DIY Spray Pal ideas (and why it's better to just buy the real deal)

There are several tutorials for making your own DIY Spray Pal splatter shield, and yes, we've seen them all.

So, why would we compile a list of DIY knock offs of our own patented product?? Well, like we've always said, we're here to make your cloth diapering journey easier. We want you to succeed in cloth with whatever means works best for you and your family.

But we do want to offer this warning: while some things work great when you DIY them (like a diaper sprayer for example), the Spray Pal shield is not necessarily one of them. I can't tell you how many times we've heard from people who come visit us at our baby show booths or email us to tell us that they tried a DIY version and it was a big fat fail, and they wished they had just bought the original and saved time and money. So, here's a list of the most common DIY Spray Pals and why you might want to avoid them. ;)


1. The folders, duct tape, and bag clips version. At first glance this seems like a nice, cheap way to make a Spray Pal shield that opens as wide as the original, so why not? Let's take a closer look. While you do have the advantage of choosing a folder in a color scheme that matches your bathroom, the "pros" stop there. You'll notice that the opening of this shield is taped together with duct tape. This is a problem for a number of reasons, including, but not limited to: 1) it's permanently shut so you can't close the doors to squeeze out the excess water. 2) That duct tape is about to see more poop splatter than it's meant to handle, which is none. It's meant to handle exactly zero poop. Imagine trying to clean that off after you spray your messiest diaper. 3) With all that splatter and cleaning comes WATER...and duct tape and water do not mix. From what we hear from those who have tried this, after a couple of uses that duct tape becomes super gummy and sticky and you don't want that mess near your diapers, do you? Especially when the real Spray Pal will last you years and through multiple kids in cloth diapers and beyond and it's designed to be SUPER easy to clean!

2. The milk carton and clothespins version. You may be thinking, "Hey now! I happen to have a giant milk jug and some clothes pins laying around, why not give this a shot?" Well, sure! Go for it! We're sure you'll be back to buy the real deal, which is actually probably why Diaper Junction, who happens to be a trusted Spray Pal retailer, created this DIY blog post in the first place. It probably helps them sell the real deal!!

By the time you finish cutting off all the ends of the milk jug (please be careful and watch out for sharp/rough edges), you'll realize you'll wish you'd have just clicked "buy now" and had the real deal delivered to your door. Mainly because once you actually try using this as a shield, you'll find all that cutting was a waste of time. Unless of course you're still in the newborn stage and you've decided you want to spray those diapers, because those are the only thing that will fit inside this. Just take a look at the size ratio compared to the hand in the photo. Unless that's a GIANT hand, which I'm thinking it's not, then that's a TINY shield. Plus, where do you put something like that when you're not using it? In the recycle bin, if you're asking me. ;)

3. The "cut the bottom out of a trash can" version. This is the version I see most mentioned in the Facebook groups when people ask about a Spray Pal DIY. It's quite funny. "Oh, yeah, it's super easy! For a couple bucks I buy a cheap trash can and I just cut the bottom off and voila!" Guys. Have you ever tried to cut the bottom off a trash can? It is HARD. What even is that tool she's using in box 1? Do you have one of those?? If so, by all means, try this out. But just be careful when you have house guests over that you find a place to hide this thing because you don't want used tissues tossed into the trash can with no bottom, am I right? You can only assume that by storing an actual trash can with the bottom cut out next to your toilet, you're going to get some very confused looks from your visitors and probably end up with an entirely different mess to clean up. ;) We designed the Spray Pal to fold up flat for super easy storage and to avoid this type of confusion. Just slip it in a wetbag and tuck it away!

4. The REAL deal Spray Pal. Now, for those of you who have tried one of the DIYs above, or better yet, those who were thinking about it but have decided it might not be worth the effort, I give you the list of reasons why the real deal, original Spray Pal splatter shield is worth it's weight in gold.

• The Spray Pal prototype created in 2011. It has seen much testing, many tweaks, and has lots of user experience feedback to make it the best splatter shield on the market.
• Spray Pal Splatter Shields are made out of more than 50% post-consumer recycled plastic.
• It's perfectly sized to allow space for easy spraying.
• The custom-made, sturdy clip won't let you accidentally drop the diaper in the toilet and the clip won't slip off.
• You won't experience rusting, warping or sticky duct tape.
• You can use it to squeeze the wet diaper.
• It folds flat for easy storage (see photo below).
• It's lightweight.
• Quick & easy to clean.
• You receive customer support not only with Spray Pal but with cloth diapers in general via phone, email, social media, and even Spray Pal's Team Mainstream Facebook group
  or The Cloth Diaper Experiment group.
• Your Spray Pal comes with an amazing warranty, just email us with any issues!
• Spray Pal splatter shields are made/assembled in the USA (the custom-designed clips are imported through a USA company)
• When you purchase a Spray Pal, you're supporting a family run business.
• For the cost of a week's worth of Starbucks lattes, you can purchase the real deal and get years of use out of it. Even after your babies are out of cloth diapers you can continue to use the Spray Pal system to pre-rinse ANYTHING from muddy sports clothes to bed linens that face tummy bugs, potty learning accidents, the list goes on!

So there you have it. Some of the most common DIY Spray Pal splatter shields, and why we think it's better to just buy the real deal! Have you tried a DIY or the real deal? Let us know how it went in the comments below!