Ten Reasons You Should Not Buy a Wipe Warmer

In the world of a new baby, a middle of the night diaper change with a cold wipe sounds like a sure-fire way to start a crying episode. At least that is what most first time parents with a new baby would perceive and what, in fact, the makers of the wipe warmers of the world would like you to believe. However, based on my experience and the product reviews of others, there are at least ten good reasons not to buy a wipe warmer.

1. Space
Most of the wipe warmers are large bulky containers that probably will not fit on your changing table. So if you can not have the warmer on your changing table, where are you going to put it? It just is not particle to have your wipes anywhere else.

2. Plug
When you do find somewhere to put this bulky contraption, make sure there is an outlet nearby. Who needs another cord cluttering up the place?

3. Waste
The most common complaint is that the warmer's heating element will dry out a significant number of wipes. So when a wipe is needed, the changer may have to pull out several dried wipes to reach a damp one. This in turn leads to wasted money and burnt wipes.

4. Burnt Wipes
Some parents have claimed to have "burnt" wipes. This is where the wipes have yellowed or browned from exposure to the heating element. Although this does not necessarily mean the warmer is a fire hazard, a first time parent may have difficulty sleeping knowing the warmer's heating element is drying and browning the wipes. If the parent decided to unplug the warmer during the night for this reason, the wipes will no longer be warm for the middle-of-the-night diaper change.

5. Money
A standard wipe warmer runs around twenty dollars. The continued cost in electricity and wasted, dried out wipes, however, is continuous. Use this money for something more necessary than a wipe warmer.

6. Time
To combat dried out wipes, manufactures of some wipe warmers suggest adding water to the warmer weekly, or in some cases, daily. That is exactly the last thing a person with a new baby needs: one more thing on the "remember to do" list. Also, some wipe warmer owners have found that the addition of water causes some wipes to be too wet and even dripping.

7. You can't take it with you
In reality, you probably could take your wipe warmer with you every time you leave the house. If you get your baby's bottom used to warm wipes, you might be setting grandma or some other unsuspecting sitter up for a real unpleasant shock when they attempt to clean up baby's bottom with a cool wipe. That's not very fair to baby, either.

8. Cleanliness
Warm, wet, and dark places are the hub of bacterial growth. It could only take a midnight, sleepy-eyed slip up to start a bacterial growth in your wipe warmer. There is no shortage of sources for new-parent guilt, you don't need it from your wipe warmer as well.

9. Temperature
The whole purpose of the wipe warmer is to provide the diaper changer with a warm wipe to use to clean baby's bottom. Unfortunately, one of the most common complaints about the wipe warmer is that the wipe is not warm enough when is comes out of the warmer, and that in the seconds it takes to pull a wipe and move to wipe baby's bottom, the changer is left with a cold wipe in hand.

10. Functional Shortcomings
Several design shortcoming that may not apply to all models:

The lid on many of the warmers does not close securely. Many of the lids on wipe warmers are merely resting closed so that in the event the warmer falls to the ground, the wipes inside would easily fall from the container.

Some wipe warmer owners have noted that wipes are not easily pulled through the plastic comb top of the wipe warmer causing unneeded frustration.

Wipe warmers that are made of opaque plastic make it difficult to know when you are about to use your last wipe.

Wipe warmers with a window for viewing the level of wipes often have such heavy internal condensation that you can hardly see through the window.

The bottom line is that the idea of a warm wipe on baby's bottom is wonderful, but the consumer will have to pay the price in time, money and patience in order to achieve this. The diaper changer may be just as satisfied to forgo the hassle of a wipe warmer and simply warm a wipe to body temperature by holding in a closed hand for a few seconds.

Happy diapering!