Cloth Trainers #1

The cloth diapers Tate has been using at bedtime aren't going to fit much longer. Since he is completely daytime potty trained, he also isn't a fan of wearing diapers to bed any more. Currently, he wears either Mother-Ease fitted (some of our first cloth diapers and extremely stretched out) with bamboo and hemp inserts under fleece pants or a prefold and cotton insert in a Blueberry Coverall or Large Bummis Super Whisper Wrap to bed. I am on a quest to make some cloth training pants. There will be multiple posts as I experiment.
Why not just buy some? Several reasons, actually. 1) Tate has been in cloth diapers since he had a reaction to the chemicals in disposables when he was less than 2 weeks old. 2) Most trainers run small and only go to size 3T or up to 40 lbs. Tate has been on a growth spurt lately; he is already too tall for 5T footie pajamas and he isn't even 4 yet! He is between 35 and 40 pounds right now. 3) Bedwetting is hereditary and runs in my family. I was in grade school before we got mine stopped; so I worry that Tate is going to need to wear something longer than most kids. 4) They are also expensive and I'm cheap frugal. Besides, I have a lot of materials on hand to make them and I can customize them to work for us.
My first task has been to come up with something for naps. The boys have started going to daycare 3 days a week. I suspect the change in routine/ environment has caused Tate to start having accidents during naps again. I am trying to use as many upcycled materials from things we already have around the house as I can. Since Mayer doesn't come to work with me any more, it has given me more time to search for ideas. I found several tutorials and patterns on Pinterest. I decided on one that used a prefold, PUL and knit. I only had boring white PUL, so I decided to cover it with a t-shirt. Our old ratty, small prefolds fit the pattern and we never have a shortage of old tshirts, perfect! Or so I thought...
Here's a pictorial:

Pattern: Mom Road
Tutorial: Lemonwood Clock
1. The prefold was a perfect fit for the insert pattern. I used the same yellow pattern piece for the PUL.
2. Since Tate was such a heavy wetter, I decided to double it so the prefold became 12 layers. I had to abandon this idea because it was way too thick to sew.
3. Pattern on the knit/ tshirt.
4. The insert turned out longer than the body of the training pants.
5. Quick fix- add more tshirt and PUL to cover the exposed insert.
6. Front view- all sewed together
7. Back view
8. View inside the leg
9. The layers exposed
My machine didn't like sewing through a 4x8x4 prefold, PUL and knit. After I "finished" it, I don't think there is a sufficient amount of PUL to stop the trainer from leaking. Tate has always been a heavy wetter. I didn't think (and the tutorial doesn't mention it either) that I probably should have wrapped the PUL around the edges of the prefold to stop the knit from absorbing what the prefold didn't. For that reason, I didn't bother adding the leg gussets because I had serious doubts that the trainer would work with my modifications. I suppose I should try it with a cover so I can see if it works or not. I may come back with some modifications and a picture of Tate wearing them.