24/7 startups, and unexpected pitfalls?

[Little Sherri]

Had a bit of a heart-stopper there; we had a guy in today from an HVAC company looking at our ancient system, and he was crawling around in the basement, investigating lines etc. At the end of it, he asked called me down and said "I need to ask you a question - what's inside these boxes?", and he leads me around the corner to where I have, of course, 4 cases of diapers stacked up on a shelf, and just for a sec, I thought, okay, he knows what's in them, because nobody asks a stranger (and a customer) what they have in some random boxes in their basement, so I'm guessing he wants to talk about it - he seemed enthusiastic, too. But, no, I had a couple of old boxes of comics stacked up next to them, in signature comic boxes, and THAT was what he was asking about. So we were talking about 30-year-old Batman comics while he was quite literally leaning on a box of Rearz Lil' Monsters. My wife was there and she thought it was hilarious - I guess she caught how wide my eyes went when he lead me over to my diaper shelf and asked what was in them boxes. 

[Little Sherri]

So I kinda think I owe an apology to the fine people at ConfiDry regarding what I wrote earlier. I remain unconvinced that their tape choice is they best option they could have gone with - both diapers required supplementary tape additions, but, I do have to say this, now having worn two of them in 24 hours... these are comfortable diapers, they hold a lot, and they haven't leaked. I thought they had no place in my "wardrobe", but now I think I wouldn't mind having them in the mix. Next up: Abena L4 White Foil - the plastic ones. I wonder how they compare to the cloth-backed M4; I am going to guess that the tabs, at least, will be better.

And soon, the holy grail: NorthShore Megamax. I have purchased some. I was damned temped to go with the all pink ones, just because it would have been hilarious - they're such a big diaper - but I was worried that I'd get a reaction from my spouse that I might not enjoy. So white it is. But I think this pandemic is getting to me... gotta stop ordering diapers. 

[Little Sherri]

Okay, so what's the deal with the tape-on-a-tape tabs?!? Some adhesive company seems to have marketed the hell out of this to the diaper manufacturers. That, or they are beholden to some patent licensing agreement that some are paying for, and others, not. The Abena L4 White Foil is perfectly serviceable diaper... BUT it has the BetterDry/Cinklz taping system that I just commented about regarding ConfiDry. And they have exactly the same issue. To wit:

Last night just before I retired a thoroughly-soaked but leak-free ConfiDry, I typed out my previous post here, then I sent it to its great reward, took a shower, and pulled out an L4 White Foil, immediately realizing that the tab system was the same. But maybe these would be better? While I'm not exactly a slavish devotee of the BetterDry system, given the shortcomings that I've previously talked about, primarily around the necessity to get it right the first time, nevertheless, they do a servicable job, and the rest of the diaper is quite good. So, I strapped into that Abena and headed to bed. 

Fast forward to my alarm rudely awakening me, and immediately, I conduct a perimeter sweep... no moisture detected. The diaper feels to be well under 50% - I seem to be wetting very little overnight these days, except on nights when I drink, which I am trying to confine to a respectable Thursday to Monday. So I hop up out of bed, take the dog for his constitutional, make a cup of coffee, and head to my office. Sometime later, I receive the second of nature's calls, the one I don't answer in my pants, so I head up to the washroom with a section of the newspaper. I go to drop my diaper, and, just as with the ConfiDrys I wore previously, when peeling back the "securing" tape from the "landing" tape, the back of the securing tape catches on the diaper shell, immediately aft of the landing tape, and tears a thumb-size hole in it, for both the upper and the lower tape on one side. So, I abandon opening the tapes on the other side and just slide the works down one leg. 

At least on the Abena, when I returned the tapes to their moored position, they actually stuck to the landing tapes - on the ConfiDry, I had to add tape overtop - BUT, I still had to conduct a repair on the cover behind the landing tapes, because those tears would allow moisture to wick, and, once the shell is torn, it is easy for the tear to progress as the day goes on and the diaper gets heavier.

All of which leads me to conclude that if I were going to wear these things all the time, I would probably want to engage in the same diaper renovations I reserve for bottom-of-the-barrel Depends, wherein I put a couple of strips of clear packing tape across the whole of the front of the diaper, to create a landing zone, so that the tapes can be taken on and off. As an aside, while the designers clearly never intended that anyone would take Depends off and put them back on again, their tapes are actually quite durable, assuming you reinforce the shell, which otherwise tears like tissue paper. But, Depends cost $1 each, plus the 50 cents for a stuffer, which is absolutely necessary. Needing to customize them a bit for active duty is therefore forgivable. ConfiDry's and Abena L4 White Foil's cost between $2.50 and $3.00 CAD a diaper, depending on the quantity purchased. For that money, I can buy something like a Rearz Lil' Monster, which by the case cost $2.50 when not on sale, and I have been able to get them from time to time for $2 each - a steal. And they're just plug and play - you can open and close the tapes once an hour if you want to. 

So why do these companies go with the tape-on-a-tape system? 

[Little Sherri]

Okay, so, the medical appointment was uneventful. As some of you prognosticated, I had an opportunity to get undressed in private, and my diaper was never an issue. Well, "never an issue" may not be entirely accurate. I elected to wear my slim, white, unremarkable cloth-backed gym diapers, just in case they ever did come into view - they would have been, at best, mistaken for underwear, and, at worst, would not have been very memorable, compared with, say, a Bambino Classico or something like that. But, for the first time in a long time, one of the Prevail diapers failed me - when I was fastening it back up after the appointment (with great relief - the whole process had taken about 40 minutes and I needed to go), I pulled on one side a bit too vigorously, and the "wing" or side panel of the diaper ripped partially away from the rear, to the tune of about 2/3's. So now I had to rely on my jeans to more or less hold the diaper in place. Not good. I had another diaper in the car, but, these days, with the pandemic, reentering the building a couple of minutes later to use the washroom... it would have felt like an intrusion. In the end, I elected to drive home in my half-on diaper. I made it home none the worse-for-wear, but, I found the episode ironic. What I feared - the appointment - was a non-event. What would usually be a non-event - putting on a diaper - became the main event. 

[Little Sherri]

Product update: I'm in a Rearz InControl Essential that I've had on since last night. To be fair, I woke up almost entirely dry, so, really, this is a review that kicked off when I got up at 7:30 this morning. Rearz bills their Essential as being a daytime weight alternative to their very effective but very bulky InControl Elite. They are indeed quite a bit less bulky than the Elite's are, when you first put them on, but don't let that concern you; as I have proven out a couple of times, they punch above their perceived weight. I'm not a diaper engineer but I assume that this might have to do with a higher ratio of the gelling polymer to the cottony stuffing. In any case, they do swell quite heroically with use, and in this, they remind me of the BetterDry and Crinklz products, both of which also swell considerably. As with those products, my critique, and it might not really be all the critical, is that the diaper's interior is so absorbent that liquid never really gets a chance to travel anywhere, which undoubtedly reduces the likelihood that an errant trickle might find its way past a leg gather, but, for me, having spent a bunch of time sitting today while working, I wouldn't mind if some of the load could be shared by the middle and back of the diaper. When I got up to take the dog out a half hour ago, the front of this diaper bulged noticeably, whereas the middle was only slightly damp, and the back was dry. 

That said, so far, it hasn't leaked, and I'm in hour 10 in this diaper. If I were now going to spend some time lying back, I think it might not be far past the 50% point, although I suspect that this puppy won't take much additional fire up front before something gives in, unless it's only at that point that a more even distribution of wicking is achieved. 

The tabs are excellent; they are tapes, and the entire front of the diaper, from one side to the other, is reinforced to receive them. They do not move unless you pull them off, and it takes some effort to do that, after which, they will grab again several times. They have the "graduated zones" (numbered parking spots) across the front, as with the Elite, and this does take the guesswork out of putting the diaper on evenly at both sides - if you already know that #1 on the top tape and #2 on the bottom tape on each side produces a snug fit, then there's basically no playing around. They are a plastic-backed diaper, and as such, a bit crinkly, but, under clothing, it's far from obtrusive. Overall, I would say that this is a day-weight diaper that is capable of morphing into an overnight-weight diaper, meaning that you have a lot of coverage, BUT, if you wore them under something form-fitting, you might realize toward the end of the day that your slim diaper isn't very slim anymore. But, that's better than finding out that your slim diaper wasn't up to the challenges of the day, and now you need to wrap your jacket around your waist, and head home for a change of clothing...

[oznl]

30 minutes ago, Little Sherri said:

Product update: I'm in a Rearz InControl Essential that I've had on since last night.

How do they stack up against the BetterDry price-wise?

Here in Australia, BetterDry can be had for A$3.02 per unit by the case, delivered (AUD is so close to CAD it's not worth translating).

Whilst the "InControl Essential" isn't available here (and may never be - who knows), the "InControl Elite Hybrid" is although at A$3.26 per unit (ordered by the double-case, delivered), it's more expensive than the comparable BetterDry.

The only argument raised by the Elite Hybrid above and beyond the BetterDry was that it's meant to be good for side-sleepers.  To be honest, I'm not convinced by that claim although on the one pack that I tried may not have been enough to form a solid opinion. I've no idea if the Elite Essential makes a similar claim.  It seemed to me that if they also landed with the same performance as the BetterDry but more expensive then that's not really a recipe for success.

[Little Sherri]

17 minutes ago, oznl said:

It seemed to me that if they also landed with the same performance as the BetterDry but more expensive then that's not really a recipe for success.

In CAD, a case of 36 Essentials are $84.87 at their regular price point, so $2.35 each, net of any shipping costs. That makes them not a bad deal - I was pricing out the per-unit cost of some common diapers recently, and that compares favourably with the likes of ConfiDry and BetterDry, both of which clock in around the $2.50 - $3.00 per piece price point. I would not put an essential up against an Elite, given that they specifically claim to be a "daytime diaper", so, I wouldn't imagine that they'd be particularly adept at staving off side-sleeping issues. As to how they stack up against a BetterDry, I am actually planning to swap this one out for a Crinklz, which is the printed equivalent, so I will let you know tomorrow, but, based on what I recall from the last time I wore a BetterDry, I think that they are honestly about the same in terms of capacity and reliability. Although I prefer the "mile wide" landing zone approach that Rearz takes, to the "better get it right" tape-on-a-tape system that BetterDry (and a host of others) use. 

I'm also eagerly awaiting the arrival of my NorthShore Megamax's, which have been delayed in shipping a couple of times; I have heard good things about them all over this site, although I suspect that, like my Rearz Alpaca's and Barnyards and the Elite's in large size (I also have some in medium), as long as the kids are home all day, everyday, they might be relegated to strictly an overnight and morning-dash-to-the-office diaper, and not something that I can wear comfortably in public or while operating for extended periods around the kids. 

[Little Sherri]

I forgot to mention earlier that I tried to channel my inner @diaperedboilerman this morning, by the way, by which I mean, fearless wearing of diapers under all circumstances. I was out with the dog on my driveway when a neighbour walked by with their dog, past my house, and my dog ran up to see her dog. Our new place is a bit in the country and we don't generally have the dog on a leash on our property. However, the house fronts onto a country road, and cars go by pretty fast sometimes, so I had to make sure that my dog didn't go out onto the road with the excitement of the other dog being there. Just one problem: it was above zero this morning, and I was wearing relatively light track pants over my night diaper, a size large Rearz Essential. But I couldn't go get changed, I couldn't stand there and ineffectively try to summon the dog, and I couldn't leave him to his own devices, so I took a deep breath, and waddled up there - crunch, crunch, crunch - said hi, corralled my dog, and waddled back down my driveway to the house. I have no idea if she could tell that I had a diaper on. Welcome to the neighbourhood! At least out here the houses are pretty spaced out, so for the most part you don't tend to run into people when out with the dog. 

[Little Sherri]

As promised, @oznl, here are my observations thus far with respect to the differences between a BetterDry/Crinklz and a Rearz Essential. 

Fasteners: as previously mentioned, but, in particular, the difference comes down to this: the Crinklz stretched out overnight, and was noticeably (but not problematically) less snug than it was when I went to bed. However, I am now inextricably wed to the positioning I chose for the tabs last night, unless I want to commit to a landing off of the designated markers, which would leave sealed into the diaper for the duration, unless I want to engage in packing tape diaper repairs. The Essential (or an Elite) would allow me snug up the diaper without any ramifications. 

Capacity: once again I woke up at probably 20% of capacity or less, and this diaper feels like it could last me most of the day, which experience has taught me is probably the case. I'd say that they're more or less equals in this department. Neither of these offers much in the way of side-sleeping protection, whereas the Elite does have some stuffing in the side panels. That said, I never trust a disposable when it comes to side leakage. 

Swelling: both products display a very similar response to localized dampness: localized swelling, and almost no migration. Both will transform from medium-bulk diapers suitable for day wear, to swollen linebackers that are harder to conceal, as they pass into the last third or so of their service lives. Still, that beats leaks. 

Feel: other than maybe being a tad less snug around the waist than I prefer, this Crinklz is very comfortable. The plastic is a bit lighter than on the Essential; I haven't employed a micrometer, but, that's the way it feels to me. They seem to (ironically, given the name), crinkle a bit less than the Essential. The Essential rises further up my back, which is probably a point in the favour of the BetterDry - I have rarely been thankful for leak protection up around my shoulder blades. 

Appearance: okay so the one I'm in has cartoon animals all over it, but, were it a BetterDry, the two would be equally stacked. White diapers with blue tabs. The Essential does have the parking spots marked on the front in green, and a wetness indicator. My wife wouldn't blink at either of them. 

Conclusion: I like them both - this is like asking me to chose between two well-conceived IPA's. I'd say the Essential wins based on ergonomic considerations and cost, but both will have a place in my arsenal. 

[Little Sherri]

Well, another busy day in the saddle, and once again, I am asking myself how productive I could possibly be if I were not sitting here in a diaper. Although I guess, in the "before times", I didn't used to go every 15 minutes or so. I have noted that my output frequency does seem to correlate inversely with the time since I last had a beverage, which isn't exactly surprising information, but, I never really paid much attention to that before. 

I don't have any empirical evidence to back this up - I've been too busy doing actual paid word to be weighing my diaper at intervals today, but, basically, I sat down this morning in the BetterDry that I slept in, which was only slightly wet - as an aside, I have been sleeping like a rock lately, and apparently peeing like a rock as well. No dreams to speak of, either. Maybe there's a gas leak. But I digress. Anyway, I sat down in the BetterDry, having just had two cups of coffee, and I dribbled into it near-continually from about 9 until 11 am, after which the frequency of "events" backed off noticeably. I was practicing mindfully (I just wanted to use that word) staying "open" for most of that earlier period, but later, I went back to feeling a need to go every maybe 20 - 30 minutes and then giving permission to the gatekeepers, after which I stop paying attention and things would peter out on their own. 

Then, I had a Diet Coke with lunch, and within about 45 minutes or so, I was continually dribbling again, which lasted about 45 minutes to an hour, and then I went back to the every-15-to-25 minute schedule that is normal for me. I haven't had anything to drink since then, and now, a couple of ours later, 15 to 20 minutes is the norm, for small "events". 

I have succeeded in trapping myself in my office, however, because my kids are both working on projects on the main floor, and this BetterDry that I'm in has done what BetterDry's do, which is to swell up impressively (but not leak), so that now it looks like I have a medium-sized pillow jammed down the front of my pants. Once I get some time, and see an opportunity, I will have to slink upstairs and change my diaper. 

[Little Sherri]

Update: I'm noticing cracks in the spousal façade, I think. First, my order of Megamaxes finally arrive, after being lost in the postal system for a week, and my wife answered the door (I was in a meeting), brought the box in, opened, it, and then left it outside my office door, open, with a crumpled up piece of tissue paper tossed over it, barely obscuring the contents. I'm not sure if that tissue paper came with them or if she plucked it from the Christmas debris, but it seems more likely to have been the latter. THEN, she bagged up the contents of our bathroom garbage can, which included a couple of diapers, the most notable of which was the Crinklz I wore earlier yesterday, and she left the bag sitting in the front hall, with the print of the diaper showing very clearly through the nearly-transparent bag. I wonder what I have done to vex her, and if I should mention that a tad more discretion would be appreciated, or if I should let sleeping dogs lie. 

Well, I have swapped out that sagging BetterDry for my first Megamax, and I have to say that so far, although it is bone dry, it is very comfortable, and the medium size is a bit more accommodating than most; I suspect that I will find the large to be enormous - I bought both. The medium might be all I need. Although they are not a lightweight diaper, the medium under a onesie and jeans seems to be pretty discrete. My tune on this may change if they swell heroically. Let's see how far I can get in it. 

 

[oznl]

26 minutes ago, Little Sherri said:

Update: I'm noticing cracks in the spousal façade, I think. First, my order of Megamaxes finally arrive, after being lost in the postal system for a week, and my wife answered the door (I was in a meeting), brought the box in, opened, it, and then left it outside my office door, open, with a crumpled up piece of tissue paper tossed over it, barely obscuring the contents. I'm not sure if that tissue paper came with them or if she plucked it from the Christmas debris, but it seems more likely to have been the latter. THEN, she bagged up the contents of our bathroom garbage can, which included a couple of diapers, the most notable of which was the Crinklz I wore earlier yesterday, and she left the bag sitting in the front hall, with the print of the diaper showing very clearly through the nearly-transparent bag. I wonder what I have done to vex her, and if I should mention that a tad more discretion would be appreciated, or if I should let sleeping dogs lie.

Welcome to my world, dominated by Mahatma Ghandi style passive aggression.  Mind you, if I left a used diaper in a communal garbage can I'd be told to go and remove it.  I need to keep the whole operation as far as possible, out of her sight.

[Little Sherri]

30 minutes ago, oznl said:

Mind you, if I left a used diaper in a communal garbage can I'd be told to go and remove it.  I need to keep the whole operation as far as possible, out of her sight.

Point well taken, although I am more or less the only one who ever empties the garbage cans, and I always burry it under the wrapper from a toilet paper package or whatever - it's never left sitting right on top. I need a better solution, though. A couple of times my wife has gotten it into her head that the kids need to start pulling more of their weight, and has assigned one of my daughters, usually my youngest, to go empty all the trash cans, which has sent me bolting to our ensuite to check the contents of the can before she gets there. Hmmm... 

[oznl]

12 minutes ago, Little Sherri said:

A couple of times my wife has gotten it into her head that the kids need to start pulling more of their weight, and has assigned one of my daughters, usually my youngest, to go empty all the trash cans, which has sent me bolting to our ensuite to check the contents of the can before she gets there. Hmmm... 

Complete opposite in our house.  As Mr 1975, I thought the kids should paint the place and maybe carry out light renovations by way of chores.  Mrs 1975 firmly believes that her children should be given food, shelter, gifts, broadband internet and continual praise whilst being absolutely absolved from ANY household chore including picking up after themselves.  Since the youngest is now 20, I've lost the battle.  I mean, they literally did NOTHING by way of chores for their entire childhoods and that's what their mother wanted.  They are what they are.

Went into chat on a whim as you were still online and whilst you were there, I completely failed to catch your attention.

 

[Moochie]

5 hours ago, Little Sherri said:

Update: I'm noticing cracks in the spousal façade, I think. First, my order of Megamaxes finally arrive, after being lost in the postal system for a week, and my wife answered the door (I was in a meeting), brought the box in, opened, it, and then left it outside my office door, open, with a crumpled up piece of tissue paper tossed over it, barely obscuring the contents. I'm not sure if that tissue paper came with them or if she plucked it from the Christmas debris, but it seems more likely to have been the latter. THEN, she bagged up the contents of our bathroom garbage can, which included a couple of diapers, the most notable of which was the Crinklz I wore earlier yesterday, and she left the bag sitting in the front hall, with the print of the diaper showing very clearly through the nearly-transparent bag. I wonder what I have done to vex her, and if I should mention that a tad more discretion would be appreciated, or if I should let sleeping dogs lie. 

Well, I have swapped out that sagging BetterDry for my first Megamax, and I have to say that so far, although it is bone dry, it is very comfortable, and the medium size is a bit more accommodating than most; I suspect that I will find the large to be enormous - I bought both. The medium might be all I need. Although they are not a lightweight diaper, the medium under a onesie and jeans seems to be pretty discrete. My tune on this may change if they swell heroically. Let's see how far I can get in it. 

 

I agree with your sizing issue.  I wear a medium size diaper in everything but Megamax where a small fits me best.  I think I have about a 33-34" waist.

[Little Sherri]

14 hours ago, oznl said:

Went into chat on a whim as you were still online and whilst you were there, I completely failed to catch your attention.

Entirely my fault - while I was in there, I was syphoning beer from kegs into a barrel and I was only intermittently paying attention. We should try to connect again at some point, although given the time zone differences, I realize that both of us being here at the same time is fairly rare. 

9 hours ago, Moochie said:

I agree with your sizing issue.  I wear a medium size diaper in everything but Megamax where a small fits me best.  I think I have about a 33-34" waist.

Having been in a Megamax now since last night, while these may not be the absolute king of diapers, they are the king of medium-sized diapers, because they rise a little higher, and seem to be just a smidge wider, than most other products I have tried. As predicted, I do have the same problem today that I had yesterday, in that my diaper has swelled from "barely noticeable" to "what's that in your pants?!?" over the course of the day (it's about 1:45 PM here). So far, it hasn't leaked or failed me in any way, but, mercy, has the front ballooned. 

I think that my wetting "patterns" are changing, in that I tend to find myself in a nearly-dry diaper in the mornings now (unless I was drinking the night before, but with the pandemic lockdown, there haven't been many opportunities for that), but, I am really soaking these diapers during the day now, and I don't really know why. I seem to be "going" more often, but that wouldn't explain an increased output. Does "holding it" restrict or limit output somehow? And not holding it increases production? One way or the other, I feel like I go more than I used to. Since I fine-tuned my ability to operate in decent plastic diapers under pretty much all circumstances, I have been cruising along using two diapers per day on average, one "overnight diaper" that takes me 12 - 16 hours, and one medium-weight diaper that covers off the remains of the day. I'm still doing that, but, my last-night-until-this-afternoon diaper weighs about 5 lbs when I change it, and I'm often swapping over to a night diaper earlier rather than later, to rescue my later-in-the-day soldier from being overwhelmed. 

I definitely, definitely need to be in a diaper for comfort now - there is no way I could manage getting up as often as I would have to, if I tried to go without one. I would lose half my productivity. I'd probably have to take a bucket into the office with me. 

Speaking of buckets, I have been pondering the need for some kind of diaper disposal system that isn't too obvious, and I think I have settled on one: I have a stainless kitchen garbage can with a peddle-activated lid in my garage, that I have been using for my brewing, however all it really sees are empty grain bags and hop pouches, no organics - they go into the organic bins. I could put that puppy in the back of my closet and designate it a diaper bin. I'd have to change it pretty often so that the confined space doesn't become excessively fragrant, but, that's a good practice in any case - more than a couple of diapers in a bag becomes pretty heavy. 

[Little Sherri]

Well, I got put in my place today, and I guess I deserved it... my wife was in our ensuite washroom, and I wanted to get in there to shave, because I had an upcoming cameras-on meeting, and I hadn't dragged a razer across my face since probably Tuesday. I could hear that she was watching something in there on her phone, so I tapped on the door and said "Are you going to be much longer? I need to get in there before my next meeting." To which she replied "You're wearing Pampers, you can wait until I'm done." Fair pool, I guess. I wasn't wearing Pampers, but, I did have a Rearz Lil' Squirts on. I didn't think that pointing that out would win me the argument. 

I have installed my diaper bin, purloined from the garage, inside my closet, and so far, there has been no comment on that. We have a surfeit of trash receptacles in our bedroom, between the one in the attached washroom, the one my wife keeps close to her side of the bed for tissues, and now, the big stainless canister with a lid that I have jammed into the corner of the closet. My moving ahead with that project was well-timed, because the first thing it received was a 5 lb NorthShore Megamax that would have half-filled the bathroom dust bin by itself. Once this Lil' Squirt I'm in is done for, I am contemplating putting on one of the size large Megamaxes (in a fetching dark blue, although I was tempted to go with pink, just for comedic value). I don't know how far I'll be able to cruise in that, though, since I have a fairly busy Saturday planned. I suspect that maximum cruising range can only be extracted from a large Megamax if one is able to function while waddling around with what looks like a large pillow jammed into their pants. So, that will have to wait until the kids return to school, when I can wear one to bed and then stay in it for most of the next day, since there will be only my wife, and the dog, there to witness it. I wonder if it could be a true one-and-done 24-hour diaper. The Rearz Elite's in large nearly are; I got about 20 hours out of one of those, although at that point it was about 8 inches wide between my legs, and hanging half way down to my knees. But it didn't fail me. 

I should probably point out as well that YMMV (as @oznl puts it), because while my diaper is the primary place that most of my fluidic output ends up, I do use the potty for #2, and inevitably, some #1 goes along with it, and I also pass some when I shower these days, although I don't try to, per se, it just tends to happen. But I wouldn't doubt that 4/5th's of what I produce ends up soaking into a diaper of some sort. So, if I'm able to be in one diaper for more than 14 hours, that's a mighty absorbent diaper in my books. 

[Little Sherri]

14 minutes ago, diaperedboilerman said:

But even so after 9 hours the sides are clammy and I need to put some powder on my hips and thigh's between my legs for comfort.

What climate do you live in, @diaperedboilerman? I have family and friends in Florida, and I have spent some time down there since I went 24/7, before the pandemic slammed the borders shut. Down there, I definitely don't stay in one diaper for more than maybe 8 hours - it's too likely to end up in a rash. Although I also tend to change way more frequently when I'm staying at other people's houses - leaking on someone else's furniture is poor etiquette... 

[Little Sherri]

7 hours ago, diaperedboilerman said:

LOL I am up in Northern Ohio just south of you and Lake Erie where in the summer the humidity % can reach the temperature in F

Okay so we live in basically the same, extremely diverse climate. It's been -40 here, and, I've also experienced days where it's been +40 here (104F) and 100% humidity, and my friend who lives in Tampa is experiencing 35 degrees. 

Here's one for you folks... ever experienced phantom leaks? I've been in a zoom call basically for most of tonight with a few of my friends, talking about brewing and such, and, not that long ago (maybe an hour, it's 1:40 AM right now), I realized that, mysteriously, the front of my jeans were damp. So, this is not a road that has no rocks on it, my friends. But, I can't figure out what's going on. My jeans are damp, not soaked, and only at the top, at the front. Obviously, my diaper leaked, but, very slowly, and, in inspecting the diaper, I can't figure out where the breach occurred. All I know is that the upper third of the front of my jeans are damp. I'm wearing a Rearz Lil' Squirt (oh the irony) and I'm about to put on a Megamax size large. 

[oznl]

On 1/23/2021 at 4:38 PM, Little Sherri said:

Here's one for you folks... ever experienced phantom leaks? I've been in a zoom call basically for most of tonight with a few of my friends, talking about brewing and such, and, not that long ago (maybe an hour, it's 1:40 AM right now), I realized that, mysteriously, the front of my jeans were damp. So, this is not a road that has no rocks on it, my friends. But, I can't figure out what's going on. My jeans are damp, not soaked, and only at the top, at the front. Obviously, my diaper leaked, but, very slowly, and, in inspecting the diaper, I can't figure out where the breach occurred. All I know is that the upper third of the front of my jeans are damp. I'm wearing a Rearz Lil' Squirt (oh the irony) and I'm about to put on a Megamax size large. 

In my stable of regular nappies, ABU Simple are particularly prone to leaks at the top front and without countermeasures, can dampen the front waist area of any pants worn over them.  In my case what seems to be happening is that the upper edge of the diaper turns down very slightly over time and exposes a very small amount of the inner material.  This allows some wicking to occur.  Wetting in a sitting position exacerbates this as I'm usually pointing "up" - not a problem in a sitting position for most other products but with ABU, it saturates the "danger zone".

I mainly wear the ABU at night now and the countermeasure for me is to leave the top of the ABU above the elastic of my plastic pants.  As counter-intuitive as this sounds, this seems to prevent the nappy from folding back on itself at the upper few millimeters of its edge.

BetterDry and Abena (my other staples) don't seem to do this.

It seems to me that only very rarely will I leak due to an exhaustion of absorptive capacity in a nappy: it's almost always some kind of positioning or tape error.

 

[Little Sherri]

18 hours ago, oznl said:

In my case what seems to be happening is that the upper edge of the diaper turns down very slightly over time and exposes a very small amount of the inner material.  This allows some wicking to occur. 

I think this is what happened here as well. I was at the time deeply perplexed, but then again, I was also well into my cups at that point and not thinking straight or remembering exactly what position everything had been in over the previous few hours while the containment breach slowly played out.

On to the Megamax size large: I have worn a couple of them now, and they are gigantic on me. I have not been able to test their limits because they eventually reach a point where they are just too big to wear, anywhere, given my current circumstances. Once the kids are back to physically attending school, and only my wife will be around to be assailed by the sight of my enormous nappy, they will probably make more sense. I think that the medium Megamax probably strikes at the sweet spot of my diaper needs, though - very comfortable and capacious, but not visible, with the unaided eye, from low earth orbit. 

That said, I am in a large Megamax right now, because I'm spending the day working from, and on, my garage, as my wife evicted me from the office in the house so that she could clean out the contents of her previous office, which are still in boxes, and get them organized. My garage is heated, so it actually doesn't make a bad office, although I don't think there's much of an economic case to be made for heating an entire other building from -10 degrees to a comfortable indoor temperature, so that my wife can leave whatever she's working on permanently spread out on her desk. But, given that there is no washroom in my garage, a case CAN be made for wearing a diaper, and since my kids rarely come out here, it can be a big one. Not that I would have done anything else, anyway. 

So, having dodged a physical with my physician due to the pandemic, and having made it through some medical imagery without having to alter my course, I thought I was done with planning out "how" I was going to wear a diaper for some given circumstance for a while, but, no such luck. The imagery having been inconclusive, my longtime family doctor wants me to come to his office for a physical, after saying that they weren't doing that right now, so I'm back in the same boat I was in before... what to wear, what to wear. Whereas at the imagery place, I had no idea what the routine would be, at his office, I know it well, because I experienced it a couple of years ago when I had a really bad case of diaper rash. Given that I didn't want him to identify it as actually being diaper rash, I didn't, at the time, wear a diaper to the appointment, otherwise the prescription would probably have been "stop wearing diapers". But, unlike at the ultrasound clinic, where I was given a gown and a private space to change into it, at his office, he'll just say "drop your drawers" basically, if he wants access to that area. 

Apparently their washrooms are open again, according to their website - they had been closed during the earlier lockdown - so, I will have a spot I could duck into, if I want to take my diaper off right before the appointment, but, I have nothing whatsoever to wear under my jeans currently that isn't some form of nappy. So, do I go shopping? Wear a bathing suit? Borrow my wife's knickers? (That last one does contain some possibilities for humour, although I suspect that neither my wife, nor my doctor, would see it that way, and in any case they would be damned restricting...). Given that he's not doing physicals right now as a rule, his waiting room, normally packed with people reading National Geographic magazines from the 1990's, will probably be empty, which helps with the amount of time I would have to walk a tightrope, in terms of holding it. I know that I can survive for 30 to 45 minutes for sure, probably longer, as long as I let nothing whatsoever get passed the gates. Once I start dripping, it's over, unless I physically pinch myself, but if I avoid drinking too much before hand, it's probably doable. It's just the idea of it that distresses me.

I was ready to face down a situation where some stranger I've never met before and won't ever see again might have seen evidence of my diaper, briefly, if it were absolutely necessary, which, as it turns out, it was not. But this doctor has known me for three decades. I'm not sure I'm ready for that. 

[oznl]

11 hours ago, Little Sherri said:

my longtime family doctor wants me to come to his office for a physical, after saying that they weren't doing that right now, so I'm back in the same boat I was in before... what to wear, what to wear.

Mmm, looks like you're going to reach that bridge before I do.  I've still got my bedraggled, solitary pair of gym underpants and my local GP is 3 minutes away by car so I suspect I can still manage this ok.  I will need to see him in the next few weeks as my regular scripts are expiring.  I'm probably going to squib it again and dig out my gym underwear.

Should this at some point prove impossible, a pull-up is the next line of defense.  I'd probably get through the GP appointment in a pull-up unspotted.  I've already done a cardiologist in a full-on nappy, it was irrelevant as you never disrobe at those (these days).  The worst is shirt-off for the ECG.  My underwear would automatically be a conversation topic at my next skin cancer check though (I have had malignant melanoma and will be undergoing regular checks for the rest of my life).  A skin cancer check is what it sounds like: a skin check.  Everywhere...

11 hours ago, diaperedboilerman said:

First on the wicking out the top of the diaper. My mother taught me decades ago with Pampers on my siblings when I changed them to fold that top over and inward. I still do it today on my own diapers. It works at night if I am laying on my belly and pee, and it works during the day to keep any urine that reaches the top of the diaper/nappy from wicking out onto my clothing.

Thanks for the reminder!  I get the feeling I HAVE tried this with the ABU Simply and somehow, they flip themselves anyway but I'm a bit vague on this so I will try it again tonight.  The worst that will happen is that I will soak my terry-lined waterproofs and they're due for a wash anyway...

11 hours ago, diaperedboilerman said:

He agreed it was OAB and started to suggest some testing and medications. I told him "no thanks. I don't want any drugs in my body, and I don't want to be poked and prodded. I am used to wearing diapers, and they are working for me. He was not happy but said oh.......ok then. Sent me to pay my $25 for my office visit. that was it. It is now on my medical record that I have bladder issues. I am in diapers, and I wear diapers 24/7 and have for over 10 years now. 

 

If I eventually have to cross this bridge, this is very close to the plan I had in the back of my head.  Glad to hear somebody's already road-tested this strategy.  I would be like "let's rule out anything truly dangerous and assuming so, let's never speak of this again".

[Little Sherri]

13 hours ago, oznl said:

If I eventually have to cross this bridge, this is very close to the plan I had in the back of my head.  Glad to hear somebody's already road-tested this strategy.  I would be like "let's rule out anything truly dangerous and assuming so, let's never speak of this again".

This amounts to my intended strategy as well, basically, if ever I have to resort to it - I want to "select" the least serious possible explanation, with the least invasive treatment options. As opposed to saying, for example, "Lately, I've been prone to intermittent, unexplained losses of consciousness, particularly behind the wheel, and when I awaken, my pants are often wet, so, I've taken to wearing diapers, and I want no further discussion of this. Also, I want to be a pilot, can you please sign off on my medical report?" 

Thanks, @diaperedboilerman for this template. 

Well, this morning, with some trepidation, I headed for my doctor's appointment. I decided to take a hybrid strategy. I put on a Play Dayz, I think my last one, which is a real diaper, but, silent and cloth-backed. The front panel was pink, but, my plan was for that to never become visible. I pulled on some athletic shorts overtop of it that could, sort of, pass for underwear in a pinch, and then I drove for an hour in a snowstorm to get to his office, which made me glad that I hadn't elected to attempt a "commando" run at it. I had THOUGHT that I would be able to remove the diaper in their washroom, prior to going into his office, but they had the waiting room closed completely, and people were queuing in the hallway. Because of the awful weather, I had arrived exactly on time, rather than a few minutes early, and, when I checked in, I was immediately ushered into the doctor's office, still in my big nappy with the pink front panel and pony motif. 

My doctor came in, looked at the file, and said "You can strip down to your underwear...", but then, mercifully, stepped out into the hall and pulled the door closed. I did not know how long he was going to be out there, so I pulled my pants down to my knees, pulled my shorts down, ripped off tabs like the diaper was on fire, crumpled it up, and jammed it into my briefcase (an apt name in that moment). Then I pulled up the shorts, took everything else off except my socks, and was just folding my pants onto a chair when he came back in without a knock. Close call. The examination took about 15 minutes, after which he told me to get dressed, and then he stayed at his desk and made notes, so I pulled my jeans on over the shorts, and waited to be dismissed. He discussed his findings (nothing), and then wished me a good day, and held the door open for me, so I walked out. I made straight for the washroom, which, happily, was open and unoccupied, and I put my diaper back on and tossed the shorts into my bag.  It had been maybe 25 or 30 minutes since I had emitted anything, and I was feeling some slight stirrings below, no emergency, but I know that my "0-60" time is quite a bit shorter than it used to be, and I can go from "Might need to consider having a wee" to "Oh God here it comes" in a quarter of an hour sometimes. It was like my subconscious knew I once again had a safety net in my pants, because, although I relieved myself into the toilet while I was in there, since Play Dayz aren't known to be the most robust diaper, and I didn't want an issue on what would end up being a pretty long and white-knuckle drive home, I nevertheless started dribbling into it almost as soon as I left the building, and for a good part of the trip, I could not tell if I was "going" or not - I had the feeling at the tip of Mr. Happy that I was, but there's no way that I peed for 45 straight minutes right after having emptied myself. I think it might have just been one long complaint letter, essentially. The diaper was moderately wet when I got home, and I am still in it. 

As a side note to the above, I read someone's comment recently about Play Dayz being, allegedly, a "play diaper" (name aside), IE, a prop for fun or roleplay or what have you, but not meant to be an actual diaper, a lifesaving incontinence parachute. Or, put another way, akin to those pool floaties they sell that say "This is NOT a safety device" all over them. You can feign floating on them, but they are not designed for circumstances where floating is mandatory. So, by that standard, a Play Dayz is an inflatable goose for the backyard pool, and, a BetterDry, for example, is a lifejacket designed for open water. If that is the intention of the manufacturers, then perhaps I have judged the Play Dayz too harshly for their stuffing that falls to the middle, and their poor odour controlling properties, which are partly related to their "breathable" nature, but also due to the absence of some chemical wizardry that a lot of other, even less-expensive disposables employ. But, regardless, they don't do me much good, cute as they are. I might be playing at needing diapers (though less so, I think, than when I started), but I am not playing at using them. I am looking for advanced, lifesaving engineering in my baby pants, baby. 

[Little Sherri]

I think I need to declare a personal moratorium on ordering diapers; currently the rate at which they come into the house in boxes exceeds the rate at which they leave the house in bags by a not-inconsiderable margin. I now have basically the equivalent of six cases of diapers in inventory, plus a couple of bags of low-end diapers to fill in gaps such as needing to change my diaper but not having time to shower for a couple of hours, things like that. All of this does not include the kids' pullups and diapers in the linen closet. 

Currently, I'm in a medium-sized Rearz Elite, which is a great diaper; until recently, I would have called it my top-tier choice in medium, but, the medium-sized Megamax's that I have are just a little larger, and for me, that puts them into a sweet spot - the front rises a little higher, and that also moves the fastening points on the lower tapes upward and inward just a bit, but, without the unnecessary (for daytime) bulk of a large size. It would be really hard to say which diaper holds more; I'm sure I could look up the claimed ML capacity for each, but, that rarely tells the full story. Both have proven able to hold a hell of a lot, although, inevitably, those capabilities come with considerably swelling, which takes them out of the "daytime discrete" category for perhaps the final quarter of their service lives. 

I am trying out @diaperedboilerman's suggestion to fold the front of the diaper over at the top, in an effort to stave off one problem that I sometimes have, principally in medium-sized diapers, which is phantom, slow leakage at the top of the front of the diaper, that I only notice if I go to tug on the waist of my pants, or, once my shirt has started to wick it up and I feel it on my belly. The waistline fold-over is a technique that I had forgotten about, because when my kids were in diapers, first of all, being girls, there was less "fire" directed toward the upper front, and, second, they are children of the 21st century, so they've mostly worn modern diapers such as Pampers. But once he mentioned it, I slapped my forehead and said "of course", because I remembered that my mom used to do that at the front of the 1980's Pampers that I grew up in.  My theory is that having a onesie on over these diapers will help hold the fold in place, but, we shall see. 

[oznl]

5 hours ago, Little Sherri said:

I am trying out @diaperedboilerman's suggestion to fold the front of the diaper over at the top, in an effort to stave off one problem that I sometimes have, principally in medium-sized diapers, which is phantom, slow leakage at the top of the front of the diaper, that I only notice if I go to tug on the waist of my pants, or, once my shirt has started to wick it up and I feel it on my belly.

I tried this with my overnight ABU Simple the other night.  A pair of terry-lined waterproofs are now in the "waiting for wash" pile.

To be fair, the result was different and the underlying issue may be more to do with the ABU Simple design and the fact that it was a very wet night.

Instead of dampening the front/top of my pants, pee traveled down alone the fold to emerge at my hip.

I guess it's also possible that I was on my side when that happened.  I guess side sleepers just have wet beds more often.