Types of Cloth Trainer Pants
Disposable V Cloth Trainer Pants
Cloth trainer pants are nothing like the disposable pull ups which are sold as “trainer pants”. Disposable trainer pants are nothing more than pull up nappies, and will hold whatever wee or poo your child produces. Disposables keep the child feeling dry which can slow down potty training learning.
Cloth trainer pants, on the other hand offer a wide variety of absorbency options. Some offer full absorbency protection like a disposble and can be used day or night. Other cloth trainers simply give your child a chance to get to the loo without embarrassment if they have an accident, so you use them only when your child is ready to come out of nappies.
All cloth trainer pants will keep the child feeling wet rather than locking it away. .
Tricky Decision
It is often a tricky decision as to whether to use cloth trainer pants at all, because most brands are comparatively expensive and you have no idea how long your little one might need them. Some children might be reliable within a week and others it's a long journey of 6 months+.
Trainer Pant Options
Mother-ease Big Kid Pants
The Mother-ease Big Kid Pants are reusable pull up nappies and are a much less padded pull-up version of their main Bedwetter pants. They come in a range of fun prints with full waterproof covering stretch terry cotton, with snugly elasticated legs and waist. They are therefore fully waterproof and absorbency is also reliable for the daytime and they hold a full wee. You could even add a little cloth booster if your child's accident wees can be espeically large.
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Bambinex 2 in 1 Trainer / Swim Pants
Bambinex 2 in 1 trainers are another great economical reusable pull up choice. They offer a light weight absorbency protection (not as high as the Motherease), and they can also be used as a swim pant. This really helps make them an economical option as if your child does train rapidly you can still use them for swimming.
Bright Bots Trainer Pants
The alternative is Bright Bots pull up reusable nappies. Available in eye-catching colours, they are washable at 40. They are much more like pants, for this reason, the Bright Bots can continue to be used as 'proper' pants long after their protective purpose has passed.
The downside? Well, because the waterpoofing is hidden inside the gusset, along with a panel of absorbent foam, they do not offer the same level of overall waterproofness as the Motherease ones. They are more 'wee protectors', to give your child a chance to get to the loo after they have had an accident without getting their clothes all wet. They won’t hold a full wee without leaking and won't withstand being sat on when wet.
We did work out a way around this with son number 1, who refused (as a matter of principle) to use the toilet for six weeks after he was already dry at night. We put him into Bright Bots pants and then covered them with an Airflow wrap, so that then when he did (inevitably) do a full wee, we had no worries about the furniture. It reduced a lot of the stress while getting him to co-operate.
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Bamboolik Trainer Pants
Bamboolik Trainer Pants are fantastic reusable pull ups for toddlers if you're just starting potty training. Bamboolik trainers have popper side opening allow you to open the pants if the child accidentally does a poo in them. Therefore avoiding pulling them down the legs (and therefore smearing poo right down their legs too) as can happen with these other trainer pants. Bamboolik trainers do seem expensive initially especially as they are just the waterproof part and absorbency needs to be added in. However the idea is that you reuse inserts you already have from previous nappies rather than buying new inserts. The waterproof Bamboolik cover can be reused throughout the day so suddenly they become a very economical system.
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Night Time Full Absorbency
The Motherease Bedwetter Pants and Kijani Night Time Pull Ups are both pull ons with the full absorbency of a nappy, so are the nearest equivalent to disposable pull ons. These are best for night time due to their bulkiness.
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