About two years ago, I shared all about our diapering station for a newborn and the difference of how I disposed of diapers between Sophia and baby Anthony. Since then, our diapering needs have changed dramatically. In that time, we started cloth diapering both kiddos, the eldest is now potty trained (besides nighttime) and the toddler has very stinky poop. We currently have two diaper pails for our disposable diapers: the Ubbi and the Dekor Plus. We have owned the Ubbi for about two years and the Dekor Plus for about a year or so and it dawned on me that I should share the pros and cons of both pails regarding both disposable diapering and cloth diapering (we have a third separate pail for cloth now, more on that later).
Ubbi Diaper Pail
Pros
- Does not require special bags, you can use regular kitchen bags, cloth pail liners or their Ubbi bags. We started off using regular trash bags but once we started cloth diapering, I started using this liner but now we use the Ubbi bags.
- Made with steel which keeps the smell contained inside the pail.
- There is a little turn lock so you can prevent your toddler playing with dirty diapers (if you know, you know).
Cons
- While the Ubbi could work for cloth diapering, it isn't the most efficient considering the size of cloth diapers vs disposal diapers. I was cloth diapering two at one time and could maybe fit half a day to a days worth before needing to switch out the liner (I washed my diapers every 2-3 days) which left a bag of dirty diapers sitting on the floor in my laundry room.
- The steel construction does prevent smells from seeping through until you have to open it to put a diaper in, then you get a huge whiff of stank but I found this to be the case no matter what pail you use. I was just happy the smell wasn't constant by seeping out and I hold my breath whenever putting a dirty diaper in the pail.
- Is not hands free, have to touch the lock to unlock and have to pull back the top to open to place a diaper in and pull back to close.
Dekor Plus Pail
Pros
- Hands-free (as long as it's unlocked).
- Also has a little turn lock to prevent a curious toddler from exploring dirty diapers.
- Their specific bagging system makes it to where you only use the amount of bag you need which reduces waste and most economically efficient for disposal diapers.
- Fits a cloth pail liner, we used this one. Before our current cloth diaper pail, we preferred this one over the Ubbi for cloth since it could fit more diapers.
Cons
- The smell of dirty poop diapers seeps out even when its closed.
Our Current Dirty Diaper Setup
To start off, you do not need more then one diaper pail and honestly a diaper pail is NOT necessary at all for disposable diapers. For about the first 19 months of changing diapers, we did not have any pails in our house. Poop diapers went into a plastic grocery bag and straight to the dumpster in the garage while pee diapers went in a little bathroom trash can we had next to the changing table. I did not want to commit to a pail that had to have specific bags purchased. By the time Bubba was born, I heard about Ubbi and it's ability to fit standard kitchen bags so I used our monetary gifts we received for Bubba and bit the bullet. The Dekor Plus was bought shortly after starting to cloth diaper. The plan was to use Ubbi for disposables since it didn't fit many cloth diapers and to use Dekor Plus for cloth diapering. This worked great for a few months but the smell of the cloth diapers was really gross and made our room smell. After some digging and research, I found that cloth diapers need airflow in order to not start smelling. Which leads to our setup now:
Dekor Plus is in Bubbas room and is used only for pee diapers (disposable) and we use their specialty bags because it is easier to change out and more economical. This pail is only kept around because we already had it but also doesn't hurt that we have more pee diapers throughout the day so having it contained here instead of using our kitchen trash for pee diapers keeps the smell at bay.
Ubbi is in the garage and is used for poop diapers (disposable), we use their bags as well as we found it was more economical than a kitchen trash bag due to the size of the pail versus size of bag (lots of wasted bag space). This pail is great for retaining the smell besides when you open it, which is why it became our designated poop pail. We have it in the garage because when you do open it, the smell lingers for a bit.
For cloth diapers, we use a standard kitchen trash can that has a swing lid (similar) which provides sufficient airflow and there is never a smell from our cloth diapers anymore (we rinse off all poop in the toilet before placing in the pail). We now use this cloth liner as the other one has a ripped seam and I am not a seamstress. I love that this liner has a snap closure so if you go longer between washes and need to use another liner, you can close this one off to prevent littles from playing with dirty diapers. I wash every 2-3 days and this liner fits all my diapers for one load.
Final thoughts, unless you live in an apartment I wouldn't classify a diaper pail as a necessity to add to your registry if your planning to use disposable diapers. Walking them to the garbage bin in your garage or wherever you store your large bin doesn't take any extra effort especially if you are like I was in not wanting to worry about buying specialty bags. Just use those plastic grocery bags (I always doubled up bags for poop to try to contain the smell a bit more). If you plan to cloth diaper, don't waste money on these name brand pails - buy a standard kitchen trash can that allows airflow such as one with a swing lid or no lid at all. I know it seems like the smell will linger in the air but it won't with cloth. Trying to keep the smell in, creates a smell. Trust me. If you are having a smell regardless on your cloth that may be a washing routine issue in which case I would refer you to Fluff Love University.
Do you have a diaper pail? If so, which one did you use? Do you use cloth diapers or disposables or somewhere in between like us?
If you found this post helpful or know someone who would, please share it! I have made this pinnable image below to make it easier to pin and share!!
Final thoughts, unless you live in an apartment I wouldn't classify a diaper pail as a necessity to add to your registry if your planning to use disposable diapers. Walking them to the garbage bin in your garage or wherever you store your large bin doesn't take any extra effort especially if you are like I was in not wanting to worry about buying specialty bags. Just use those plastic grocery bags (I always doubled up bags for poop to try to contain the smell a bit more). If you plan to cloth diaper, don't waste money on these name brand pails - buy a standard kitchen trash can that allows airflow such as one with a swing lid or no lid at all. I know it seems like the smell will linger in the air but it won't with cloth. Trying to keep the smell in, creates a smell. Trust me. If you are having a smell regardless on your cloth that may be a washing routine issue in which case I would refer you to Fluff Love University.
Do you have a diaper pail? If so, which one did you use? Do you use cloth diapers or disposables or somewhere in between like us?
If you found this post helpful or know someone who would, please share it! I have made this pinnable image below to make it easier to pin and share!!
