Tips for creating a system for the disposal of nappies at home

You can't just find a diaper disposal system recommended in some magazine and expect it to work perfectly within your own home. Every family is different and that means your diaper disposal system will be different. The following three steps are simple tips that will help you design a functional disposal system for your baby's diapers.

It is best to get a system set up before you even bring your bundle of joy home from the hospital. In this way, odors have no chance of taking root in your home. If you can do this now, diaper changing will be much easier and your home will smell a lot better as well.

#1: Determine your diaper preferences: cloth, disposables, or a combo of both.

Depending on the type of diapers you decide to use, you will need different types of containers. For instance, if you are planning to use disposables, you will need some type of very tightly sealed container where the odor from diapers cannot escape prior to being emptied. There are commercial products on the market like the Diaper Genie, but you can also use other containers that are more discreet. Just remember the tightness of the lid matters more than anything else.

A tightly sealed container of some sort will also be required for cloth diapers. This will contain the odor until you get around to washing them, which may not always be immediate with a new baby in the house.

If you might be using some cloth diapers as well as disposables, you will need separate containers for each in the home.

#2: Think about the frequency in which the containers will typically be emptied.

Depending on how often you will likely empty the diaper containers, there are different areas of the home where containers should be placed. For instance, if you want to make sure the container is emptied every day and you also take out the kitchen trash every day, you may want to put the diaper container right next to the trash can.

A container for cloth diapers will usually be placed in the laundry room or a space nearby so it is convenient when you are ready to wash them, but you have to give serious thought to the size of the container needed. There is nothing worse than underestimating this because you didn't realize how many diapers can be soiled in a single afternoon!

#3: Where do you think you will be changing the baby most of the time?

Consider adding smaller diaper pails or some type of temporary repository in areas of the home that will typically become diaper changing stations. This will allow you to change a baby and relax rather than having to get right up and race the diaper across the house to the main pail.

You should also get a stockpile going of all supplies needed to keep your diaper pail or container clean. You don't want to run out of bags at an inopportune moment!