Questions about fleece/flannel/wicking...

lily225

My friend and I were trying to figure out why fleece works so well for soakers, but yet you can also use it as a liner for when using diaper rash cream. Why would pee not soak through when it's a soaker, but soak through when used as a liner???

I just don't understand that whole wicking thing. Wicking means it pulls the moisture through the material so that the top stays dry, right?? You want good wicking materials for being the layer up against the childs skin, so it's not just wetness always sitting there, right?

What are good wicking materials, then?? 

Sorry for the potentially stupid questions...

smurfetteinred

Wicking is the act of pulling moisture through something via capillary action.

Here's my best explanation as to why it works as a wicking liner as well as a cover/soaker. First - the best more bulletproof soaker covers are made from thicker fleece like polar fleece which does not wick as an inner layer, however I've used the cheapy regular fleece with good sucess for both inner and outer layers. 

Fleece doesn't absorb - not at all - it only wicks so when it's used as an inner layer against the skin the force of the urine pushes it right through and into your absorbant layer. When it's used as an outer layer/soaker it's sitting against a damp diaper not against the direct flow. Since it doesn't absorb moisture and there's no force behind the urine the wetness doesn't come through the soaker. 

That all being said - cheaper thin fleece is very prone to compression wicking. So if your dc is in their car seat with the seat belt compressing the crotch and your child pees - it's going to be forced right through all the way to that outer layer of fleece and wick right through. So fleece (unless it's a higher quality thicker fleece) isn't good for scenarios where there will be a lot of compression on the crotch (aka babywearing or carseats). 

The most popular wicking layers are microfleece (ala fb and hh) and suedecloth (ala bg's).

Hope the novel helped!