Diaper Disposal Wars

This sounds like it should be a new reality show. Maybe something on TLC or Discovery. Interested parties please contact me for more information. 

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 What it is really about....... now hold on, because you non parents will just be FASCINATED by this..... it's a post about DIAPER PAILS!!!! And you thought you couldn't  be more excited. I'm full of surprises. In my first year of motherhood I had the fortune to use three different diaper pails. They all had their pluses and they all had their drawbacks. It led me to the conclusions that, for me, there is no such thing as the perfect diaper pail. This conclusion was not life altering. It was interesting in a weird, mom-centric kind of way. Here are my personal experiences with three of the MANY pails on the market.

Exhibit A: Baby Trend Diaper Champ Deluxe

Pros: you can use regular trash bags. Regular trash bags are much cheaper than the refills designed for most diaper pails.

Cons: when you read the product description is states that you should use the specific Diaper Champ refills for "maximum odor control." Maybe that helps, but I didn't get that far. This thing does not contain smell. Also, it's not hands free. You have to lift the little handle up and down to open and close it. 

Conclusion: If you don't mind using your hands and you are breastfeeding a baby (non smelly diapers) then this could be a good pail to save some money. But when your kid starts eating solid food, this pail will keep friends and family out in the yard. That might be a good thing for you. If so, move it to the "pros" area.

Exhibit B: Diaper Genie Elite 2

I don't know what "Elite 2" has to do with anything, but this is the version of the Diaper Genie that I see most often in stores and in homes, and it's the one I currently use so we are being very brand specific.

Pros: Hands free use. This is a huge one for me. You step on the pedal, throw in the diaper and that's it. Another huge plus is the bagging system. Because the disposal bag runs on kind of a constant loop, if you have a smelly diaper, you can trim the bag and take it out without having to waste an entire bag. One last pro for tiny babies with tiny diapers, this thing holds a TON of newborn/size1/size2 diapers. 

Cons: The refills are expensive, but I can justify this with the whole tear off bag. The Diaper Genie has been great, but as the diapers get smellier (as your kid gets older), my genie does not contain the smell very well. And as easy as it is to cut the bag and toss out the smelly diaper, I don't want to do it twice a day (or even once a day for that matter). Not that I have remarked on it to them, but I have also been to friend's homes who have toddlers and use a diaper genie and the kid's room usually smells. I'm sure people have noticed the same thing here...... But I tell myself they don't. 

Conclusion: I really like the Diaper Genie. It is basically perfect when you are breastfeeding and into the first stages of solid foods. I started really noticing that it wasn't containing smells when Landon was 15 or 16 months old. So now you might judge me because she is 21 months old and I'm still using ole smelly... I just loved the hands free so much. I was willing to change it more often. 

Exhibit C: Arm & Hammer Diaper Pail by Munchkin

Full disclosure: this is the pail I am thinking about switching back to.

Pros: This diaper pail is a SMELL CONTAINING MACHINE. It was the one I registered for but I'll save why I switched it out for the cons. Here is an example of the smell this thing can take on. This pail went to my mom's house for the nursery she keeps there. Landon has two cousins who are close to her in age and both in diapers. Three toddlers (a 2 years old, and two 20 month olds) can be at the house for the weekend, all using this diaper pail and we NEVER have to change the bag unless it gets full. Truth.

Cons: I can also call this section "things I overlook to contain diaper smell". The refill bags are expensive like all others and a set size, but since it contains smell there is really no need to change them until they are full. My biggest complaint with this pail is that you have to press down to lift the top, then shove the diaper through the smelliness seal (my name for it, not theirs) and then close the top to enact the whole twisting, smell containing machine. This would be fine now, but with a moving baby, you just need two hands, in my opinion. 

Conclusion: I think this one is really good for the older stage when you can use one hand and your kid has stinky style diapers. If I can get L to start doing #2 in the potty again, I will just stick with the diaper genie since our diaper volume is dropping (and will hopefully continue to do so). 

Now let's talk about stink control... what have I missed in the world of diaper disposal? Is there some magic device I should keep on my radar for next time around? Or do you totally disagree with my assessment of something above? I do think I tend to be a mix of overly smell conscious and too lazy to change diaper bags. Interesting combo. 

We'll get back to food soon, but I couldn't talk about food and diaper stink in the same post. If you don't understand that, we should have a talk. 

-RT