Customer Reviews

GroVia Certified Organic Cotton Soaker Pad 2 Pack

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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.

These are adorable diapers, the shells are super cute, trim fitting and have a soft mesh lining. I also like how they can be stuffed and snapped closed to stack them neatly in a drawer. However, The inserts designed for this system are flawed, and other brand inserts do not work well with the shells.
1. the snap in soakers/diapers have two layers which can make messes hard to clean out and they are not adjustable, they only snap in one way for both boys and girls. Unlike other systems you cannot adjust or fold these inserts to double the absorbency where it's needed for your child.
2. Inserts from most other hybrid brands will not work with this diaper because the shell is so trim between the legs, unless they are narrow and contoured inserts.
3. These inserts take FOREVER to dry at the ends where the two layers are stitched together. Being so hard to dry means a chance for smell from mold & mildew if you use them often, Overall they are generally harder to keep clean and DRY.
I like the shells, they fit nice and trim and are cute, but they have a cloth mesh lining which means the shells must be hung to dry between reusing, and must be washed if they get soiled, their is no wiping them clean like other Hybrid shells systems. I think they would be nice for potty training or use with just one prefold topped with the GroVia booster, but they cannot be stuffed with much more than that. Lastly, any inserts you do find to use for these shells must be contoured AND long enough to cover the back snap so inserts that fold to double the absorbency are too short when folded. Overall I think other hybrid systems like Flip are better, if not as cute, but really, how often do you let your child run around in just a diaper anyway?

I really love the shell covers on the grovia, but am not a fan of the soakers. I have a heavy wetter, and I was consistantly having leaks. If I used my flip or green mountain trifolds, the covers work great.

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.

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!

This is the only diaper pad that has failed me miserably. My son's onsie, bedding and diaper were soaked after three hours of sleep. He's 4 months old there should be no reason why he is peeing out of this soaker. The design needs a lot of work. It does not dry fast like it advertises either. It takes the longest to dry out of all my pads and absorbs the least. wt...f. I will be steering away from GroVia and looking for something that works for me.

These are nice because they are organic cotton and absorbent. They do take forever to dry. I have to flip them inside out to get the inside where the seam is at the ends to dry completely. The stay dry ones still take a while to dry but not as long. These ones aren't as soft and pliable as the stay dry ones either. In fact they are rather stiff and I worry they dig into my newborns belly. Neither hold in big breast milk poop but I just change the cover. I use a microfleece liner on top of these and it works....