Have you ever been in the trenches of a diaper blowout battle? Oh, we have! Our first little one treated us to a handful of them—3 to 5 give or take. But our second? He was the reigning champ of blowouts with a whopping 90% of his diaper adventures ending in… well, let’s call it ‘splash zone chaos.’ And nope, that’s not a typo. There was this one stretch where my husband and I were on daily blowout duty!
But, you know what? It’s all part of the journey. We’ve picked up some clever tricks along the way, and I’m eager to share how we’ve learned to dodge the mess and handle the rest. Ready to become a blowout-busting pro? Let’s tackle this stinky phase together!
What Is a Diaper Blowout?
Diaper blowouts—when your baby’s backside turns into a mini Vesuvius and the diaper just can’t hold the lava. It’s a common, albeit messy, part of the baby’s life. Often, it’s down to the fit of the diaper or just a quirky tummy at work.
For all the new parents out there: don’t stress. It’s not your baby; it’s just baby life. A little readiness with the right size diaper and a quick wipe-down routine, and you’ll handle these like a pro. Keep calm, carry on, and remember—this messy stage will be over before you know it.
How to Prevent a Diaper Blowout?
Predicting when a diaper blowout will strike is a bit of a mystery, but certain scenarios, like how a baby sits in their bouncer or high chair, can trigger the event. It’s tricky to prevent diaper blowouts completely, yet a few proactive steps can greatly diminish their likelihood.
1. Use the right diaper
Navigating the diaper aisle is a dual quest: finding the right brand and the correct size. These two folds are vital in your battle against blowouts.
Diaper brands vary significantly in fit and absorbency, so it may take some trial and error to find your match. For us, not using the right brand, has a 90% chance of ending up with a blowout. We’ve been using Pamper Pure for our daughter. It worked great. But it wasn’t good enough for our son. We found Coterie Diaper! It has significantly reduced the diaper blowout.
Size matters. As your baby grows, their diaper size will need to adjust accordingly. A snug fit around the waist and legs, without being too tight, and a diaper that’s capable of holding the volume your baby typically produces are your best defenses in preventing those dreaded leaks.
2. Put the diaper on properly
It’s all about balance when it comes to a proper diaper fit—not too tight, not too loose, and not lopsided. Make sure the waistband sits evenly, like a halo, around your baby’s waist. When fastening the diaper, aim for an even pull on each tab to avoid any uneven gaps where leaks could sneak through.
And those leg cuffs? They deserve your attention—pull the leg cuffs out gently so they’re just right, creating a calm circle of protection. This level of precision ensures the absorbent part of the diaper is exactly where it needs to be to ward off blowouts.
A snug, evenly fastened diaper with those leg cuffs in place is your best bet for a content baby and a leak-free day.
3. Change diapers often
Stay ahead of the game by changing diapers before they’re fit to burst. A diaper heavy with pee has less room to spare for poop, making escapes more likely. Keep them fresh to ensure there’s always space for surprise poops, cutting down the chance of those sneaky blowouts. Regular changes, happy changes!
How to Deal With a Diaper Blowout?
Diaper Blowout at Home
Step 1: Always use a disposable diaper-changing pad
I always double up with a disposable changing pad on top of the regular one. If a diaper change turns into a poop fiasco, I can just whisk away the disposable pad—easy peasy! And if that disposable pad catches some mess, I simply wipe down the baby’s backside, then fold the soiled section underneath. Voilà! Baby’s got a clean space to chill on.
This little hack means I rarely have to scrub down the changing station or toss covers in the wash. A true game-changer for those messy moments!
Step 2: Put Baby on his tummy
Most blowouts tend to happen at the back. So, when you’re in the cleanup zone, flip your little one onto their tummy. This way, any rogue poop is less likely to smear all over the place before you’ve had the chance to tackle it.
Now, if you’re lucky and the blowouts are contained to the leg area—phew! You can stick to the standard back-lying position for a diaper change. Knowing when to flip and when to lay flat is like having a secret weapon in your diaper-changing arsenal.
Step 3: Take clothes off down over the legs
Do not take off your baby’s poopy clothes over his head!!! The poop will get to his face and hair. That’s an extra battle to clean your baby’s hair and face.
Instead, peel those clothes off by rolling them down over the legs. Envelope onesies are great for this. The shoulder flaps are designed to spread out and allow you to strip the onesie down instead of up, avoiding the mess and keeping the baby’s face and head in the clear.
Step 4: Wipe the poop explode first
Before taking off the poopy diaper, wipe clean the leaked poops first. They could be on the back or legs. It’s easier to clean the explodes area without worrying about the diaper area.
Step 5: Put a wipe of the exposed area, then flip the baby to face up
If the diaper leak hits the back, after the first wiping of the leaks cover the dirty part of the diaper with a baby wipe, then turn your baby over.
If you flip your baby over, the changing pad will get dirty by touching the messy diaper. This barrier keeps the changing pad clean. Then, when you remove the diaper, use the wipe to clean your baby’s back first—simple and effective!
Step 6: Take off the diaper and wipe clean starting from the back
At this point, you are mostly over the battle. Start with the back while your baby’s still on their tummy. Once that’s done, lay them down to tackle the rest.
Step 7: Clean the crime scene
Finally, your baby is clean, fresh, and snug in a new diaper ensemble. Now, safely settle him in a cozy spot, and turn your attention to the scene of the spill. Time to scrub down that bouncer, high chair, or wherever the “poop-tastrophy” unfolded
Diaper Blowout Outside of Home
1. Always have extra clothes. This rule applies throughout the whole of babyhood and toddlerhood. You don’t want to regret there are no clean clothes for your baby when a blowout happens.
2. Always bring plenty of baby wipes in the diaper bag. A blowout requires lots of lots of baby wipes.
Amy’s Hack
A bin in the car for baby: I put one pack of baby wipes, extra diapers, clean clothes, and burp cloths in the bin. Just in case I forget to bring any of these things, I always have backups in the car. Believe me, I forgot about these things frequently after I became a mom. And I’ve never forgotten about things before.
3. Always have extra disposable changing pads in the diaper bag. Just like at home, layer one on top of your go-to outdoor changing pad. The last thing you want is extra cleaning of the outdoor changing pad in public.
Plus, if the blowout happens in the car seat or stroller, simply use the disposable changing pad to cover the dirty car seat. Just pinch a hole in the middle for the car seat.
4. Arm yourself with plastic bags in your diaper bag or car. You need them for those “What do I do with this?” moments post-blowout. I’ve been there—holding poopy clothes, desperate for a containment solution.
A plastic bag is the perfect shield, letting you safely stash away those soiled outfits until you can deal with them. No mess, no stress, and definitely no public displays of diaper disasters!
How to Clean the Dirty Clothes
When faced with poopy clothes, resist the urge to toss them straight into the washer. First, spot-wash the stubborn marks, giving them a pre-wash pep talk. I find warm water works better.
If the stains are playing hard to get, let the clothes soak in soapy water – it’s like a spa for the stains. After they’ve had a good soak, then send them off to the wash. This pre-treatment will make your washer’s job easier and the clothes as good as new!
Bottom Line
If diaper blowout is what you are facing right now, take heart, you are not alone. The era of diaper blowout is but a brief chapter in your parenting saga. These little tests of resilience and reflex are small curves on the grand adventure with your baby. With each clean-up conquered, know that this phase is fleeting.
My little boy who is one year old now, has already passed the blowout phase!!! Yeah! His poop was reduced from 3 to 4 times a day to 1 or 2 times a day. And it is much easier to clean his poop now. At the end of the day, what I remember is mostly his smiles and snugs. Not those horrible explodes moments.
