Best tape for securing barrier bandage?

Howdy Osto-friends,

I know you guys have mentioned using tape to secure the bandage portion of the wafer when there's a chance it might lift... like when wet from swimming... but I don't remember what brand of tape you guys recommended. I was doing some tree clearing this afternoon and sweated my butt off. When I took my shirt off to jump in the pool, I noticed my bandage portion of my barrier had lifted off my skin on one side. The ring was still intact, so no issues, but wanted to get some tape on it, and to have around for the summer. So let me know what you use. I have some clear surgical tape in my emergency kit that I'm going to use now, but it doesn't have any name on it. I think I stole it from the hospital years ago. Thanks!

Regards,

Bob

Okay - so you have been holding back on "the pool" so now it's a barbecue and pool party state-side when the time comes. Tree cleaning for the big event as well - eh? Nothing like being proactive.

I don't use barriers so I can't help you there, but the first thing that came to mind was Gorilla tape. The TV commercial brags of taping together a sawed-in-half boat, with no water leaks, so it could be worth a try :) K

I use Nexcare waterproof tape.
Tiffany

I don't have any problems with mine coming loose just one time. But it was about time to change it anyway. Hope you find a solution. There are probably some on here who go swimming that can help. Good luck and stay safe.

My dearest sis....you do crack me up sometimes.....so I can understand why you were always Mom's favorite!  Of course there's a pool.....it gets hot down here. Doesn't everyone have a pool?  As for the tape......the tape that's used to hold the boat together is called Flex Tape, not Gorilla tape......you silly rabbit!  I'm not sure how well Flex Tape sticks to skin,  but I have to go to Walmart tomorrow anyway......so I'll pick some up and give it a try.  Now if it rips my skin off when I remove it then I'm telling Mom you're picking on me (again), and she's gonna beat your ass with that wooden spoon......just like old times!  Now.....how can you have an ostomy and not wear a barrier (wafer)?  Do you just use Gorilla tape and tape your bag over your stoma?

Luv ya,

Your favorite bro

Words of Encouragement from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

That was my fun blonde moment.

No pool here - just a river that runs through it/Edmonton. We have 4 seasons here - hockey, hockey, hockey, and summer which I am still waiting for. Last year we substituted curling for one season.

Only had a wafer for a bit, then switched to irrigation with the help of MMSH. Now, it is just peel and stick - most days I can just use a meopore pad or a stoma cap. I irrigate every second day.

Mom did beat my ass once with a wooden spoon, but just once. I swiped a chocolate bar on a dare and had to return it plus I had to help the grocer out after school for a week which is an eternity when one is six years old. It was then, I determined, that she was the boss and from then on - it was all truth. Strange you should remember that story after all these years.

Later bro ..

Hi all, I use the pectin-based wafer, so I use Nexcare pink waterproof tape around the edges. Otherwise, they get gooey. Cost is about 3 bucks at Walmart.

OK, maybe I'm missing something here, but I don't understand why your wafer comes unglued when it gets wet. I am swimming several times a day in this heat, even doing laps, and my flange doesn't lift at all. I don't use anything extra to keep it on, but it doesn't come off until I take it off. And even then, it resists being peeled off. What gives? Is it the difference between brands?

Laurie

Hi Laurie,

Must be. When I sweat a lot or when I swim, the edges of the bandage portion (not the inner ring) will lift in spots. I don't think anything will stick to my skin when I sweat... but I'm going to try a few things. The Hollister barrier/wafer/flange (or whatever you want to call it) has a rectangular bandage portion around its periphery that's just like a Band-Aid, i.e., a perforated skin-colored cloth tape. Band-Aids don't stick to me when I sweat either. I wear a belt, so I'm not worried about the ring ever coming unglued and leaking... and after I dry off or cool down, the bandage portion re-sticks to my skin... so it must be my perspiration. I'm told I'm a very sweet guy... so I must sweat sugar or something. 0)

Regards,

Bob

Ok, I think I found the tape I've used before... will check for sure. But this stuff sounds to be exactly what I'm looking for.

https://www.exmed.net/blog/ostomyhelp/post/2015/05/12/medical-tape-and-ostomy.aspx

Regards,

Bob

Oh, OK - now I get it. My flange doesn't have the bandage part on it. And I definitely don't sweat sugar! Glad you found what you were looking for, at least.  

Laurie

Glad you found the right tape.

On another note - I am getting a slight case of the uglies myself as it has been rainy all this week and the week before and it will be rainy all next week. The ducks are enjoying their new ponds in the middle of seeded fields. I am gonna be real selective when it comes time to building my ark. Send some warm weather my way when you get a moment.

Here's one of our cool old abandoned sheds/barns:) K

🔒 Login to see image

Karen, I am sorry that you haven't had warm weather, but if you insist on living so darn close to the Arctic Circle, you really ought not to complain. Love the photo you included of your caribou keeping the muskeg mowed. :-)

Laurie

Hi Sis.......Looks awesome! Never understood why some people would rather live in lonely crowded cities! I can smell your fresh air from here. I really dig those trees. I've got a really big red oak tree in my backyard. When my buddy the vet came out a week or so ago for my annual animal checkup, he noted how big it was. He was thinking it had to be quite old. So when he left, I checked it out. Turns out it's over 430 years old, and there's a very good possibility it's one of the 10 biggest trees in my state. I got an email from the state's tree conservatist dude with instructions on how to take certain pics of it and make a bunch of measurements to be considered for the largest tree in the state contest. Ahhhh.....nature. Thanks for the share.........think I'll go out to the barn now and play around a bit. Have a great night!

Regards,

Bro

I use Nexcare pink waterproof tape by 3M or Brava flange extenders. I find both last several days.

Hi X,

Funny you should mention that.......I picked up a roll of the Nexcare waterproof tape yesterday while at Walmart.   Will give it a go shortly.

Regards,

Bob

Hey, before I found the Convatec two-piece that works for me, I used the Coloplast Y strips! They worked really well.
Have you tried them? I can send you a box. I usually change my flange every 10 days but if I am in the pool all day for several days, I do see the cloth outer barrier coming up a little. It never has breached in the flange itself!
Puppy

Leukotape

https://www.amazon.com/BSN-Medical-BEI076168-Leukotape-Sports/dp/B07KB34B7H/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1 gclid=Cj0KCQjwoub3BRC6ARIsABGhnyYRhMsqVuOs3KTpWvhz7bA08iucqS2rnR5rfR6BpT6TCMrW9xI7-mYaAi0wEALw_wcB hvadid=410001603573 hvdev=c hvlocphy=1018565 hvnetw=g hvqmt=b hvrand=1967117657673247966 hvtargid=kwd-360430845026 hydadcr=7924_11336044 keywords=medical+tape+leukotape qid=1593479812 sr=8-1 tag=googhydr-20

Hey Bob, just be careful when you remove the appliance.  The more adhesive the tape is the more skin it might remove.  I learned that using the "just rip it off" method excoriated the skin requiring a month of extra care.

Mike

Hi guys,

Thanks for all the great suggestions. I've made a list and will try each one. In the meantime, I dug through my big box of surgical/hospital/ostomy supplies (everyone has a box like that, right?) and found two 3M brand tapes. One is Transpore, which is a transparent plastic tape with a rough texture to it. I remember using this tape before, but like Mike mentioned.....I seem to recall it stuck too well. The other tape I found is 3M Micropore. This stuff is a very thin, textureless cloth-like tape. The thicker plasticky Transpore doesn't mold to the body curves very well, whereas the Micropore is more like Saran Wrap in how well it can deal with contours. So I tried taping one side of my barrier bandage with the Micropore yesterday and gave it a good workout in the hot humid weather while working around my barn. It stuck like nobody's business. I left it on overnight and then took a long swim in the pool this morning.......and it's still doing its thing. By the time I was done futzing around in the pool, it was too late for me to change my barrier.....so I just taped the other three sides with the Micropore and will do it all over again today. It's brutally hot and humid already, so today should be a good test. I'll make sure to jump in the pool every couple of hours to really put it through its paces. And as the summer goes on, I'll try the other products you guys mentioned and report back. Thanks for the help!!

Regards,

Bob

Glad you found a solution. Send some warm weather this way.   Cattails are growing in the middle of struggling canola fields. Wishing for blue skies again.... K

Hi sis! Sorry I didn't see this until now.........I'm sending you some kick-ass weather right now. Start looking for it late tomorrow or Thursday! I'll make sure it hangs around for the weekend too.

Regards,

Bob

Sweat makes for leaks, do not work so hard.

Hi X,

Interestingly enough, I don't ever recall a leak from sweat. The leaks I had after just becoming an ostomate were due to me needing a convex barrier and not being told they even existed. After that, as my stoma changed slightly, I ended up needing to use a ring with my barrier....as one side of my stoma was flush with my skin and the other side was above it. After that, the only leaks I've had were from eating too late and trying to sleep on my stomach (before I cut a pocket into my mattress topper). Of course, I change my barrier every other or every third day. I haven't had a leak in so long I stopped carrying an emergency ostomy kit in my car. Knock on wood.

Regards,

Bob

I had the problem of the edges of the barrier occasionally starting to lift after sweating a lot (usually on my bike rides in the summer), started using the AquaSeal by Costa Medical. It slides over the flange and runs out past the edges of the barrier and seals down to the skin all the way around the barrier. It lasts about 7 or 8 days, so when your barrier is ready to be changed, so is the AquaSeal. It is waterproof and keeps everything dry in the pool or in the shower. Works great!! I now use it all the time, not just when I'm going to be sweating or swimming.

Both Zorvo and OPSITE work well.

3M Micropore Paper Tape

Re: Barriers I use Coloplast the Brava elastic barrier strips. They work well for me, but I've never gotten them wet swimming, etc. I don't know how to go swimming or shower and still keep the appliance on. I have a urostomy and colostomy, so I change every time I shower. How do you all do it?

Hi all, tape, tape, tape!!! I think I've tried all of them.. But in past years I've had a lot of problems with "regular" adhesive tapes... I'm allergic and get oozing hives.. Really nasty (especially when I had the total colectomy/rectum removed... That was a real "pain in the ass". The very best tape I've used is Scanpore. 2". It sticks to the body and dries like skin....even after a shower, bath, pool, or ocean.. Extended time in a hot tub? Not so good... 3M Micropore has 3 different tapes.... Neutral, skin-colored (paper) tape, called "Micropore".. Durapore is white and is made of a different material, and Transpore is more transparent. I prefer the paper tape, but it does lift off after a few days. But it's easy to replace it... It's worth trying all three. Thanks for the info.. I might try the Nexcare.. Marsha

Hi Pinkie,

Thanks for the tip. I checked out the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R17gKpXCe7c, since I wasn't familiar with the Sure Seal stuff. That does look like a good solution. Will have to get some samples. Thanks for the info!

Regards,

Bob