.

Velcro doesn't last that well, as it can easily be wrecked by washing or drying too hot.  I've not tried snaps yet, although I'm planning to.  Snaps & buttons have the disadvantage that they aren't in themselves adjustable to your size.  You therefore need lots of snaps/buttons (for a choice to get the fit right) and/or elastic as well.  I've no idea how heat-resistant plastic snaps are, but I'd be surprised if they can take a 90degC wash.

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Snappi type items have been reported to tear the material

2 inch pins bend after awhile and dull much more quickly than 3 inch, especially for very thick material on heavyweight or doubled diapers

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As a cloth diaper wearer for many years,I use diaper pins and they work well. Kins have larger ones that we are now using.Other large ones on the internet are terrible. Not sharp pins and too thick. PM me and maybe I could send you a pair of my extras.

Velcro on any clothing is terrible.

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I remember when I was a bedwetter around age 4 or 5.  I wore cloth diapers and plastic pants to bed every night.  My job was to bring my mom the diaper every night from the bottom drawer of the dresser.  We had some diapers with velcro and I would always bring her one of those even though the non velcro diapers seemed a bit thicker.  I was afraid of being stuck with the diaper pins as my mom diapered me standing in front of her as she sat on the living room couch.  It never mattered that I brought her a velcro diaper.  She always used diaper pins and never attached them with the velcro tabs.  I'm not sure if it was because she was not familier enough with velcro in 1962 to know how to trust it or properly use it or if she just didn't trust velcro.  She was familiar with diaper pins and knew they worked, so that was what she used.

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In the 1950's Velcro was a bit fragile, I got a pair of dress shoes with Velcro closures that was supposed to be the hottest thing going since Krakatoa in 1957, By Easter of '58 they were as useless as a tissue paper safty pin. She may have been laboring under the notion that Velcro had a limited lifespan. I did not know they had Velcro diapers that early

Ultimately, the best thing about pins is that you can fit to exact size. with Velcro and even snaps you are stuck with where they are put

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17 hours ago, Little Christine said:

In the 1950's Velcro was a bit fragile, I got a pair of dress shoes with Velcro closures that was supposed to be the hottest thing going since Krakatoa in 1957, By Easter of '58 they were as useless as a tissue paper safty pin. She may have been laboring under the notion that Velcro had a limited lifespan. I did not know they had Velcro diapers that early

Ultimately, the best thing about pins is that you can fit to exact size. with Velcro and even snaps you are stuck with where they are put

This would have been around 1962 and I remember the velcro diapers had regular velcro tapes om the back side and also the fuzzy "landing area" on the front area of the diapers.  For some reason I remember these diapers well along with the other slightly thicker diapers that pinned on.  All I can think is my mom either got the velcro diapers just to try them to see what they were like and then decided she didn't like them, or she bought them by mistake.  Maybe that was all the store where she was buying them had at the time.  I never once remember her using the velcro when diapering me, always the diaper pins.  It's possible that maybe these were used when I was younger and still in full time diapers and that's when my mom discovered the velcro wasn't good enough or she preferred diaper pins.  All I know for sure is every night when I was diapered for bed I remember she always used diaper pins and never the velcro tabs

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Velcro loses its "gripping power" over time. It can come undone. I purchased a half dozen several years ago and ended up removing the Velcro and using pins. I prefer the pins sold by Babykins as they are sharp and made from a thinner gauge of stainless steel than other diaper pins made for adults. The thinner pins don't tear up the diaper nearly as much as other thicker pins. I have noticed that my prefolds last longer too using the Babykins pins.

 

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I tried a Snappi out overnight last night for the first time.  It did a good job & was a lot easier to put on than pins.  This was with a 4ft square terry nappy with a kite fold.  Mind you, I still used a couple of pins to hold the nappy close round my thighs.  Not sure I need to do that, but it may reduce risk of leakage.  Still, those pins are easy to fix - it's the one (or two) through all the layers at the front that's harder, & the Snappi took that role on pretty well.  No damage to the terry, but that's likely over time, as it is with pins too, in my experience.

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On 6/25/2018 at 12:01 AM, DailyDi said:

Thank you for the link Mike... love the look of the new 'Super Undies'  Snap-on Adult Incontinence Pants ..they look like a lot of fun ..but concerns about how easy it would be to get a pair in the UK?

https://biggerdiapers.com/product_info.php?cPath=24&products_id=125

 

Thank you, everyone, for the helpful comments so far...keep them coming...It's Looking like Pins or Snap-on or Snappi's are the main alternative choices to velcro.

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20 hours ago, DailyDi said:

Shipping to the uk is only worth it if you buy a few . It's about $22 to ship one and $45 to ship up to 6.

I can special order some if you need.

Thanks, Mike..I'd only be looking for 1 pair to try out so that makes it fairly expensive. Plus potential issues with customs pulling them apart. I'll think about it & see if a UK based distributor turns up in the meantime.

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  • 1 month later...

I've just bought my first reusable nappy. I'm a disposable baby at heart, but I can afford them all the time. So I getting a few reusable ones with snaps.

I took delivery, today, of one from nappiesRus.com..... A pocket one with a cute zoo animals print.

It's fantastic....

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On 7/31/2018 at 7:40 PM, Pamperbum_uk said:

I've just bought my first reusable nappy. . a few reusable ones with snaps.I took delivery, today, of one from nappiesRus.com..... A pocket one with a cute zoo animals print.

It's fantastic....

2

Very Interesting I notice nappiesRus also sell the same design in plain patterns.. They have marketed these as one size fits all ..small to large ..so I'm wondering what sort of size they really go up to?..re waist & rise.. I've read warnings about similar designs being made in China with oriental physiques in mind & not fitting bigger build western males.

 

 

 

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5 hours ago, PP Rebel said:

Very Interesting I notice nappiesRus also sell the same design in plain patterns.. They have marketed these as one size fits all ..small to large ..so I'm wondering what sort of size they really go up to?..re waist & rise.. I've read warnings about similar designs being made in China with oriental physiques in mind & not fitting bigger build western males.

I've got a 45" .... Ish waist. I find it a little too tight, but it's all a matter of how you fasten it. 

 

 

 

5 hours ago, PP Rebel said:

Very Interesting I notice nappiesRus also sell the same design in plain patterns.. They have marketed these as one size fits all ..small to large ..so I'm wondering what sort of size they really go up to?..re waist & rise.. I've read warnings about similar designs being made in China with oriental physiques in mind & not fitting bigger build western males.

I've got a 45" .... Ish waist. I find it a little too tight, but it's all a matter of how you fasten it. 

 

 

 

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On 8/2/2018 at 7:24 PM, Pamperbum_uk said:

I've got a 45" .... Ish waist. I find it a little too tight, but it's all a matter of how you fasten it. 

 

2

Thank for taking the time & trouble to reply ...my waist is 40-42 & I'm just under 6ft tall... surfing round similar looking products are only recommended for up 40" ..how high does it sit on your waist /overall length? I think its bad NappiesRus doesn't seem to provide this information on their website

My Blanken Care washable nappy, which is UK made, was designed to go with 
30-43'' with a rise of 30''  ..taking my 'man excitement' issue & the width of the waistband into account ..if I buy another pair I'll go for the next size up which are to go with 40-53'' waist & 34" rise for a bit of extra comfort.

Surfing around I'm wondering whether to try buying a pair of the '
ADULT ADJUSTABLE REUSABLE WASHABLE INCONTINENCE PANTS PAD NAPPY DIAPER KNICKERS' which 'Outdoor Store' are selling on eBay & 'Harrington Marley' are selling on Amazon for £12.90  each ...both are being despatched from UK /Europe & look like an identical product ..  one supplier says they will fit up to a 44" waist & another 46" which should be ok for me either way... but I'm trying to find out how high they would go on my waistline.

A lot of these cheaper products are made in China & if you check the order direct possibilities they're as cheap as chips..Seems UK distributions are buying them in from China & selling them on at a good mark up....but I like to be at home if I can it for the deliveryman, saving the potential embarrassment of having them nosed over by neighbours who have been kind enough to 'take it in' for me. Consequently the typical 4 to 6 weeks estimated delivery window creates extra concerns for me.

 

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On 8/4/2018 at 1:06 PM, PP Rebel said:


 I'm wondering whether to try buying a pair of the 'ADULT ADJUSTABLE REUSABLE WASHABLE INCONTINENCE PANTS PAD NAPPY DIAPER KNICKERS' which 'Outdoor Store' are selling on eBay & 'Harrington Marley' are selling on Amazon for £12.90  each ...both are being despatched from UK /Europe & look like an identical product ..  one supplier says they will fit up to a 44" waist & another 46" which should be ok for me either way... but I'm trying to find out how high they would go on my waistline.

 

 

It seems  72 cm = 28" from top of waist to top of the waist...Plan to order a pair in due course & see how I get on with them.

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 8/10/2018 at 12:06 PM, PP Rebel said:

'ADULT ADJUSTABLE REUSABLE WASHABLE INCONTINENCE PANTS PAD NAPPY DIAPER KNICKERS' which 'Outdoor Store' are selling on eBay & 'Harrington Marley' are selling on Amazon for £12.90  each

I've now bought a pair of these ..they came in the post discreetly & securely wrapped in reasonably quick time & are very well made. They easily fit my 40 waists with a few poppers to spare so would definitely go to 44-46 & aren't too skimpy on the cut. The poppers are considerably less of a noise problem than velcro.
They're very comfortable to wear without the pocket inset which was supplied. Once I put that in they got hot & sweaty very quickly. The liners seem to be made a bit like an oven glove but maybe washing a few times will help. Otherwise would need to find alternatives but as I'm much more into messing than wetting the absence of a pocket insert won't be too much of an issue.
Compared with the more expensive contoured cloth diaper /nappy they only have single leg cuffs & the elastic is looser but still, they held their 1st load well. Have to see how they stand up to washing & re-use but for the money no complaints.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 months later...

I use to use diaper pins because it was what I grey up with and I guess I wanted that childhood feeling.  However, after wetting they always stretched and sagged due to the weight of the urine and they were always slipping down also because I don't have much of a  butt.  A few years ago I started using snappies.  They are like a large 3 sided rubber band and have plastic grabbers on the ends of the rubber band.  My problem was solved.  I don't care how much I wet or how heavy my diaper gets it never sags down to a point where it is falling off.  I don't us diaper pins with them as they are not needed.  The grabbers so far in 3 yrs have not done any damage to my diapers.  I love them and would recommend them to anyone.

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4 hours ago, tsaaboy said:

I use to use diaper pins because it was what I grey up with and I guess I wanted that childhood feeling.  However, after wetting they always stretched and sagged due to the weight of the urine and they were always slipping down also because I don't have much of a  butt.  A few years ago I started using snappies.  They are like a large 3 sided rubber band and have plastic grabbers on the ends of the rubber band.  My problem was solved.  I don't care how much I wet or how heavy my diaper gets it never sags down to a point where it is falling off.  I don't us diaper pins with them as they are not needed.  The grabbers so far in 3 yrs have not done any damage to my diapers.  I love them and would recommend them to anyone.

I’ve never used them but read some good reviews. Where did you buy them from?

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3 hours ago, carsfan said:

I’ve never used them but read some good reviews. Where did you buy them from?

I got mine from Amazon.  Get the toddler size, not the baby size.

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