I was updating another page on the website on the cost of night diapering when I realized I had never taken the time to write out my experience, ideas and advice in regards to night diapering for the website.  Here is an excerpt from that page that we will start with and then we will take it up a notch.

In nearly four years in business and 3 diapered babies, I have learned that night diapering scares the bejeebees for some caregivers.  But night diapering isn't rocket science.  Just pair your baby with the right level of absorbency and top it with an appropriate cover to ensure moisture stays in the diaper and not out onto the clothing or bed.  

Newborn Night Diapering

Newborn night diapering is no different than daytime diapering.  Your baby is changed every 2 hours around the clock as a newborn and so the diapers are relatively the same throughout the day and night.  One exception maybe that tired parents often prefer diapers that are easy to use for overnight such as the Thirsties AIO XS diaper.  Diapers that have a stay-dry lining are also perceived as allowing baby to sleep better by reducing the chances that the infant will waken by feeling the wetness of the diaper.

Standard Pocket Diaper 

Some babies do just fine with a Pocket Diaper whether sized or One-Sized and an extra insert or two.  Extra inserts can be microterry or hemp although hemp is often desired for its trimness and super-absorbency.  

 

One of our favorite combinations for inserts to use in the overnight pocket diapers is the Blueberry One-Size insert and a basic hemp doubler such as the BabyKicks Hemp Doubler or the Thirsties Hemp Doubler.  We have used this combination in most pocket diaper brands with good success.  We do not recommend the Swaddlebees pocket diapers as a good choice in night diapering since they are quite narrow in the crotch and in our experience do not allow for adequate stuffing.

 

Fleece Cover 

For heavy wettering babies the standard pocket diaper may not offer enough protection.  Covering the diaper with a Fleece Cover can provide the barrier needed to keep the wetness in the diaper.  

 

Wool Cover 

Wool is desirable for the heavy wetting baby.  Wool has the ability to not only repel moisture once it is lanolized but also to absorb moisture and evaporate it off.  Wool evaporates moisture off more quickly than it absorbs moisture and so works as a dynamic system overnight to keep clothing and bedding dry.  Wool can be used over hemp prefolds,  fitted diapers, pocket diapers, and AIO diapers.  We co-sleep and use wool as an extra assurance that our bed will be dry all night.  

 

With wool it is important that you do not have tight clothing over the cover.  For winter months in the colder regions of the planet, longies (wool pants) are a great solution for night diapering since they are worn as the pajama bottoms.

 

For summer months, you can use wool covers or wool soakers with good success.

 

When using wool over prefolds and fitted diapers it is important that you have a thick, dense wool for protection.  Wool flannel, interlock and crepe or a tightly knit wool soaker are desired.

 

For use over a pocket diaper, most wools fabric types will work well although the fabric types described above are preferred.  Some wool covers such as Swaddlebees tend to be cut trim for day use and do not tend to fit over a bulky night diaper well.

 

Tips from the Trenches When stuffing inserts into your pocket diapers keep them about an inch below the front edge of the diaper. Try not to allow the diaper to gap in the front waist.   Try to avoid using undershirts that may fall into the waist of the diaper overnight. If using a onesie, choose one that is long enough to fit over the night diaper without being snug.  Realize that onesies would have to fit outside any covers including wool longies. Don't overstuff a diaper so that the leg holes of the diaper gape. Choose super absorbent fabrics like microterry and hemp.  My favorite choice is microfiber backed by plenty of layers of hemp.  Cotton isn't as absorbent and creates a monster-size diaper without providing monster-size absorbency.

Again, you may not start out night diapering but don't wait to long before you make the change.  Cloth diapering has been the solution for many clients across the years whose babies continually leaked when using paper diapers overnight.  

Solving Night Diapering Problems

Leaking:

Leaking diapers can often be solved by adding more absorbency.  Adding a basic hemp doubler may make all the difference.  Make sure you have fully prepped your new insert before use so it is at its maximum absorbency.  Other leaking issues may be solved by topping your diaper with a fleece or wool cover.  For the heaviest of wetters the wool cover is preferred.  Children who tend to leak out of disposable diapers overnight generally will have success in proper cloth diapers with the addition of a fleece or wool cover.

 

Bulk:

Bulkiness is often a concern of parents.  While night diapering does tend to be more bulky than day diapering it should be reasonable.  Choosing more absorbent fabrics can be a first step. We like to see a microfiber and hemp combination for night diapering.  Too much microfiber tends to be bulkier than using the dense hemp inserts.  Using wool as the pajama bottoms may be an excellent choice next step.

 

Smell:

Night diapers do tend to smell more than day diapers.  By their very nature the diapers are on longer than day diapers and will tend to smell in the morning.  To avoid this, you can choose to change your baby overnight thus reducing the time a diaper is on.  Diaper smell overnight that burns your nose hairs is not normal.  This type of intense smell is often the result of either using too much detergent in your wash routine or from mineral buildup caused from hard water.  In these cases, plan to strip your night diapers as described here.