Is it bad to individually wrap disposable diapers in plastic grocery bags before disposing of them?

Question

On the one hand, I figure I'm recycling the bags. On the other, intuitively it seems that this would make them take longer to decompose in a landfill. However, diaper pails just don't contain the smell. I'm a hassled, over-worked mother of two toddler boys, and I'm just not up for washing cloth diapers.

Answer 1

I have been where the garbage goes. There is a huge tractor with big metal spike drum things for wheels and its sole purpose is to roll back and forth, back and forth on the fresh stuff comin in. If any plastic bags remain closed after that then this monster tractor is just wasting gas.

Answer 2

Wrapping disposable diapers in plastic bags prior to disposal slows down the degradation process, in addition to adding to landfill mass.  As the father of twins, I understand your pain.  You should consider the "Diaper Genie II."  Instead of a simple pail, this devise is a "constant tube" plastic liner with spring-loaded "jaws" and a snap lid which really helps keep odor very minimal.  Not only is this more effective, but it you can dispose of a dozen diapers for the plastic used in one grocery bag.  And by having more biologically active "mass" inside the plastic, degradation can proceed further than if only one were wraped up alone.  Being green is about minimizing your impacts where you can.  This might be a good application for you.

I hope this helps.

Answer 3

Let yourself off the hook on this issue.  No matter which choice you make, there will be legions of people who will tell you how wrong you are.  Cloth diapers carry their own environmental wrongs with them, like the energy used to wash them daily and the chemical detergents that end up in the water supply.  No product is a perfect solution.

The fact of the matter is that if you get a shower in a day's time, you are doing well.  If you and your boys are clean, fed and entertained, then you are doing all you can to save the planet by raising two sons who are unlikely to end up incarcerated or unemployed.  Give yourself credit for caring about this issue, then do what you can reasonably expect yourself to do, and let everyone else do the same.

Answer 4

YES It is very bad to use a plastic bag your disposable diaper is all ready gonna take about twenty years all by itself to break down and with the plastic bag around it who knows. I know cloth diapers are hard to deal with but if you go to

http://www.zerofootprintkids.com/kids_ca...

You might think again and maybe even use a diaper service?

Good luck being a MOM is the greatest job you will ever have.

JC

Oh PS

Spend a few dollars and buy the cloth bags most stores sell. Then you won't even have to worry about reusing all those plastic bags. :)

Answer 5

I'd say  bad depends on your personal definition. I do use cloth diapers for the most part, but when I have a disposable now and again, I put several of them in a grocery bag before I dispose of it. I think it's pretty wasteful to contain just one in every plastic bag but you can fit a few in there.

Answer 6

I do the same thing with my daughter's diapers, sometimes in 2 bags if the smell is really strong.  Disposable pails didn't work for me either, and this does work.

Answer 7

Go ahead and wrap the diapers. I know how bad the smell can get. Don't feel bad about not using cloth diapers, think about how much water you would be using washing them. There is no good answer for the whole diaper problem. It won't make to much of a difference if you wrap them is plastic bags or not.

Answer 8

its ok as long as you dont throw them in the woods