If you are looking for cloth diaper advice, on Mondays, I answer reader submitted questions, and ask you to give your opinion too.
Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or Fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.
Beth says:
Maria-
Hi, I’ve been using cloth diapers with my son since he was in size 2, yet we’ve always used disposables at night. Usually, a box would last a little over 3 months, so it never really broke the bank, and I really wasn’t concerned. Now, the prices of diapers is going out of control, and I’d like to switch to cloth overnight once my disposables are all gone. When I was looking at prices of fabric, it would be cheaper to buy a few yards of different absorbent fabrics then to buy a box of diapers. (I make my own, so I would be buying the fabric and making the soaker). The big thing is that my son is a heavy wetter at night, most nights wetting out of the disposable. So, I need to find the most trim yet absorbent night fabric. What should I use?
Thanks
Beth
Hi Beth! Figuring out a night time solution was tough for us! My son was a very heavy wetter and was leaking out of everything it seemed. We weren’t able to use disposables at night since they gave him rashes (my final motivator to switch to cloth!) so I did a ton of trial and error until I figured something out.
It sounds like your son is also a very heavy wetter, if he’s leaking out of disposables! I’ve heard at least one mom say that her son would actually cause disposable diapers to burst at night, and she was able to make cloth at night work for them, so I’m confident that you will be able to as well!
I don’t sew diapers, so I can’t specifically speak on that, but I can definitely tell you what things/materials worked for us. As a side note, if you’re a Cafemom member, there is a group called “Sewing Diaper Divas” that is a great resource!
What has worked really well for us at night is a very absorbent fitted with a wool cover over it, or a pocket diaper stuffed with a Knickernappies Superdo insert. I wouldn’t call any of our night time solutions trim, but they work!
If you are making a pocket diaper, you might consider using heavy duty Windpro Fleece as the outer, and using both microfiber and hemp in your insert (microfiber closest to baby inside the pocket.) For a fitted, consider using a mixed natural material, like a cotton/hemp blend or bamboo. Zorb is also a very absorbent material to use in soakers.
I know we have some ladies here that sew their own diapers. Do any of you have heavy wetters? What materials worked best for you in night time diapers?
Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 18, 14 and 11-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. 
Thank you all especially Maria D. I have a great woman who lives close by who sells some great hemp fabric (and other fabric for diapers). I think I’m going to get some hemp, and pair it with some microfiber. Now, I just need to find some wool. I keep trying our Goodwill, but no luck, I may have to break down and buy it new.
stumbled, here from PITM Alexa
I’ll have to remember this! My little guy is in cloth & just thinking about potty training!
My favorite night-time solution is homemade! I use a wool cover upcycled from a sweater (pattern here: http://www.borntolove.com/frugal-column2.html) and a homemade fitted (here’s the tutorial on my blog! http://downrightdomesticity.blogspot.com/2011/03/fitted-multisize-diaper-with-pocket.html). For a trimmer night-time solution, I’d recommend using fleece or microfleece for the inner, and replacing the terrycloth soaker with a couple layers of microfiber on both diaper pieces. Then you can stuff an additional insert in for about eight layers of microfiber total.
I have yet to see an effective night solution that’s also trim. The nice thing about using a wool soaker, though, is that those function great as pajama pants, and all you need to do is put a shirt on baby. Hope this helps!
We have been having success at night with a BabyKicks 3G stuffed with their JoeyBunz insert and an additional help insert (we’ve used the Rumparooz smaller hemp insert and the larger one as well, with success). Absolutely, hemp is the way to go–but with something quick absorbing on top, like cotton or microfiber
Happy diapering!
Thank you for this post! I was about to write and ask you a similar question. My son is a heavy wetter at night too. We’ve been using disposables but he’s been waking up soaked. I now have some confidence to give cloth a try at night (with the right options).
Thanks,
Kat
I was looking for some new blogs and I came across yours…I am now following you…please stop by and say hi http://www.areyouamom.com
Thanks,
Maureen