Diapers & Wipes 101

[MrsPinecone]

Diapers & Wipes 101

With many thanks to Berlinsmommy, HCM and all of the others who contributed to the original thread on FW!

MrsPinecone's thoroughly tracked answer to the "How much should I stockpile?" question can be found HERE.



Saving on Diapers: The Basics

• Sign up for coupons! The Baby Mailing List thread is here.
• Don’t forget the coupons from the Sunday paper! In addition to $ off diapers and wipes, there are the “Free ___ WYB diapers or a bath and body product” kind of coupons.
• Look for coupons in the stores! Blinkies, tearpads, store specific coupons… coupons are everywhere.
• When trying to determine the best price on diapers, you are not looking at the price per pack, since the pack sizes vary pretty drastically from outlet to outlet. The figure that you are seeking is the price per diaper.
• To calculate the price per diaper: divide the price paid for each pack by the number of diapers in the pack. Since the larger sized diapers have fewer diapers per pack, the older your baby gets, the higher the individual diaper cost will be. My personal goal is no more than .10 per diaper. Most people will not pay more than that for a Size 1 brand name diaper, increasing the per diaper cost as the sizes increase. EX: Huggies Size 1 Regular diapers= 8.99 per pack / 56 diapers per pack = .16 per diaper
• Stockpile! When you find a fantastic deal on diapers, buy as many as your budget allows, in both your baby’s current size and the next size or two up! Most places allow you to exchange unopened diapers for a larger size if your baby outgrows them.
• Don’t forget to get a raincheck! If there is a spectacular sale on diapers or wipes, the stores are often out of the items at some point during the week. They may only be out of one size or scent -- get a raincheck to use later. This allows you to wait for good coupons to use with the sale.
• Keep your eyes open for information in home mailers and ads. I recently received a coupon mailer that said “Coming Soon! All New Huggies Supreme! Custom Comfort for new babies (Sizes NB, 1 & 2) with Cuddle Weave, Custom Comfort for older babies (Sizes 3, 4, 5 & 6) with Hug Flex”.
  
  This means that stores may begin putting the old models on clearance, and it's worth keeping an eye out for any deals. Diapers that are last year’s model are no less efficient than the new ones!
• Store brand diapers are perfectly fine! Many of the store brands are made by the big name diaper companies in any case, so the quality is not going to be that much different, if at all.
• Diaper Doublers: for babies who leak out of diapers overnight, they used to sell things known as Diaper Doublers. These looked like maxi pads without the sticky stuff on them. You can actually USE maxi pads in place of the doublers. They hold as much, if not more, and you probably already have them around the house. It's a great use for all of those free pads you get at the drugstores! Just cut a slit in the plastic backing so that the liquid can pass through to the diaper. May 2009: someone has spotted a similar product at BRU. It is called a diaper booster or something along those lines, but it's the same concept as the original doublers.
• January 2010: Huggies is no longer participating in the rebate through Caregiver's Marketplace.

In-Store Savings:





Babies-R-Us/Toys-R-Us

• Get on the TRU/BRU mailing list! Simply call 1-800-869-7787 and press option 2 for any one of the "R" Us stores. Once you have selected any one of the "R" Us Stores press option 3 for the automated system. The automated system will be able to walk you through the process.
• The booklets that are mailed to you include coupons for a % off Huggies or Pampers. If you read the coupon carefully, you will see that it is 1) good on multiples of the same item, so that you can get the % off several packs at a time, and 2) can be combined with manufacturer’s coupons. You will need one MFR coupon for each package that you purchase.
• The best deals have been found on the Super-Mega boxes (not the cases, but the smaller boxes). They are regularly priced at around $21.99, so with 15% off, plus the MFR coupons, it’s a good deal!
• If you ask them nicely, they may give your % off coupon back to you to use another day. You do have to surrender your MFR coupons, though!
• TRU/BRU also has its own brand of diapers called Especially for Baby. They often have 20% off coupons for these diapers in their mailings. Most people who have tried EFB diapers have been very satisfied with the quality of the diapers!

Grocery Stores

• Take advantage of those stores that double coupons! Like every other coupon deal, combine them with a sale to maximize your savings!
• Check and see if your store will allow you to combine store coupons with MFR coupons. Kroger Upons can be combined with MFR coupons, and can result in overage!
• Ask if they accept competitor’s coupons—if one store mails you a coupon for diapers that are on sale at another store, you can increase the savings by using them both!
• Baby Clubs: Many grocery stores have them. The promotions vary, but some of the things to look for are home-mailer coupons or special Catalinas tied to your store card. Most baby clubs offer coupons off your next order for certain spending amounts. EX: My SuperFresh automatically gives a $20 OYNO of $50 or more coupon for every $200 that you spend on baby items in a quarter. This is good on ANY groceries, not just more baby items. The Publix baby club has an initial mailing of FREE coupons that include diapers.

CVS

• Has regular B1G1 50% off sales (and much less frequent B1G1 Free sales) on the store brand of diapers.
• Most people who have tried the CVS brand diapers like them. The supremes are better than the regular ones.
• You may combine CVS coupons with manufacturer’s coupons when the national brands are on sale.
• Further reduce your bill by paying for the baby items with Extra Care Bucks earned from other promotions!
• As of 9/06, they have become the exclusive outlet for the Playskool brand of diapers. They are similar to the CVS brand diapers, and the users are satisfied with them.

Rite Aid

• Huggies Big Pack boxes are $19.99 every day. They are in sizes 3-6. Price per diaper ranges from .192 per diaper (Size 3, 104 ct) to .249 per diaper (Size 6, 80 ct) before coupons.
• The consensus is that the Rite Aid brand diapers are exactly the same as TRU/BRU Especially for Babies store brand, and people like them. They are reported to run a little bit small. Make sure that you get the ones with Playtime Designs (newer version).
• There are Single Check Rebates on diapers several times a year. These rebates often coincide with the diapers being on sale. There are also store coupons available. Sale + coupon + SCR = cheap diapers! (EX: One recent combo had the mega packs of RA diapers for $4 each.)
• Buy ___, get $___ gift card promotions: Rite Aid often has promotions for gift or gas cards for “any items with a logo” in the ad. Diapers and wipes make frequent appearances in these promotions. It’s a great bonus for something that you have to buy anyway!
• Rite Aid also has “Try Me” promotions on their store brand diapers, in which you buy the Rite Aid brand and get a national brand free for comparison. It’s YMMV as to whether they will accept MFR coupons for the national brand half of this deal.

Walgreen's

• Walgreen's store brand diapers are great. More people prefer the Supremes, which are like Huggies. They are nice and soft and stretchy. The one issue is that they tend to run quite small. A Walgreen's size 3 is more like a size 2.5... slightly bigger than the average size 2, but won't fit as long as another brand's size 3s. This is something to keep in mind when stockpiling-- when you switch sizes, use the Walgreen's diapers first!
• The store flyer often has coupons in it for money off, and you can combine the coupons with manufacturer coupons and sales. A past coupon was for $5/2 packs of their store brand. When the store brand was on sale for $5.99 + you got a register reward for every 3 packs, it was a great excuse to stock up!

Target

• Target has their own home mailer or Internet coupons that may be stacked with MFR coupons. Sale + Target + MFR= Good Diaper Deal
• They also have frequent clearance on diaper packs in various sizes. Keep your eyes on the Target Clearance thread for news of these sales.
• Target has their own store brand of diapers. As of 5/2009: They seem to have changed them again. They are softer than they used to be and the tabs are stretchier. There are blue and green polka dots on the outside.

WalMart

• WalMart sells the big name brands at low-average prices, not great, but average.
• They do accept coupons, but Walmart is not very coupon-friendly. I wouldn't go in with a ton of coupons, because the cashiers rarely know how to handle them.
• Walmart has a store brand that is called Parent's Choice. It is not bad for the price- not as soft as the brand names, but does the job well.
• They are no longer carrying the White Cloud brand of diapers.

Warehouse Clubs

• They aren't always that great a deal and most of them don't accept coupons.
• Sam's Club: does not take coupons.
• Costco: The Kirkland brand diapers are really nice with a stretchy waist band just like Huggies Supreme or Pampers. See the diaper chart for Costco pricing on Kirkland diapers. Costco does put coupons for their diapers into the coupon booklets that they publish.
• BJs: Carries major brands, as well as their own brand Berkley & Jensen. May have coupons in the booklets that come out.

Other Stores

• Dollar General/Family Dollar: Everyday price on Jumbo Packs is $9.50 and they accept MFR coupons

Online Ordering:

Buying diapers online is not a really good deal, as I can usually get much better prices at brick & mortar stores. If you want the convenience of diapers delivered to your house, go for it!





Amazon.com

• www.amazon.com
• Slightly cheaper than Diapers.com, but not by much.
• No sales tax and free shipping!
• DO NOT accept manufacturer’s coupons
• Amazon has fairly regular promotions such as the “Buy $99 worth of baby items, get $25 gift card”

Diapers.com (Formerly 1800diapers.com)

• www.diapers.com They carry diapers, formula, wipes, and diaper bags.
• They advertise bigger boxes of diapers than those at stores like Target and Wal-Mart. There is a price comparison chart on the website, but the comparison is only for Pampers.
• They DO accept manufacturer’s coupons.
• No sales tax and free shipping!
• Can get discounts on your purchases by referring friends.

Diaper Pack Sizes:

We have a cool chart of diaper pack sizes from jumbo to club boxes and their average retail prices. These prices are averages. It would be impossible to include every permutation of every pack size across the country.

Now you can calculate your price per diaper more easily! Just click on the link below.


Click here for: Diaper Pack Sizes and Average Prices










Saving on Wipes:

• If your store doubles coupons, wait for the wipes to go on sale—they are usually 2/$5.00. Then use $1/1, .75/1 or .50/1 coupons to reduce the price.
• There was a recent $2 Huggies coupon that was good on wipes and washes in addition to the diapers. My store had the wipes on sale for $1.59, so $.40 overage on each tub.
• Look out for coupons good for $2 off or FREE wipes WYB bath & body products. Wipes are considered a bath & body product. I emailed Huggies and asked them. So buy one tub of wipes and get another free.
• Buy the smallest size! If there is a 40 pack of wipes at the store for $1.64, and you have a $1.50 coupon, that's only .14 for 40 wipes. This is better than using the $1.50 coupon on the 80 ct tub at $2.50...
• Again, combine store coupons with MFR coupons for the maximum savings. TRU/BRU runs promotions on the 400 ct boxes of baby wipes for $8.99. Buy 3 at a time, and use a $5/25 store coupon along with your MFR coupons. EX: 3 x $8.99= $26.97- $5.00 STORE CPN = $21.97 – 3 x $1.00 MFR CPNS = $18.87 or $6.32 per box or .015 per wipe!

If you want to be really motivated, try this recipe for homemade baby wipes!

- One half paper towel roll, cut cross wise
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups water
- 2 Tablespoons soap (good use for all of those cheap or free baby washes)
- One large plastic container with lid (just recycle an old commercial wipes tub)

Pour water into container and stir in soap, then put paper towel roll into container and put on lid. If you want them to be more moisturizing, you can add a tablespoon of lotion or oil to the mixture. Let it soak overnight, and then by morning, the wipes are ready. Remove the inner tube from the paper towel roll and pull the wipes from the center.

Note: the amount of water depends on how thick the paper towel roll is. The Bounty Big Roll works well for these wipes.

Antifungal Solution for Homemade Wipes:
By Millie, who has this recipe online at her Stony Mountain Botanicals site.
1/2 c. distilled water
1/4 c. vinegar
1/4 c. aloe vera gel
1 tbs. calendula oil (or baby oil)
1 drop lavender essential oil
1 drop tea tree essential oil

You can use this solution with the paper towels as above, or just use with washable cloths, like cheap washcloths.

[MrsPinecone]

Cloth Diapers

Types of Cloth Diapers:

Flats: The old-fashioned kind that we wore as babies. You must to use pins to keep the diaper closed, and you also need a cover. These must be folded and placed inside the cover.

Prefolds: These have seams to follow for folding. Gerber makes them, and they are sold at Target, Babies R Us, etc, although the Gerber ones are too thin to use as a diaper. It is better to use a Diaper Service Quality prefold. These must be folded and placed inside the cover, and held closed with pins, Snappis or held in place by the cover.

Fitted: These are cut to fit the baby. They have snaps or Velcro, and they need a cover. They also have elastic around the legs and back. Some people think it is a waste to buy fitted when they are tiny, since they have to fit well to avoid leaks, and the baby outgrows them so fast.

Contour: These are cut to fit the baby. These do not have any elastic or fasteners, so you need pins or a Snappi, as well as a cover.

Pocket: These have a waterproof outer shell and a micro fleece or suede cloth liner. You must use a liner of some kind to make them absorbent and keep moisture away from the baby’s skin. They snap or Velcro shut. If you pre-stuff them they are really Daddy & daycare friendly! You need more pocket diapers than if you are using prefolds and wraps, because the cover only works once before it needs to be washed. They are better for when the baby is on solid food.

All-In-One: These are the most expensive diapers to buy because you don't need liners, covers or closures. These are user-friendly for people not familiar with cloth diapers, and closest to disposables in ease of use. They often take longer to dry because there are multi-layered.

One Size: These will ‘grow’ with your child by adjusting the snaps or Velcro.

Inserts & Doublers: These go inside of pocket diapers to make them absorbent. They can be made of several materials, such as hemp or microfiber.

Diaper Covers:

PUL/Plastic: Not breathable, but they also don’t allow the moisture OUT! You don’t need as many covers as you do diapers.

Wool: Naturally antimicrobial, keeps the baby warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Many people’s favorite choice for diaper covers.

Acrylic: Couldn’t find any real info on these.

Closures:

Pins: Make sure that you use real diaper pins and not regular safety pins! Diaper pins often have pastel heads in the shape of a duck!

Snappis: This is a little Y-shaped stretchy tool that has three "claws", one on each point of the “Y”, and is used to hold the diaper closed. You can get by with one, but like any other baby item, more are better because they tend to get lost and/or break.

Brands & Websites:

LOTS of info and product reviews can be found at www.diaperpin.com or www.diaperdecisions.com or Help! I'm new to cloth diapers..

Diaper Swappers - Cloth Diaper & Parenting Community has a For Sale or Trade forum if you are interested in buying used.

Bummis (wrap):
Work great with both fitted and prefolds. They rarely leak and are not bulky under clothing.
Bumkins (various):
All-In-One diapers tend to leak unless you use a liner with them- they are not very absorbent. Reviews are also poor on the covers- didn’t work over any fitted diapers and the prefolds leak.
Kushies (All-In-One):
Newborn size runs very small, which is good for preemies, but they are not good at holding in BF poops. Toddler size is not designed well. They leak around the leg holes. Like most All-In-One diapers, they take forever to dry.
Fuzzi Bunz (pocket):
Very popular! Reviews are better for the toddler sizes than the smaller sizes. They have snaps, so don’t require other closures. They are generally a pretty reliable diaper, but on the expensive side. You can get a decent deal at: Fuzzi Bunz Seconds Factory - Fuzzi Bunz Authorized Clearance Center
Happy Heiny (pocket)
Have Velcro closures; reviews seem very positive.
Motherease (wrap): http://www.mother-ease.com
One size diapers can take you from ~ 10 lbs through potty training. They have rows of snaps for adjusting purposes.
Little Beetles (fitted)


www.betterforbabies.com
www.wildflowerdiapers.com
www.borntolove.com






Cloth Diaper Trivia, Tricks & Tips:

• Get a good diaper pail! A Rubbermaid container works well, too.
• You can buy cloth diapers used, or resell yours! This is a VERY popular option for those who decide to cloth diaper. Check here for the ebay policy change.
• The more you wash cloth diapers the more absorbent they become. Cloth diapers can go through many years of wear as well as several kids before they need to be retired.
• You can’t use fleece liners with diaper rash creams!
• If you are using diaper covers, don’t machine dry them even if it says that you can! Air drying will help prevent leaks and make the covers last longer.
• You will have to change cloth diapers more frequently than you would disposables.

Making Your Own Cloth Diapers:

• www.diaperjungle.com Patterns for diapers, covers, wipes, etc.
• www.diapersewing.com Patterns for prefolds, contours, all-in-one, diaper covers, wipes, etc.
• Alternatively, you can trace around a diaper that you have found that you like.
• You can use microfiber or hemp to line the diapers. The cheapest place to get the microfiber is to buy the large towels in the automotive section of places like Wal-Mart.

[hotcouponmama]

I wanted to post something I posted in another thread about diapers that should probably be here too.

About 4 years ago, the diaper manufacturers redid their pack sizes - less diapers, same money or more even in some stores. This was on the jumbo sizes. Stores got a reset with the new diapers.

Well, I am seeing big resets of diapers going on again (although fortunately, we're down to 1 a day for night time). And this time, I am seeing the jumbo size packaging being clearanced out, and the sets being redone with the mega packs instead.

Now, while this might not happen everywhere, for the stores who are doing this, it's a good thing for them because the mega packs at regular price are higher price per diaper than the jumbo packs on a fairly consistent basis. So, by resetting and phasing out the jumbo packs, stores make more money (cause if you need diapers, you just buy them when you need them from what's there), and then they also have more room on the store shelves with less variety to choose from, so now they can incorporate more types of products in the same space. Win-win for the store, lose-lose for those who need to buy diapers.

So, when you see those diapers being clearanced out, snap them up and store them if you have the funds to do so. And even if you buy 1 too many packages, you can always donate them and write them off your taxes. Based on the trends I've noticed buying diapers for the last 7 years straight, I think diapers are coming up on a price hike.

[queenofthehivemomof5]

BTW GREAT job on the improved thread MrsP!

[berlinsmommy]

I absolutely love the new thread, much more current info. I want to add a little to the cloth diaper section. We used cloth diapers until Berlin was about 9 months old. I bought Gerber prefold diapers (approx $1 each) and a cover called Dappi Covers. They are very affordable, about $2-$3 each, however, at that price, they are not the best at not leaking and are certainly not an overnight diaper. What we did seemed to be the best combo for saving money and keeping Berlin from getting diaper rashes.

We used cloth diapers during the day while we were at home. Dry cloth diapers are great for baby's skin and lets it breath, so while she wore them we checked her often and changed her immediately if she was wet. She never sat or slept in a wet cloth diaper. Also, if she did start to get diaper rash, just a few hours in dry cloth diapers with some A&D or Desitin cleared up any signs of rash in a hurry.

We used disposible diapers while we were away from home and at night. These were the best choice for any time it was not feasible to wisk off the diaper as soon as she got wet. Disposibles are much better about wicking moisture away from baby's skin when wet. Also, I really didn't want to get up several times at night to check her diaper or to haul around dirty cloth diapers while we were away from home.

This combo worked great for us for about 9 months, but when she became mobile they were big, bulky, and made it difficult for her to crawl, plus she figured out how to get them off, so we just gave up and switched to all disposible, but I think if I had to do it again, using both cloth and disposible each for their strengths was definitely the way to go for us and saved us a lot of money.

[MrsPinecone]

An example for diaper-bargain newbies:

Over the past couple of days, I have purchased 4 mega packs of Rite Aid brand diapers: 2 x Size 3 (60 per pack) and 2 x Size 4 (52 per pack).

As stated in the OP, these diapers are exactly like the TRU/BRU Especially for Baby brand. People like them a lot!

4 packs @ 10.00 (Regularly 12.99) = 40.00
- 2 x 7.00/2 coupons from RA insert found in store or paper = 26.00
- 2 x 5.00/2 Single Check Rebates= 16.00
- 13.00 balance on Gift Card from prescription= 3.00

3.00 / 224 diapers= .0133 per diaper

Not too bad, since my goal for Size 1s is no more than .10 per diaper, and the larger sizes are progressively more expensive!

Plus, I got 4 large cans of free coffee in those orders as well! (But that's another thread...)

Even if you paid the after-coupon and rebate price of 16.00:
16.00 / 224 diapers = .071 per diaper
Still well within 'great deal' limits!!!

[MrsPinecone]

Added this info to the Mailing List thread.


Walmart and other store brands Associated Hygienic Products - Product Platforms
This company has made Walmart's store brand for years (Parent's Choice).

At AHP, we manufacture, market and sell private label/corporate brand baby diapers and training pants for the majority of the largest food, drug, mass merchandiser and club store retailers. Typically, corporate branded products, also known as private label or store brands, offer consumers a better value, with great quality and significant savings over National Brands.

[MrsPinecone]

Just an FYI:

Pampers Cruisers (and maybe Swaddlers, I don't know) will now be manufactured without the mesh liner.

Maybe so many people said that it gave their kids a rash that they decided to change it? Dunno.

[MrsPinecone]

The reviews from my baby board on the Pampers Extra Protection are not good. They apparently don't compare to the Huggies Overnights at all.

The word used most often was "sucks". LOL

[moncheechee]

I used cloth diapers with my son from about 2mo-2yr. We used Bum Genius and I love them! They are not too expensive considering my husband would use them too. :O) He would even request them. Also my son would say, "No that, it soft" and point to his cloth diapers. They are so cute on too. We live in FL so some days I put him in a diaper and a t-shirt. We also used them for swim diapers. I don't know if you girls have noticed the price of those?! Ridiculous! With swim lessons and playdates we could go through a pack in a week. Thanks for the post.