Trainers v. Diapers

[catccc]

I'm wondering if any of you use trainers instead of diapers, why you do, and where your LO is in the EC process. Or why you don't.

[hrsmom]

Hi- I've used both, heavy on the trainers. I started using trainers when she was 3 months-ish old because I was changing after every pee anyway, and they take up less space in the laundry. I used diapers at night and during the day all last winter because she peed a lot and it was cold. Trainers with side snaps or eca-pants are my favorites because they're easy to clean even with a poop miss and they're just easy to use! I was using diapers for awhile when we were having a lot of poop misses, because I didn't want to get poop on the trainers! Then I realized they were easier to clean, so I made the switch. I started trainers at night about a month ago (?) when she became mostly dry at night. Her first summer she was nakey at night, that was the easiest then! Right now she is 18 months old and as of recently is pretty reliable with going in the potty and with telling me, just depends on what else is going on that day. There have been many days of going through 7 or 8 pairs of trainers in one day, though!

[theboysmama]

my dd is 9 1/5 months and is underwear full time during the day and waterproof cloth trainers at night.
I would highly recommend using waterproof trainers instead of a diaper. When we made the switch our ec progress sky rocketed. We got a dozen washable pull up trainers with aplix on the side and used clothing that was also easy to pull up and down. I found that when she was wearing trainers she had fewer mises bcs I took her more bcs it was less hassle then removing the bottoms and then the cover then teh diaper then she wouldn't go then putting it all back on then she is wet and taking it all off again. I also got 4 ecapants which were great with dresses but not with pants. The pull ups just make the whole process easier. If you are purchasing diapers I would get pull ups instead. I got mine at www.sassycloth.com and she will custom make little ones for you.
If you don't want waterproof then just use fitted w/out a cover and leave them loose so that you can slip them up and down.

[lisavark]

I finally started switching to trainers when DD was 12 months old (she's 19 months now), and I wish I'd done it earlier. We were using cheap Gerber flat folds and covers before, so diapers were a lot cheaper, but trainers really are so much easier to deal with. My favorites are the EC store favorite trainers, preferably with snaps on the side but I have quite a few without, and I buy them mostly on diaperswappers.com. Not as cheap as flat folds, but *so* easy to use. For next baby, I hope to get a lot more and start on trainers much sooner! When you're changing after every pee anyway, diapers are just overkill.

We now use underwear at home, trainers when out in public (at least when indoors), and pocket diapers overnight (she stays dry most night but I often miss the first wake-up pee, and it's BIG, so we need a lot of absorbency just for that one. )

[pixiepunk]

i switched to trainers when DD2 was 4 months old. non-waterproof at home, waterproof when out. i found that we just didn't need anything more absorbent since i always changed her immediately after a miss, and diapers were more expensive and bulkier than i needed them to be. she's never much peed at night, and started consistently being dry at night or signaling me that she had to pee by then, so we even use trainers overnight.

she's now 17 months and is in undies at home and waterproof trainers when out, though i'm starting to feel bad about that because it's really rare that we have a miss....

[catccc]

Thanks for all the input. So it sounds like the primary reason to use trainers is ease of on/off. Secondarily, EC success sometimes goes up, and a whole diaper for one pee is overkill.

DD and I were doing really well between 6-9.5 months. Between 0 and 2 misses day and night. Then she really started moving, and success was stifled for a while. She is 11.5 months now, and we are just getting back on track to ~2 misses a day. But we still have off days. Yesterday she peed in 6 diapers in a row! although we were visiting my parents and didn't bring her BBLP, so I think it was mainly us (me and DH) that caused the misses.

So, now onto a question about your non-waterproof trainers... Do they fully absorb one pee? I expect that pants also get wet if they are wearing them over the trainers. But you don't have pee dripping anywhere. Is that about how they work?

I'm trying not to buy anything to "help" with EC (meaning not buying any actual trainers), but ever since she's had dresses, we've occasionally put her in the bloomers that come with them with a 2 ply flannel wipe folded up inside as "trainers." I think I may need to be using a couple of wipes. Her misses in those sometimes piddle onto the floor.

[sapphire_chan]

Pull-down.

That's why.

I'm smacking myself mentally for not getting snap sides though. I have no idea what I was thinking.

The Brightbots prevent spraying, but there are still drips if she has a heavy pee.

Oh, and since you're right behind us age wise, I've had more luck this month with timing. Offering every 90minutes or so. I'm starting to see her new pee cues now, but for awhile it was really bad.

[hrsmom]

The non-waterproof trainers generally absorb a pee. If it's a big one, as in she's been holding it for a long time, it will leak through onto the floor, or the ground, or whatever!

[Carlyle]

We didn't do trainers for 2 reasons--mostly because they're expensive and not necessary, and secondly because when my dd had a miss, she had a MISS--flooding the entire floor in a huge lake of pee. Even the diapers leaked. She had a miss at preschool the other day--although at this age and stage for her, it's more of an accident since she's pretty much a grad. Even her teacher was astounded at the amount of pee! So yeah, not much incentive for us to splurge on trainers!

[theboysmama]

I think the term "trainers" is really broad. Reading through this thread I think that people are referring to different things while still using the word trainer.
This is my understanding of the different types of trainers:
1. lightly padded underwear that pulls up and down. Will slow down a pee but doesn't keep it all in. Doesn't have side openings for easy poop miss changes.
2. non-waterproof trainer (like the ecapant-I don't know if there is a pull up option). This keeps the pee from running everywhere but helps you to tell right when the child has gone. If the child is wearing pants they may or may not get wet depending on the ammount of pee.
3. Pull up style trainer. This trainer is waterproof and pulls up and down. It is waterproof and will hold a full pee (but only 1). It is trimmer than a diaper but has aplix/velcro or snaps on both sides. The baby can feel that they peed.

I am sure there are more types out there I would be interested in hearing more about them.

We used the pull up style trainer www.sassycloth.com and it was absolutely essential in our ec journey. I believe that the convenience of the pull up an down option helped me to take her more and the fact that she could feel it helped. Also knowing that she wasn't going to leak everywhere helped me. I wish that I had started right away w/ a pull up trainer.
I believe that trainers may not be a necessity for everyone (neither are diapers) but for us they were an absolute necessity when it came to getting the hang of ec. Trainers do not always have to be expensive. I paid $6 a piece for mine brand new and that is a lot less than cloth diapers.

[pixiepunk]

Originally Posted by catccc

Thanks for all the input. So it sounds like the primary reason to use trainers is ease of on/off. Secondarily, EC success sometimes goes up, and a whole diaper for one pee is overkill.

DD and I were doing really well between 6-9.5 months. Between 0 and 2 misses day and night. Then she really started moving, and success was stifled for a while. She is 11.5 months now, and we are just getting back on track to ~2 misses a day. But we still have off days. Yesterday she peed in 6 diapers in a row! although we were visiting my parents and didn't bring her BBLP, so I think it was mainly us (me and DH) that caused the misses.

So, now onto a question about your non-waterproof trainers... Do they fully absorb one pee? I expect that pants also get wet if they are wearing them over the trainers. But you don't have pee dripping anywhere. Is that about how they work?

I'm trying not to buy anything to "help" with EC (meaning not buying any actual trainers), but ever since she's had dresses, we've occasionally put her in the bloomers that come with them with a 2 ply flannel wipe folded up inside as "trainers." I think I may need to be using a couple of wipes. Her misses in those sometimes piddle onto the floor.

some non-waterproof trainers do absorb a whole pee and some don't - it depends on what you get. little gerber trainers and the like, which are basically padded undies, are not going to absorb a whole pee. my oldest DD peed right through those like they weren't even on. brights bots are better, though still a heavy pee (like first thing in the morning) would not be absorbed completely. Imse Vimse trainers and the non-waterproof ones from the EC Store (their brand) hold a full pee IME. and you can get EC Store ones with side snaps if you want them. definitely in any case the pants over a non-waterproof trainer will get very wet and would need to be changed along with the trainer. last winter i used wool longies with non-waterproof trainers sometimes when we would go out, and just alternated between two pairs, as the 'wet' ones were dry by the time i needed them again. thicker microfleece pants can be used the same way, too, and my LO always had either fleece pants or wool longies on over her trainers when we'd go out (even the waterproof ones) just to protect against wicking/leaks and to lessen the amount of spare clothes i'd need to bring along in case of misses.

[sgmom]

I can't stand poop misses, so in the times where I know she likely won't poop, and I have time to dedicate strictly to watching her (high chance of lesser misses), we use the gerber trainers (18 months). But like hrsmom said, if the pee is a big one, it will leak all over the floor. The nice thing about the leaking though, is if you're watching for a pee and you happen to miss it, the gerbers are pretty obvious when she's peeing so I can quickly grab her and sit her on the potty, even without pulling them down.

I also have some vinyl pull up covers (they were given to me) that I HATE, but they come in handy for times when I know I won't be able to rush her to the potty. Pull em up, pull em down.

[catccc]

Hmm, I also have some vinyl pants given to me. They feel icky, but maybe I'll give them a try with my bloomer/wipe "trainers."

Question... Why get trainers w/ side snaps? It seems like they are just like diapers, then.

[sgmom]

Originally Posted by catccc

Question... Why get trainers w/ side snaps? It seems like they are just like diapers, then.

This is really the only reason why I use them instead of my bummis cloth diaper covers. And I ONLY use them when she's in a trainer, and I know I'm going to be distracted for a few minutes and am still expecting a big pee.

I really can't stand them, but they work!

[pixiepunk]

side snaps make it easier to get off if there is a poo miss without making a catastrophic mess. and they can be changed like a diaper without removing shoes and pants when you're on the go, which can be handy when it's cold outside.

they are not as absorbent as diapers, they are only for one pee. and they have FOE around the waist and legs so they are still able to be pulled up and down. now that we don't have poo misses anymore and pee misses when out and about are infrequent, i do prefer the sewn sides because they are easier to pull up and down. but the snap sided ones are a great transition between diapers and sewn-sided trainers - *much* trimmer than diapers and made so you can pull up and down, but still can be changed like a diaper when on the go or for poo.