Customer Reviews

GroVia Certified Organic Cotton Soaker Pad 2 Pack

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Compared to fleece (Fuzzibunz, Bumgenius), these soakers take a lot longer to dry but are less prone to leak. Since they are cotton, you can actually feel when they are wet (as opposed to fleece) and seem to hold more liquid (as long as you prep them before first use as directed). The soaker pads are easy to put on the cover and reduce the amount of material to wash due to their trim size. The soakers are soft when you dry them in the machine (they are stiff if hung to dry), and the stains come out well if laid it in the sun. But you'd probably need to inspect them before putting them in the dryer (and lay them in the sun to take care of any stains). To save energy costs, I usually hang them until they are almost all dry and finish them up in the dryer to soften them up. That also takes care of stains. On the other hand, having the moisture right next to the skin may lead to (or make worse) a diaper rash, so I would suggest getting some fleece liners as a moisture barrier, especially at night.

When used in the Grobaby shell on its smallest setting (for newborns), the soakers stick out about an inch when the shell is snapped down to its smallest setting, which is not good for newborns who still have their umbilical cord stumps. I emailed the company, and they told me to fold it down. Considering that the soaker would be almost an inch thick when folded, I decided to just let it stick up to avoid making baby uncomfortable. Also, I don't understand why there are two separated layers to this thing, a curvy pad and a straighter booster pad. Why don't they just sew it together the whole way instead of only attaching the two layers together on the ends? It just seems awkward and makes it harder to spray poop off it. I usually make sure to straighted it out as I put it on baby so she doesn't get too uncomfortable.

UPDATE - Nearing 12 months, the soakers started having problems with mold/mildew. A couple of times I waited three days before washing and noticed orange spots appearing, and I've had to soak the for hours in oxyclean to get the mold/mildew out because the sun doesn't get them out very well. Afterwards, I had to do many extra cycles to wash it all out, which ended up making some holes in the cotton. Now I have to make sure I wash them as soon as possible. These loads tend to be small as she only goes through about 8 or 9 every 2 days.

What sets these soakers apart from most of the other shell / soaker systems we have tried is that these not only snap in place, but have ELASTIC around the legs to help hug the liner to your babe. Even if the shell is a bit gappy (which we have not encountered), the liner will also fit snugly against baby's bottom to help contain blow-outs, keeping your shell cleaner through more uses. These soakers are sooo soft and they really do absorb a ridiculous amount of liquid. We have used BumGenius, Thirsties, gDiapers, Kushies, and GroBaby and the GroBaby takes the cake for shell / soaker systems. I love these things!

These soakers have been the key to having a dry baby in the morning. I also love that they are cotton--it washes so nicely and absorbs so much! It is also nice to just change the soaker and to be able to reuse the shell a few times before it has to go in the laundry.

I am a Stay at home Mother so my choice to cloth diaper was made more out of trying to save our budget than anything. I started using these diapers when they were called GroBabies. They've recently become "Gro Via" but are the same products. I compared for hours in a local shop that carried several brands of cloth diapers, we looked at Snaps/Pockets/Pre-Folds and basically any other brand we could. What drew me into this particular brand though was the convenience. My boys can generally last an entire day on one shell, with just changing the inserts. A pocket diaper you have to change the entire thing. This means I can get by on 5 shells and about 15 soakers per child in about a day and a half/two days. It's been a huge budget saver, but I have also noticed my children hardly ever get a diaper rash. I also love the ability for the diapers to "Grow" with my children with their snap features. Admittedly I had preemie children so it wasn't until my babies were in huggies size 1 that we could start using our cloth diapers but it all worked out. I have some friends that had 8 pound children who said their daughter was able to wear her diapers immediately. I love the ability to add in some extra soakers as needed too! My babies started out in them at about 2 months (When they gained enough weight) and my 18 month old still uses his. I will also add that my oldest is starting to potty train at 18 months old because he knows he is wet, and doesn't like it. So that was a nice perk! I bought 5 shells, and 15 soakers (20 in total because 5 soakers came with the shells) and those lasted my 18 month old from 2 months to now. When our second son arrived I ordered his also, and he is still wearing his obviously. We wash diapers about every other day.

We love our gro baby soakers and covers which make up the AI2 system. They are the softest insert I have found for my son and he is our second to use cloth diapers. I have tried every system out there pockets, fitted, pre-folds, AI1, all different brands. This is my favorit I wish I had switched sooner!

We waited until our daughter was about 9 pounds to start using these because they just didn't fit before. We used disposables until then, and I must say these leak so much less. Leaks tend to come from user error, such as not tucking everything in. I would say we have one poop explosion per week, and those I don't think there is a product available that would contain the big ones. I bought the extra soaker pads but I haven't needed them yet (she's 5 months) even for overnights, which is usually 10 hours between changes.

The only down side is they do take a while to dry. I usually just throw them in the dryer for 30 minutes or so, which is enough time for our cloth wipes to be dry, then the soakers go onto the drying rack with the shells. I try to place them on the rack so there is space between the two layers, as they dry faster that way. They usually are ready to use by the next day.

Pads work as well as any cloth diapers, however they take forever to dry after you wash them. However, I still use them.

Easy to put it, easy to take out. Everything is great except that it takes some time to dry it - have to run couple cycles in a dryer or hang dry it after one cycle.

Just like people say - these inserts are great for size/fit, SO easy to use, great at containing leaks since they have their own elastic, are very absorbent, and they have a waterproof backing so I rarely have to change the cover itself. BUT they take FOREVER to dry and can be prone to mildew if left damp for too long which has not yet happened to me but did happen to a friend. Also they feel very wet on baby's skin when they are wet and my daughter gets very fussy when that happens. A thin fleece liner will help with that.

snaps in and out of grovia shells easily and is durable. make sure you follow the directions and wash at least 5-6 times for full absorbency or else you will experience leaking. only use recommended detergents to avoid buildup which can impair absorbency. also helps to turn them inside out when drying to help with drying, because they sometimes don't dry fully where the two seams are attached. great product. also, laying them out in the sun when wet after laundering helps to get stains out, aka bleaching. highly recommend grovia soaker pads for an all in two hybrid cloth diaper. the certified organic cotton soaker is softer (jersey material) than the original organic cotton soaker (rougher cotton material).