making liners
 

I wanted to post an idea for liners before buying the materials. I apologize if this have been covered elsehwere, I could not find specifics about what is "inside" the liners.

I was thinking of making liners that had fleece on either side but on the inside (sewn in so it would not bunch up) a rectangle (same size as liner) of this

http://www.activeforever.com/p-3417-inv ... dpads.aspx

the bedpads sound very absorbent, are washable, have a vinyl layer on the bottom. I would put fleece on top of the pad and below the pad in a slipcover type way but actually then sew the pad right in.

Comments?

Re: making liners
 

Can't help. Per usual.

But...all I use is a piece of fleece double the size of the cage, then folded in half. So there's two layers. Snarf gets most pee/poop in the litterpan and wheel, so maybe I have just been lucky, but I have never seen the need for a middle layer. I poop-pick and lint roll daily; change the liner twice a week. I ask every single person who comes anywhere near our home (friends, mother-in-law, delivery people, meter readers) if they can smell anything and, even with a three-day-old liner, they always say nope.

I get why some people do and kudos to your for doing it...I just want to try and save you some work.

Re: making liners
 

i cant really help either but i just wanted to say that it sounded like a good idea to me, maybe for hedgies that arent little trained and tend to make a bit more of a mess. Im sure someone with more experience with this will come along with more useful advice !

Re: making liners
 

I have a very messy boy. He poops and pee everywhere (mainly on his wheel) but he does go all over his cage if the notion strikes him.

I layer about 4 layers of fleece at the beginning of the week when I do his weekly cage cleaning and then pull the top layer off as it becomes soiled.

Even with having a messy boy, I have never needed a middle absorbent layer. Fleece is amazingly absorbent. I have never had any issues with the pee leaking through to the next layer. When i pull the top layer off, the next one is always clean.

Like MissC, I also poop scoop daily.

I just wanted to save you all the work of sewing and ordering things that may not be necessary. If it were me, I would cut your fleece liners out and trial run them with at least 2 layers in the cage and see how they work for you by themselves before ordering the absorbent pads.

Re: making liners
 

:shock:
Why didn't *I* think of that??? :shock:

And y'know...the $$$ you save on the pads, you could spend on more cool fleece patterns. ;)

Re: making liners
 

I think that the way you're thinking of doing it would be fine, and pretty smart! When I was making liners I originally tried something like this - a piece of fleece folded over, with a layer of cotton batting in between, then sewed on all the sides. However, it was a terrible mistake - on the first wash the cotton part got ripped from the thread and all twisted up between the fleece, plus it got all wet and started falling apart. Obviously the person at the fabric store sold me some cotton that was not washing machine safe, but it was enough to not try again. I ended up taking out the stitches on one side of the liner, removing the cotton, and sewing them up again. (Caveat: I sewed all of this by hand, so my poor sewing skills probably didn't help matters.)

That said, the two layers of fleece works great! Totally absorbent and easy. I put two paper towels under Liam's wheel as well and change those out every morning. He's pretty good about pottying only there (he never took to a litter box but for some reason paper towels are okay :roll: ) but I do a spot check and clean in the morning as well.

Anyway, main point: I think your idea would be great, if you want to put in the time and energy. But, if you don't, plain fleece on its own works well too. :)

Re: making liners
 

ok so fleece will wick it away from the surface and their feet but also absorb it? So no middle layer required?

I am going to use liners on my daughter's guinea pig cage too, I am not sure he will be ok with just fleece.

I guess you are right though I can try it and see.

Thanks everyone

Re: making liners
 

Yup...everything soaks through the top layer and onto the next layer. Try it with a folded piece on the counter...pour a teeny bit of water and watch it - it just sits there in a blob - then rub it in a bit. The top will be pretty dry in a few minutes and usually the underside of the top layer will be dry, the top of the second layer will be damp. But even then, the whole thing will dry fairly quickly.

I only know cuz I used to run in -40 a lot...there is no better way to learn about fabrics than to run in something wet for an hour in a freezing fricking blizzard. :roll:

I also know a LOT about how to keep a water bottle from freezing while it's strapped to your back. :roll: Stupid weather.

Re: making liners
 

I grew up in Manitoba. I hear ya!

Re: making liners
 

:shock:
At least we have a 'dry' cold here. :lol: