Today’s review and giveaway is for a very popular cloth diapering accessory called the Spray Pal. The purpose of the Spray Pal is very simple: to significantly minimize splatter while spraying a dirty cloth diaper in the toilet. The flexible polyethylene shield is made in the USA by a husband-wife team, and was invented in 2011 after their daughter started eating solids. As you probably know, that’s a notoriously messy milestone when it comes to diapering.
We received a complimentary Spray Pal from Jen to test in our home over the summer and it’s been a very useful companion to our diaper sprayer.
The Spray Pal opens up flat to make clipping your diaper inside very easy. The new and improved clip accommodates even bulky diapers and doesn’t have any sharp teeth to snag or tear fabric:
After the diaper is clipped inside, snap the Spray Pal closed to form a 3-sided shield. Set it inside the inner rim of the toilet. Both the toilet lid and cover should be raised up.
Turn on your sprayer and get to work on the dirty diaper. I’m using our sink-mounted qdSpray, which allows you to adjust both water temperature and pressure. If anything dirty happens to splatter on the inside of the shield, you can quickly spray down the inside of the Spray Pal when you’re done with the diaper. You can see from the picture that there is plenty of room inside to maneuver the sprayer around, so you can easily reach any part of the dirty diaper.
Unsnap the Spray Pal and fold it flat against the diaper to squeeze excess water out. This step is optional. (Does it get the inside of the SprayPal dirty? Yes, sometimes. See question #2 below)
Lift Spray Pal out of the toilet with diaper still attached. Hold over pail or opened wet bag; unclip the wet diaper and let it fall in. It helps to have your container close by to minimize dripping.
When not in use, I keep the Spray Pal snapped close and stored upright on an old towel next to the toilet. About once a week, I wash the towel with my diapers. Need some other storage ideas? Try a drawstring wet bag or bucket. You can also keep in a closet or cabinet, but it helps to have something underneath to catch drips since the Spray Pal is wet inside after you use it.
The concept behind Spray Pal is very simple, but it took me a few tries to work out the best routine and answer some of the questions I had. Here are some things you might be wondering about, so let me share with you what I learned.
1 – How much can the clip hold? I was very impressed with this feature. The clip was able to accommodate a trifolded prefold diaper plus an extra doubler at the same time. It also held a plush fitted along with two additional doublers. The clip is wide enough that you can clip a diaper and insert side by side, with some overlap, so you can spray both instead of having them clipped one on top of the other.
2- How do you keep the Spray Pal clean? You’re dealing with number two diapers, so the Spray Pal is going to take some hits. The inside of the shield will sometimes get some poo sprayback, or yukky stuff from the diaper will rub off when you press the Spray Pal to squeeze out water. Spraying it down, as mentioned above, may be all you need. You can also spritz with a disinfectant or use a sanitizing wipe on the inside.
Keep in mind that if you have a curious toddler or crawling infant in the house, they might get curious about the Spray Pal. For that reason, I clean the Spray Pal every time it gets soiled, just in case they get into it!
3 – How do you clip the diaper inside if the whole thing is dirty? Every once in a while, you get a really nasty diaper that’s so bad you can’t find a clean place to clip. Yuk! If this happens, try securing it to the Spray Pal by pinching a portion of the clean waterproof PUL outer of the diaper and clipping that onto the Spray Pal instead.
4- Does the Spray Pal work with different styles of cloth diapers? Yes, although some are easier to spray than others. Be careful with diapers that have a long soaker attached, or it may flop down into the potty water. Be sure to clip a pocket diaper at the CLOSED end, or the pocket will fill with water from the sprayer!
If you’d like to add the Spray Pal to your cloth diapering routine, it can be purchased online for $25, along with other accessories like sprayers and wet bags. Spray Pal also has a limited selection of cloth diapers for sale, including some beautiful exclusive prints. Buying a Spray Pal also helps out their family; because of being born prematurely, their son has ongoing health concerns and that means constant medical bills.
You can find a lot of great user tips and videos on the Spray Pal website and connect via Facebook and Twitter.
And there’s a giveaway! It’s open to US residents only and ends on August 21st.
Does anyone like to store this in a wet bag? I’m thinking of doing that and hanging it on the bathroom door so it is out of reach from my toddler.
I watched a video on the Spray Pal website that suggested using a wet bag. Great idea! ~Anne
I got a SprayPal package which included a hanging wetbag, it worked great until my 7 yr old ripped the hanging strap off. I still use it, it is just propped in the corner now 😀
This sound like what my wife needs for the baby’s diapers
I really need a spraypal, thanks for the review.
We’re not yet to the solids w/ our first LO but this is definitely on my wish list!!
Excited to try this! Right now my method is dunk and swish.
I think storing the Spray pal in a Wet bag in a great idea!!!
I was originally hoping to avoid buying a diaper sprayer, since I’m really into cloth diapering for the savings and hey, why buy something you don’t really need? Then I realized that the low water pressure in our home makes the simple swish and flush technique really inadequate…. so I guess a diaper sprayer is in our future! Thanks for the great review of Spray Pal!
I think a Spray Pal is a must have. If I don’t win one I’m definitely going to buy one.
these are genius. Have you trie spraying a BG freetime in a spray pal? Ive heard they are each to do bc of the flaps?
Sarah, I didn’t have a Freetime to test with, but Spray Pal actually has a video about spraying this particular diaper! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18aLVNNwueU ~Anne
We would LOVE to win this, we have been wanting a Spray Pal for awhile! Thank you for the chance to win! 🙂
Awesome giveaway, I want one of these real bad!
I LOVE the idea of the SprayPal! I’ve been wanting to try one for a while!
Love Spray Pal. Considering using it with a qd sprayer though instead of the sprayers you have to install onto your toilet… perhaps less unsightly…?
I love how it works with our qdSpray. I keep the qd in the hanging mesh bag it came with, on the inside of the bathroom closet so no one sees it. ~Anne
We just really started into solids and….spray pal is a must
I NEED ONE OF THESE!!! I am so tired of having to clean the walls and toilet after each poopy diaper.
I would love to have this on hand for LO2. With LO1, we just used toilet paper and pulled the poop off. I think it would be easier to just spray it down and dump in dirty diaper bin. Maybe dumping the dirty diapers in the laundry machine won’t stink as much then! 😀
Thanks for the step by step instructions for how to clean/use this. I didn’t even think about squeezing diapers out with it till I saw your post.
I love that it has a clip. It’s like a third hand and moms sometimes needs the extra help 🙂
I have never used a sprayer or spray pal. With my other kids just stuck the diapers in the washer or once they were on solids just shook the solids into the toilet. But we are expecting another one soon and have been eyeing this but not sure if it is a need.
I love my SprayPal! And I’d love to share one with a new mama!
I made a spray pal type thing, but would love the real deal!
iWe definitely need one of these to do the grandkids diapers!
This would be so awesome to win.
I’m building a cloth diaper stash for my sister. She didn’t want to use cloth until she heard about SprayPal!! She’s due next month.
Hubby would love this for our next one!!! That was his one pet peeve with cloth was the poop on the diapers!! LOL
I really want one of these! I like your thoughts about cleaning out the Spray Pal. I was concerned about that, too, since the last thing we all need is another thing to clean and I don’t want to create more waste. Do you think that the Spray Pal would be effective with flat diapers? I usually have them folded and would probably clip the diaper to the Spray Pal at the clean, folded end. Thanks for your feedback!
Hi Sarah! I have used it often with pad folded flats and it works fine. The clip is definitely big enough to hold a folded flat. The only thing is, depending on how effective your washer is with agitation, you might have to “shake out” the flat so it doesn’t go into the washing machine all folded up. You want all the layers to get clean. So instead of just releasing the diaper from the clip when you’re done spraying, you may need to grab a top (clean) corner between two fingers and shake it open before tossing in the pail/bag. ~Anne
Looks like a useful tool to convince squeamish husbands to pitch in with cloth diapering. 😉
I would love to try SprayPal. I think it would really help with the diaper spraying!
I love spray pal. This is such a great product.
Thank you for this review! Now I know that this and the qd diaper sprayer are what I want for our cloth diapering journey!
Does it have a hole to hang it?
It doesn’t, Esther. Spray Pal suggests sticking it inside of a wet bag and then hanging the wet bag up. ~Anne
I like the idea of storing in on a towel to dry, that seems easier than taking it in and out of a wet bag. We don’t have a spray pal yet, but it’s on my registry and I really hope we get one before our first little one arrives so that cloth diapering will be easier!
I’ve never used cloth with my other two and am committed to using them now. This looks really useful though I’m concerned our dog will be overly interested in it as well.
This would be an awesome accessory to have, especially when my little guy starts solids. I love how it can collapse, making it easy to store! Thanks for the review!!
This was a very thorough review – thanks!
Not sure I’d like this but I’ve heard good things.
Considering I’ve had a diaper sprayer for over a year and I’m still spraying poo on my walls, I’d love to have this! 😉
Oh dear, hahahaha! Keara! ~Anne
Thank you for the detailed review. I would love to win it to try it.
Great review! Hope I win 🙂
I would just keep this in the bucket I keep next to my toilet that I throw the wet diapers in. Great product!
We have a spray pal but its starting to get a little nasty, time to replace. But I never knew that you were supposed to squeeze the water out. I always just stood it up in the toilet bowl for a while and let it drip.
That would definitely work, too, Kylie! Squeezing the water out is recommended as an optional step by Spray Pal. ~Anne
I love our Spray Pal! (And I’m excited about the chance to try to win one to give to a friend that I’ve helped convert to cloth diapering). It takes a few more seconds to set up and put away but it makes spraying out the diaper worry free and keeps me from having to bend over so far (or kneel down on the floor). I really love that it can stand up in the toilet on it’s own if I suddenly need to stop while spraying out a diaper .(The things a toddler can get into in such a short time!)
That would be such a great thing to gift, Karen! I also like that you can take your hands off and not worry. When using just a diaper sprayer, that ain’t happening! You’ve got to put that dirty, wet, unfinished diaper somewhere. ~Anne
Great review! Now I really do need one.
Thank you for doing this giveaway! I came across Spray Pal about a year ago when I first started doing research on cloth diapers, and knew it was an accessory that would be very beneficial and make CDing easy!
What a cool product. I’m expecting my first and I’ve often wondered about splatter..
Thanks for showing the spray pail in action 🙂 and for the review. I think I have to have one now it looks like it makes the process a lot easier and less splatterfull lol.
My girl recently started to eat solids and I would love to try this!
Thank you for the opportunity! Great giveaway!
Would love one of these! I currently have a makeshift one made out of a milk jug haha
I like your floor towel idea. I’ve been debating using a wetbag but this seems like it’s just easier than unsnapping it all the time
I also didn’t want to buy an extra wet bag (we didn’t have a spare). ~Anne
We are new to the CD life and this would be so incredibly helpful!!!
Would you say it’s worth the extra little bit of time to clip the diaper in the spray pal for every diaper you have to spray out?
I know I’ve read about mothers who don’t, so it will definitely work without using that feature. The clipping part is really fast, so the few extra seconds aren’t a big deal to me. ~Anne
I want one! Adding to my registry, thanks for the info!
The video of the Spray Pal makes it look so easy!
Thank you for such a detailed review. I really need to get a spray pal!