Cloth diapers - 2 pins or 4?

Hi all! Wearing 24/7 I've pretty much switched from disposables to cloth, basically only using disposables for longer road trips. I had been looking to do a cloth switch but hadn't found anything that I liked. I finally found a contoured cloth diaper with elastic legs and an elastic back. Fits really great! I noticed when ordering that the diaper was shown being pinned with 4 locking pins, not the usual 2 pins I'm used to seeing, but more like a 4 tab disposable diaper. What are the preferences here? 2 pins or 4? Thanks for your replies!

I use flat cloth diapers, that I stack together - 2 for the bottom, 2 fold in thirds lengthwise to form the middle panel, then 2 for the top. This works like a prefold that is 4-10-4 layers, but comes apart for washing and faster drying. I use 2 pins, pinning from front to back.

Well I've quit using pins and switched to alternate devices. Snappi fasteners and boingo fasteners. I use two snappi fasteners which act like 4 pins.

They are much easier to handle, and I think provide a better fit than pins

i use mini-bungees, usually just the one across (points sharpened and hooks more curled inward, if needed). it holds up reet enough and also answers another recent question, https://www.adisc.org/forum/showthread.php/99321-How-do-you-do-it, as the same can be used with disposables, fitting across the top tape section and hooking through the unopened (for strength) tapes.
unfortunately, it's pretty much a must, nowadays, with the fraudulent 'cotton-like outer' disposables.

I'm with MeTaLMaNN altough I use Boingo's, but I do backup with Dritz pins just in case.
I do toss and turn at night and have had Boingo come off. Been my fault for not pulling
tight enough. It's only happened a few times.

I use two pins, corner to corner on my pre-folds, but I'm sure it's a matter of personal choice. Perhaps if the diaper is on the larger side, four pins might be better.

You only have one set of hips and one butt--one natural "shelf" around your midsection for your diaper, underwear, pants, etc., to hang from. Your "belt line" is right above this, and that's the line where you tension your clothing--with pins, elastic, or a belt--so that it doesn't slide down past your hips and butt. And you only need one pin on each side of your diaper to create that line of tension. Imagine if your jeans had two sets of belt loops, one above the other. Silly, right? Well, that's not so different from using two pins on each side of your diaper. Unless you have an unusual body shape/type, it probably doesn't make any sense.

Cottontail said:

You only have one set of hips and one butt--one natural "shelf" around your midsection for your diaper, underwear, pants, etc., to hang from. Your "belt line" is right above this, and that's the line where you tension your clothing--with pins, elastic, or a belt--so that it doesn't slide down past your hips and butt. And you only need one pin on each side of your diaper to create that line of tension.

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I agree the upper pins are there to hold your diaper up on your hips. But the lower pair of tapes on adult diapers are there to keep the your diaper sealed around each of your two legs, to prevent leaks. I'd imagine lower diaper pins could help in much the same way, to prevent gapping around the legs. You can compromise a bit and use one pin to pull up on the bottom and pull down from the top at the same time, but it's trickier to get right.

bambinod said:

I agree the upper pins are there to hold your diaper up on your hips. But the lower pair of tapes on adult diapers are there to keep the your diaper sealed around each of your two legs, to prevent leaks. I'd imagine lower diaper pins could help in much the same way, to prevent gapping around the legs. You can compromise a bit and use one pin to pull up on the bottom and pull down from the top at the same time, but it's trickier to get right.

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Hmm. I'll admit that I've never really understood the "seal around the legs" idea. As I see it, once the wetness escapes the boundaries of the absorbent center panel of a disposable diaper, you're on high-interest-rate borrowed time. As the boundaries of this panel run front-to-back, I think you're doing almost all you can by keeping the diaper well-supported, which is what keeps these boundaries pulled into the folds of your crotch and against your abdomen and buttocks. To the extent that any side-to-side tension aids in keeping your diaper up, you're good. After that, it doesn't seem too important.

I see the double tapes as more of a stand-in for the scarcity of sizes and of elastic than as a provision for a sort of Hail Mary in the event that urine makes it to your legs. However, where it can be made to serve that way, great!

But then maybe I'm just totally missing the point.

Traditional pin-on diapers will stretch a lot, lengthwise, once they're on, and will sag like crazy once wet. Gapping through the crotch is almost inevitable unless you're using a close-fitting cover, though some folds are better than others at creating gussets for containment of poop--if that matters. Prevention of urine leaks is really the job of the diaper cover or plastic pants. Gapping of the underlying diapers doesn't complicate things much in that regard. As long as the diaper is the first thing to get peed on, you're in pretty good shape.

4 pins for me. I use 2 large pins down by my legs and 2 smaller pins at my waist. I have big legs and a small waist and using just 2 pins doesn't work at all. By using 4 pins I get a nice snug fit regardless of whether I'm standing, sitting or lying down. Using 4 pins helps reduce sagging when wet too. I always wear pull on plastic pants too, these help with comfort and of course protection.

I use 4 pins my self

I switched to a pocket diaper to get away from pins. The snaps allow a better fit that prevents from shifting while sleeping and sagging in the morning while I have breakfast and tea before cleaning up.

There is a reason that disposable have 4 or more tapes, I have found with cloth diapers I do need 4 pins too, one pair for the waist, and another pair for the hip to keep it snug. I would love to use only 2 pins because it seems more babish, but I find with only 2 they don't fit as snug as they should

Pin, fasten, or otherwise retain your diaper in a way that is comfortable for you. for me, that means 2 Dritz diaper pins. If 4 pins works for you, than by all means use 4.

I wear cloth prefolds most of the time, and I use 2 pins, but they're big 3 inch pins.

If I am wearing cloth diapers during the daytime, I can get away with using 2 pins; At night, with thicker diapers it usually works better with 4 pins--2 at the waist and 2 a bit lower.

I wear Dependeco cloth AIO's. I only have one that uses two velcro tabs and the other five that I use have four velcro tabs. It never works for me when it has two tabs. It fits better when I have four tabs to secure it. I am also learning how to sew my own AIO's and let me tell ya when it comes to velcro two tabs are never strong enough.