The job of a diaper cover is to prevent a wet or soiled diaper from leaking. Sounds simple enough - but then why do some covers leak? From the most expensive and well made to hand-me-downs, all covers work better if fitted carefully. Let's review the basics of cover use.
It is the job of the diaper - not the cover - to absorb and retain baby's output. Many leaks are caused by insufficient absorbency in the diaper. You may need different levels of absorbency at different times - growth spurts, illness, activity levels, etc, can mean baby eats more or less and then outputs more or less. Help your cover perform well by boosting your diaper's absorbency when you notice the start of a growth spurt.
After you've got the diaper on it is time to add the cover. Make sure to use the correct cover size. Size seems obvious - but staying within the cover's recommended weight range is not enough. The style of the diaper and whether or not you use doublers can affect how your covers fit. Very trim diapers - like a prefold diaper folded in thirds and laid inside a cover - create minimal bulk. Minimal bulk means your baby can be at the top end of a cover's weight range and still fit quite well or perhaps even need a cover one size smaller than recommended. Night diapering, on the other hand, can require that you 'size up' on your covers to fit well over a bulked up night time diaper. You know that you've got the correct size cover when the legs fit snugly without leaving red marks, the cover contains all diaper fabric completely within the cover, your baby's bum is completely covered, and the waist can be adjusted snug enough to keep the cover in place.
Check to see if just perhaps you might have your cover on inside out. That sounds dumb but it's an easy mistake to make since some manufacturers put care tags on the outside, away from baby's skin, while others put tags on the inside, the standard for most other clothing. When in doubt try to find a picture of the cover on the Internet so that you can see which side goes where.
Do you have the right style cover for your diaper? There are some cover styles that work wonderfully with specific diaper styles and perform miserably with others. In general if the cover easily covers up the entire diaper without a 'tucking in' struggle and the diaper is secure around your child's bottom then you've got a good match.
How you secure and adjust the cover can affect the covers performance. If your cover closes with Velcro or aplix take a moment to make sure that the Velcro tabs are placed as parallel as possible to the Velcro strip (have the tabs and the strip form a straight line). When you secure the Velcro tabs at an angle the leg opening shape and size change and you can end up with a saggy cover and maybe even leaks.
Does your cover have side snaps? Snap the bottoms snaps as tightly as you can so that the leg openings fit snugly but do not leave red marks on your child's thighs. If you get red marks experiment with looser snap settings until you find the right one. Waist snaps can be adjusted more loosely but not so loose that active babies can pull diaper and cover off.
Pull up covers should either fit snugly around the thighs or have longer leg coverage. Many pull up wool and fleece covers have elastic-free legs - great for chubby thighs - but make sure that the diaper does not hang out the leg. Covers with elastic-free legs require fitted or secured diapers - since the cover is more open at the leg the diaper must fit snugly at the leg to prevent leaks.
Make sure that you are using your cover correctly for the job for which it was designed. Manufacturers can take very different approaches to solving the same challenge. For example, Bumkins covers feature a front panel intended to tuck prefold diapers in while Bummi's covers have a front panel meant to keep wetness away from baby's skin - with one panel you tuck and with the other you don't. Knowing how to use which would definitely make a difference in your satisfaction with the products.
Visually examine the cover - are all parts of the diaper inside the cover? Diaper fabric caught between the cover leg opening or waist and your baby can quickly wick an impressive amount of urine. Take a moment to make sure the diaper is completely tucked inside.
All types of covers benefit from a final firm but light tug upwards from the waist after the cover is in place. Tugging helps adjust the leg opening fit and moves the leg opening a bit higher on the thigh - both of which enhance performance. Put both your thumbs inside the front waist of the cover, with the center of the cover between your thumbs, and tug upwards. Tugging both the cover and the diaper can help, too.
Getting great performance from your covers is not hard - but subtle little changes like these can make a big difference between adequate and wonderful performance. Soon enough you'll be sensitive to the nuances of how your covers fit your baby and the true expert.
