The Certainty brand diapers are produced and distributed by Hengan Pharmacare Group and is distributed mainly in China, as well as the rest of Asia. They also produce a host of other first aid supplies, as well as baby diapers under the Banitore label. It is a tape-on diaper, and they come in one class only, in two sizes, M & L.
M – 29-46 inches (73-117cm)
L – 40-55 inches (101-140cm)
This review is based on the M size diapers, which I got from Prime Supermarket for $7.60 in packs of 10. They were bought at the end of 2014.
Appearance and Features
Dimensions Paragraph
(Front Outstretched)
(Back Outstretched)
The Certainty Diaper features a contiguous frontal landing patch for holding onto the tapes, which must land on them. It is essentially a strong piece of plastic that has been pasted over the back-sheet of the diaper. It is a brilliant blue colour scheme which comes with a gridline, for easy reference when pasting the tapes. They crinkle significantly, which is a bit concerning.
(2016 update: Hengan has listened to consumers’ opinions, and the updated diaper is much more quiet and discreet now)
The backsheet is made of soft plastic, which provides good water-retention. It is made of a soft plastic and doesn’t crinkle much, and it has a tendency to detach from the padding when the diaper is wet. But it doesn’t have any major clumping issues. The wetness indicator runs down from the front to the back. It is blue in colour and consists of the word ‘certainty’, and when the diaper is wet it fades away. Otherwise, the diaper itself is a plain white garment.
(Close up of indicator)
The Certainty diaper has standing leak guards, which run down both sides of the diaper. They are initially curled in, but don’t really need to be fluffed out. The top-sheet is soft and cloth-like, and is gentle to the skin. As with other economy diapers, the Certainty does not feature front and back waistbands. However, there is an additional sheet of SAP-dense padding at the front, near the crotch.
(20c coin and A5-sized book used for scale reference)
Performance and Fit
These diapers fit my average sized Asian frame somewhat nicely with the seat of the diaper having enough room. Being a plastic-backed diaper, the Certainty diaper did have the usual problems that plague plastics. It traps heat, especially when walking in jeans during the day. The leg gathers also tend to catch at my inner thighs, which led to some uncomfortable moments.
This diaper is a little crinkly, with a noticeable crinkling sound when the diaper is exposed. It is barely muffled by one’s everyday clothes. I walked around a few malls, and through crowded pedestrian routes, and there wasn’t noticeable sound. But in the quiet of the CC’s reading room, it was audible. The diaper is thin, so it isn’t visible through men’s jeans or Singapore school pants. But the noise is not un-ignorable.
Upon wetting there isn’t much significant swelling. However, this diaper has an absorbency issue. The diaper is able to catch liquid from the first wetting, in part due to the standing leak guards. The absorbency of the aforementioned SAP-dense layer quickly gets used up. However, once the liquid has gone below the top sheet, it tends to pool at the sides, taking a while to be absorbed into the padding. (This problem still persists in the 2016 batch.) The consequence is that second wetting onwards, flooding the diaper would definitely result in a leak.
On the whole, this diaper is able to hold 1.5-2.5 wettings. This is below the capacity of Control Plus and Tena Value diapers. But its’ capacity is above that of budget diapers. They hold messes well, with no messy leaks.
Final Thoughts
The Certainty diaper definitely makes a good first impression. It is thin, plain white with a pleasing pattern on its’ frontal patch, which reminds me of Japanese diapers. They have helpful guiding gridlines for placing the tapes. But they are noisy – one of the noisiest non-ABDL diapers that I have encountered, which is a significant issue for discreetness.
Yet, the major flaw of this diaper would be its’ lack of absorbency. While the first wetting is still captured without leaks, the subsequent rate of absorption, as well as their total capacity is something that can be improved upon. And throw in the scratchy leg gathers too.
At 76c a piece, there are other cheaper economy diapers out there in the market. While this diaper is nice to look at, it is not meant for more than 1 wetting. I would recommend this diaper for appearance, but not for quality.
dlselv@sg 