Product Information

RAD-PADS - CLOTH PAD CARE and PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS. 

The best way to care for your re-usable Rad-Pads cloth menstrual, incontinence and pants liner pads.
 
Please see our YouTube footage for product demonstrations:
 
Separate the outer case and towelling insert ready for washing.

Use cold or luke warm water to release the stain.

Rinse method: simply rinse your Rad-Pad out straight after changing your pad. Use cold or luke warm water and soap (we suggest our Supa Soap which is all plant based) and rub briskly to release stain.
  Soak method: soak Rad-Pads in cold water overnight or for several hours in the day,  then hand or GENTLE machine wash with a load.  Rad-Pads advises against soaking for more than 24 hours in order to prolong the life of your pads.   If there is staining, you may like to apply a good quality soap (such as Supa Soap)  and rub briskly to remove stain before washing in your preferred (hopefully biodegradable!) detergent. 
  Cleaning/stains:  We are now have on board a wonderful 'soap', which we are calling 'supa soap'.  It is a chemical free - plant based soap which is great on the hands and kind to the environment.  It removes approximately most of the  staining from the pads, even from the natural color pads such as the hemp/organic cotton pads.  We are thrilled with this as we haven't  before found anything so effective as well as being non toxic.  In addition it is locally made. This Supa Soap is listed on our shopping cart in packs of three. 
  Drying– the pads dry quickly outside in the sun in mild to warm/hot weather.  Cold and inclement weather sees them becoming very decorative around the fire/heater.
  We advise against using a cloths drier but if you feel it is necessary  please use only the warm setting rather than hot seting.  We also advise against using the clothes drier for pads straight from the hand or machine washing process - best to let them to be at least half dry first.
  Travelling/holidays/time away from home:    Some women find it useful to carry a watertight container large enough to fit in the required number of pads to soak in cold water.  The pads can then be placed in the container with some cold water and will already have gone through the ‘soak’ method by the time you reach your destination.
  Many women use our Rad-Pads Pouch (see shopping cart)  to hold used pads until they arrive at their destination and then soak overnight in cold water.  It is often possible to rinse the pads at the toilets before putting them in the Pouch. 

In addition, the soak water makes wonderful, natural fertilizer for your plants.

A few drops of tea-tree, lavender or eucalyptus oil in your rinse water helps to cleanse and freshen your pads if you wish.

Sunshine is nature’s best sanitiser and bleach when drying your pads.

Go to the 'benefits' information below to learn more about financial cost, environment and health benefits.

How to use Rad-Pads.

Rad-Pad seach come with a peel off label indicating size, use and washing instructions, and are packaged in real cellophane not plastic. 

Each Rad-Pad, whether a single one or in a pack comes all ready to use with the appropriate size towelling/hemp liner folded inside the case.  So, when purchasing a Rad-Pad you are paying for the case as well as which ever size insert you choose (sizes small - 2 fold, medium - 3 fold, large - 4 fold, extra-large, 4 fold and longer).

How many cloth menstrual pads will I need? This depends alot on how many days you have your period for and how heavy/light your bleed is.  For an aveage type period (time of the menstrual bleed) which may consist of 4-5 days bleed with 1-2 days heavier and the rest tapering off, you may need 6 - 8 pads.  Some find this enough and others like to have a few more pads.  As you can wash and wear again in the same bleed time, the choice is yours. 

For this reason we have created the 'cycle' pack of 6 pads and a wing liner.  The pads are 2 each of small, medium and large sizes.  This will go a long way to covering a bleed time, especially as you can add other single pads/liners and/or a 'starter' pack. 

Urinary Incontinence - cloth menstrual pads are used by many women with mild to moderate urinary incontinence.  Simply adjust the size of the pad to your incontinence challenge, with the smaller and medium pads for milder problems and the large and extra-large for moderate problems.

Our new 'night pad' may be useful to some women who have night incontinence, depending upon severity of the problem.

Panty Liners -  Women have for many years used the Rad-Pads case as a pants liner for everyday use when not menstruating.  This is especially popular with women who are no longer menstruating but wish to have a safe, economical and non-toxic option to use instead of disposable panty liners.

Rad-Pads are extremely easy to use: The cloth menstrual pads are placed corduroy side down in gusset of underwear, with only the soft cotton jersey or hemp fleece making contact with your sensitive external genital skin. The wings then wrap around your underwear and are secured by the sports snap underneath. The corduroy on the underside of the cotton-jersey pad prevents slipping or bunching. The hemp/cotton fleece is slightly thicker and more absorbent and also sits well on the gusset.

When changing Rad-Pads take off used pads and prepare for soaking by pulling the insert from the centre of the pad and placing both the case and the insert in cold water.  Replace with a fresh pad with the size towelling insert you require. When your Rad-Pad is clean and dry fold the towelling insert and reinsert into the case with Rad-Pad cloth labels matching for best fit, snap the sports snap underneath ready for storage, and your Rad-Pads are all ready for your next period.

(Photo below is regular size case with medium size 3 fold towelling insert)

 

 
Cotton Jersey Products

Color availability for  100%cotton-jersey pads can vary but are currently natural, gold, fuschia, purple, green (dark green and lighter green), blue (navy and brighter blue, light blue), red,black, various prints depending upon seasonal availability.   This is a great range, and we also have ‘surprise’ packs where there is an assortments of colors and/or prints.  See the 'Cycle packs' and 'Starter packs' on the shopping pages, which are priced to be more economical than purchasing the same amount of pads as single items.

 

The towelling inserts (small, medium, large and ex-large) and the wingshield liners are a rich red double sided terry cloth and dry very quickly.

 

Where ever possible we attempt to comply with your color choices, however, colors are subject to seasonal variations and s upply..

 

              

 

 

 

  HEMP & Organic Cotton Jersey. - natural creamy color only.

These  pads are hemp fleece wings and insert, with organic cotton jersey base (the part that comes into contact with the skin).  THey are in a natural, creamy color ONLY. 

The Hemp Fleece used for the HEMP Rad-Pads is 55% hemp and 45% cotton.  All parts of HEMP Rad-Pads apart from the organic cotton jersey base are made from Hemp Fleece. It is beautifully soft and ultra absorbent. The hemp component is grown without fertilizer or pesticide and the cotton is certified organic.

  • ·          Hemp fabric has antibacterial and antifungal properties, which makes it the perfect fabric for menstrual pads.
  • ·          Hemp requires no herbicides, pesticides, fungicides or fertiliser to grow, so it is more environmentally friendly to grow and safer to use on sensitive skin.
  • ·          Hemp is 10 times stronger than cotton and is therefore much more durable.
  • ·          Hemp is a little more absorbent than cotton so less fabric is needed, resulting in less bulky but more effective cloth pads.
  •   ·             Hemp is a porous fibre, meaning hemp fabric breathes just as the 100% colored cotton does - making it cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

By the way, just in case you're wondering - there is virtually no THC in the hemp plant that is grown for fabric, so it won’t get you high. You’ll just have to rely on your natural menstrual state! 

 

 

 

Rad-Pads Descriptions - size, length, thickness.
 
Rad-Pads single pads are available in sizes small, medium, large and extra-large, according to blood flow volume. Each pad contains a cotton towelling insert of small, medium, large and extra-large size.

 

Dimensions:  the length and width of the Rad-Pads (hemp or cotton) are approximately:

 

Extra large :  Length - 27 cm (10.5 inches)

                  Width   - 7.5 cm (3 inches)

Small, medium and large:

                   Length - 22.5 cm (8.75 inches)

                   Width   - 7 cm (2.75 inches).
Night Pad - Please see the shopping pages for this wonderful Pad specifically designed for the heavy night volumes.
 

Pants liners - same length and width as the small, medium and large pads.  There will be information on the pants liners on this site in the next few weeks.  Please contact us in the meantime if you require information.

 

There are also ‘starter’ packs and ‘cycle’ packs containing a number of pads plus at least one wing shield liner.

 

Rad-Pads are made from either 100% cotton-jersey face (natural, colors or prints) and wide wale corduroy backing or  organic hemp/cotton fleece (natural colors only) grown without  artificial chemicals.

 

In addition, we have now introduced an organic hemp fleece pad with hemp fleece wings and insert combined wth an organic cotton jersey base (the part that comes into contact with your skin).  The prices are the same as for the organic hemp fleece, and are displayed on the order form.  See Hemp Fleece pads in the shopping section for a photo of a single pad and insert.

 

Carry pouch -The pouch is made of soft material which can be folded easily 

                    Dimensions of the pouch are approximately 28cm x 16.5cm

                    The pouch opens out to carry more pads as it has an extended base of a couple cm

Benefits of cloth menstrual, incontinence and panty liner pads.

See our YouTube video  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU7Kfc3kTQ4

Convenience: Always on hand - with Rad-Pads ready in your drawer you can glide right past the 'feminine hygiene' aisle of the supermarket; no more emergency dashes to the chemist. 
 

Great for hiking - convenient and easy to carry and use with no worry about disposing of pads in the wilderness - this is about as close to nature as it gets.
   

Great for travelling - compact and light to pack Rad-Pads also saves trying to find disposables in other countries using rudimentary language skills.
 

A more harmonious and connected experience - Rad-Pads feel more natural and personal to use. In colours you like and sizes to suit they become menstrual companions. Using cloth pads and washing them out creates a great sense of being connected to your body's cycle. It helps demystify the process, reclaiming it as the natural and wondrous part of a woman's fertility cycle that it is! 
 

Personal and social revolution - Secrecy and shame have shrouded menstruation in the past. But there's no room for secrecy or shame when using Rad-Pads.  They'll be in the wash; they'll be on the line; they'll be tucked away in your drawer, freshly laundered and ready for next time. Using Rad-Pads means supporting the liberation of menstruation from the negative attitudes of the past and replacing them with a celebration of womanhood.
Rad-Pads eliminates the potential problems associated with bleached disposable pads and tampons.
 
Health Benefits:

TAMPONS
Chemical Residue - there is concern for the exposure of the uterus to pesticide and chemical residues (particularly dioxin - a hazardous organochlorine by-product of chlorine bleaching).

Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) - a potentially fatal condition associated with tampon use.

Damage to MembraneTissue - caused by excessive drying of the protective membrane tissue.

 

** Being pads, Rad-Pads naturally sidestep concerns associated with tampon use **
 

DISPOSABLE PADS
Irritations - since disposable pads are made from chemically treated wood pulp, the tiny wooden fibres can act abrasively on sensitive skin causing chaffing and irritation.

 

Chemical Residues - Similarly chemical residues from chlorine bleaching and the use of absorbancy chemicals, such as sodium polyacrylate, can have toxic effects.

 

** Made from cloth Rad-Pads are soft and comfortable to wear.  The cotton   or hemp fleece cloth allows the skin to breathe and offers a healthier, non-irritating alternative to disposable pads **

 
Cost Benefits:

You can free yourself from the ongoing financial costs of disposable menstrual products:

 

Rad-Pads believes that it is a right for all women to menstruate without product promoted health problems such as vulval irritation and dermatitis which can be caused by some disposable feminine hygiene products.

 

Rad-Pads also believe that a woman has the right to menstruate without on-going cost to her purse, or on-going cost to the environment.

 

  • Australian women spend in excess of $180 (2005 figures) million annually on disposable menstrual products.
     
  • Most women spend a minimum of $8- to $20- per month on disposable pads, including panty liners and tampons, totalling a possible minimum $80-$240 annually.  For the cost of around 6-10 months of using disposables you can set yourself up with enough Rad-Pads to provide years of cost free menstruation.
  •  Over an average time that a woman may have regular menstrual cycle, which may be interrupted by pregnancy and breast-feeding (approximately 30 years) this is a potential saving of over $2,400 - $6,500 for many women.  For some women the cost will be alot higher.
In that time you may only need to replenish your supply of Rad-Pads 1 – 3 times if they are well maintained.
 
Environmental Benefits:  

There are many problems associated with the production, packaging and disposal of commercial disposable pads and tampons:-
 

  • NON-BIODEGRADABLE components of disposable pads include:-
    • plastic backings
    • plastic strips
    • plastic packaging
    • chemcial components, etc. which are all non-biodegradable and create problems for our environment.       

However, fortunately there are now some disposable pads that do not contain these chemicals.   These can usually be found in health food shops and organic shops.   However, they are still problematic as they are disposable and not re-newable, but may be handy to have in some circumstances.  
 

LANDFILL
• Well over 700 million tampons and 1 billion pads are disposed of every year in Australia and New Zealand, contributing a massive volume to the demand for landfill sites.
 

ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
• Effluent from bleaching processes is in some cases released into our waterways, contaminating water and our food chain with pollutants.

 

** Using washable cloth pads puts a halt to the otherwise ongoing environmental assault caused by disposable pads and tampons. It feels good knowing that you have made an eco-friendly choice **