Parents everywhere would probably agree that the Diaper Genie/diaper pail (or whatever brand you have) is a great invention. The simple convenience it offers of just being able to roll up a diaper and toss it in the bin next to you, versus running a diaper out to the garage or (please no) leaving it in an open garbage pail somewhere in the house. And don’t forget it claims to lock in the smell completely!!! (My nose isn’t 100% convinced of this claim after extended use)
Either way, the Diaper Genie is a good value for new parents at around $25, and it’s likely more than a few readers have received one as a shower gift. What kills me, though, is the refill pack prices! I think they’ve designed these things like printers, cheap for the main product, expensive for the refill bags you need to purchase over and over again.
Diaper Refill Packs
We did receive a couple of refill packs as gifts. When I had to go buy more, I felt bad that whoever bought them as they had probably spent $20+ on what amounts to plastic bags. The cheapest place I found was either Amazon or Costco, but the best value, a 3-pack refill, was still about $20.00 – $23.00. It seems a little crazy for diaper bags – however, you can’t deny they’re convenient since you get the little plastic reloader ring with them. Still though.
The other thing is they advertise a refill pack as holding 270 diapers each – but read carefully – that’s baby (size 0) diapers. Once you get into the “real” diapers… the ones that stink and hold some weight, you only get about 100-150 diapers into a refill cartridge diaper bag. That’s a lot of bags you’ll be going through.
So that’s when my frugal self decided there must be a better (meaning cheaper) way to refill this black hole for diapers. I ended up buying some blue recycling bags (you can get clear too – but blue makes you feel like you’re using the real thing!) and simply trimming the top portion of the plastic refill dispenser with some scissors.
Saving Money on Diaper Refills
All you need then is an elastic band – grab one from your newspaper or mail – the thick ones work great. Slide your blue recycling bag through the hole and then pull the ends over the top of the plastic refill ring. Then wrap the elastic band around the bag and the ring. Slide the bag into the diaper genie (the bag will protect your hand) and push the ring in place. Bam! Refill is done
The rough cost of the blue recycling bags is about $5.99 at the regular price for 20 bags – so you can probably do even better if you find a sale. You can pick them up at any grocery store, so no need to go searching for specific diaper refills. I’ve found that each recycling bag holds just as many diapers as one sleeve from the refill cartridges (probably a little more judging by the weight when removing – sorry, I’m not going to count used diapers).
So let’s look at the cost difference between diaper refills and recycling bags:
Diaper Genie Refill 3-Pack – $22.93
Plastic Recycling Bags 20-Pack – $5.99
The Diaper Genie refills contain a long bag that is sliced into multiple bags as you use it, so we’re using the figure supplied that one cartridge holds approximately 270 newborn diapers. The rough equivalent of one refill ring would be about five recycling bags. So…
3 cartridges @ 270 diapers = holds 810 diapers total
20 recycling bags @ 272 diapers per 5 bags = holds 1360 diapers total
| Disposal Method | Quantity | Cost | Diapers per bag | Total Diapers | Cost per Diaper |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diaper Genie Refills | 3-Pack | $22.93 | 270 | 810 | $0.0283 |
| Plastic Recycling bags | 20-Pack | $5.99 | 68 | 1360 | $0.0044 |
Not only is it much cheaper to buy a box of bags, but you also get the equivalent of a free cartridge with each box. Let’s assume you go through a cartridge a month, or 12 per year. With the equivalent being 3 boxes of bags (5 bags per cartridge x 12 cartridges = 60 bags total / 20 per pack = 3 boxes of recycling bags) our annual savings using 3 boxes of bags vs. 4 packs of refill rings would be:
$91.72 vs. $17.97 = $73.75 Savings!
Note: Exact savings are estimates and will vary depending on your diaper volume 🙂 …but you get the point, plain old bags are waaay cheaper.
Pro Tip – In your newfound excitement to save money on diaper disposal, just be careful not to over-stuff your recycling bags or they will be a bit trickier to get out of the diaper pail!
