Fleece not wicking

[TrekkiePiggies]

Hi everyone,

So I read the Fleece Project thread and as many other fleece threads as I could, went to the fabric store, and spent a lot of money on fleece which doesn't seem to wick. I bought 100% polyester print Alpine Fleece (not a waterproofed fleece as far as my research has shown, but I could be wrong), washed and dried it four times with an unscented detergent only (no soap on the last wash) layered it over microfiber towels and polyester batting, and sewed the lot together. I'd previously tested it by draping it over a washrag, pouring a bit of water on it, and observing. It wicked beautifully then, but pools now. The urine seems to soak into the fleece after a few minutes and just stay there in some places, and pools in others. How long does it normally take for fleece to wick and become dry?

I'm very frustrated. I don't have a lot of money to throw around, and I'm worried I've just gone and dumped $75 down the drain.

 

[Ly&Pigs]

I don't think the problem lies in your fleece. I think it lies in the microfiber towels and polyester batting. Get some cotton batting or cotton mattress pads for your absorbant layer. That should work much better.

 

[TrekkiePiggies]

Thank you! did buy some cotton batting on my last trip, but in a test with the fleece on top, it didn't wick any faster than the polyester batting. The polyester batting is the bottommost layer and is there mainly to add cushioning, since my pigs seem to really enjoy soft things.

I used microfiber towels because several people on the Fleece Study thread used them with success, and I thought I could cut costs by using towels I already had on hand. I will try some test patches with other materials before I make the second pad. At least mattress pads can be returned to the store if they don't work!

The urine did eventually soak/wick through, but the area is a tiny bit damp to the touch. I guess I'm just wondering: how fast is the wicking process supposed to be? How soon can you expect to touch the fleece and find it dry?

 

[CavyHubby]

Just from what I have read in the bedding thread, I think some people have had to wash thier fleece upto 8 times to get it to wick properly. I would try a few more washes before anymore expenditures.

Safe Journies
Samuel

 

[TrekkiePiggies]

That could definitely be the problem. It seems to wick in some places, but not in others, so maybe it needs a couple more washes.

 

[morganbeth44]

I feel like I have been washing fleece for days! But really it's only been 24hourslol. I started just washing one very large piece of brown fleece that I had left over from making blankets for project linus--and I washed that 3times, and tested--water just sat there. So I came back on here, and looked around a bit and saw that everyone mentioned washing it in warm/warm water..so I started over again--our washer is/was set/locked on cold/cold water so I had to get out the pliers and unlock the dial. I threw in another large remnant as well when I started the warm cycles. I also threw in some bleach with the detergent--figured it might speed up some of the breakdown process...2 washes later and the brown original piece is almost there--the second piece still has probably 2 washes. But hopefully the brown will be done tonight--so that tomorrow I can make the "quilts."

I bought mattress pads at Walmart tonight (King sized for only $12.88!!) I plan to double them, use a thin towel i bought as well inbetween the folded layer of the mattress pad, and then wrap the fleece all around...sew it up...and try it out. I need to make two 3.5'x2' :tearsofjo hope it works!

 

[jilovecavies]

That's great news! Just to let you know, you don't have to use bleach and detergents. Vinegar works great! I know it sounds odd, but I've found that it works just as well as the detergent and doesn't smell at all, once the cycle is complete. Hot water definitely helps...I made the same mistake as you and finally figured out why it wasn't wicking! I can't wait to see the final product.

 

[Maisiepaisie]

Jilovecavies, do you put vinegar in the wash compartment or the softner compartment, also how much should you use?

 

[morganbeth44]

well--the fleece is down in both of my cages which are 3'x2'ish I have for the moment two in the one cage, and a single boar Texel (who has his hair cut pretty short) in the other. The two living together are Americans. I put in a dish washing bucket (I cut a "door" into it, and covered the cut edges with a thick layer of duct tape) with shavings and carefresh as well as one of those store bought corner litter pans. One of the two that live together used a litter pan when on the shavings--but in any event...so far, no one has peed outside of their litter boxes (not sure if they've peed at all actually!) a few poops here and there, but so far so good.

Does having a brick really help to detach any shavings from the piggy before they step onto the fleece--because while my Americans are not dragging very much out with them--the Texel is making a royal mess!

Oh, by the way my Cavy Quilts are made out of fleece, with a folded mattress pad and a towel inbetween the two layers of mattress padding.

Any suggestions! (I know this is kinda a thread deviation--I didn't know where else to ask it though)

Thanks!