I would avoid this diaper pail unless you want a rancid blast of air in your face everytime you dare to swing the handle from one side of the pail to the other. Another nice feature of the diaper pail is the fact that wipes get lodged in the pail which prevents one from completely swinging the handle over. This results in a continuous struggle of having to jiggle and tug on the handle to get the wipe dislodged which causes even more blasts of fresh, i mean rancid, air to be released directly in your face. Buyer beware! seriously . . .

We lucked out - we didn't use any special diaper pail for the first year of our daughter's life. Every now and again a diaper needed to be thrown into a small plastic bag before thrown away, but all of this "diaper pail nonsense" (or so we thought) didn't seem to affect us.

As our daughter turned 12 months and started to walk, her ability to get into the trash can in her room increased and we decided something self-contained would be the best option. So we read our reviews and did our research and opted for the Champ.

What we did not anticipate was within a couple of weeks of our purchase, our entire house beginning to smell like dirty diapers (when only weeks earlier there was no smell).

And we do change the pail a few times a week and I do spray *very* liberally with Lysol between each use - but we are knocked out by the odor of the pail as soon as we walk into our house. I've even started taking it out of our daughter's room at night because the thought of her sleeping in that odor is more than I can bear.

With normal daily use, the odor is especially prominent when you add a new diaper - it seems as though the chamber piece sort of holds onto the odor that has risen up inside it and when you flip the handle to add a new diaper, you are shot in the face with the most foul odor you could imagine!

As best I can imagine, everyone's suspician is true - this version of the Champ has cheap, thin plastic that absorbs the diaper odors and can never truly be cleaned between use.

So now we're back to square one. The Diaper Champ has knocked us out for the last time. Must we swallow our pride and buy a Genie?!? :(

We've had this for over a year...stick still fills the room...seal is not good enough to prevent a room full of odor.

After reading reviews we bought this thinking it would be more economical, since you don't need the special bags. It's so not worth it. Everytime you flip the lid it pushes this horrible smell into the room. I've tried baking soda, bleach, dryer sheets, vinegar-you name it, we tried it. And the residual smell of past diapers is still in there, nothing makes it go away. It still stinks. And now that my daughter is walking she flips the drum back and forth, you have to leave the room. We're switching to the diaper dekor, it actually works.

The basic idea may be good but after 4 days I am ready to hurl this piece of junk out a window. Even when it worked "right" it was a pain because it is so cheaply made that it is very top-heavy. When you try to swing the lever to drop the diaper you have to stand firmly on the tiny foot braces with both feet, or the whole thing just falls over. That's mainly because the door thing doesn't work smoothly at the best of times, and now 4 days into it the seal ring is coming off and getting in the way making it nearly impossible to work. Add to that the fact that wipes, etc. are getting stuck and coming back out.
The only good thing about this product is that unlike most of the others it uses standard garbage bags. I wish it cost twice as much and was twice as well constructed -- if it worked right it would be well worth it -- but as it is it's a waste of money.
Especially if you're a new parent with your first child please believe the negative reviews and avoid this thing. The last thing you need with a new baby is to be stressed and angry over a stupid diaper pail.

Even though the box says it works for cloth diapers, it really doesn't. We spend most of our time stuffing them in by hand because the chute gets clogged. In theory, it seems like a good idea and would likely work for disposables if you bundle them tightly with their tabs, but I can't say for sure. If you use cloth like we do, DON'T buy this product! We haven't used it for non-breastfed "output" so I can't comment on the smell factor yet.

We purchased the Diaper Champ when our son was born, due to all the rave reviews, the fact that you just toss the diaper in and turn it, and that it uses our own bags. We also bought the Diaper Genie II for a second room so we could compare the two. For the first few months, the Champ was great. No noticeable smells and despite the difficulty removing a full bag, we appreciated the fact that we didn't have to shove the diaper into the unit or buy proprietary bags.

However, now our son is into formula and baby food. His diapers smell horribly bad, and now, so does his room. The Diaper Champ was fine for the newborn diapers, but now it cannot contain the smell, even with just a few smelly diapers. Further, the plunger now needs some coercing to get it to go all the way down, which means I have to shove my hand on it.

One reviewer had good luck with the Diaper Champ by cleaning and changing it out twice a week, but that for us defeats the whole purpose of the large container size and using our own bags.

Meanwhile, our Diaper Genie II has been fantastic at keeping in the stink, and we just invested in a Diaper Genie Elite which is a hands-free unit. Just press your foot on the lever and drop the diaper in. Yes you have to use Diaper Genie refills, but they contain the odor beautifully.

So if odor is a concern and you don't want to change and clean out your diaper pail twice a week, avoid the Diaper Champ. Once your baby starts on solids, you'll be glad you did.

I have had no major problems with this product. The only problem I have encountered is if you try to dispose of wipes into the Diaper Champ, they tend to have a problem of dropping into the bag. The wipes tend to get stuck in the pail.

First of all, let me begin by saying that I have twins, do diapers are a "double duty" for me and my wife. After 3 weeks of using the "Diaper Champ, I can honestly endorse this product! Diaper after diaper, the "Diaper Champ" works as it is meant to. All odors are well contained, very easy one handed usage, and it's size make this a much needed item in any nursery!

I bought the Diaper Champ with the understanding that it worked well with both cloth or disposable diapers - I'm planning to use cloth. I'm also using washable diaper pail liners (WAHMIES), and to my disappointment, I could not get the liners to work with the Diaper Champ. The liners were too bulky for it to close tightly. So I returned the Diaper Champ and ended up getting a Smart Can corner trash bin, which works fine (though the quality seems rather cheap, and it will undoubtedly not contain smells as well as the Diaper Champ). Just a head's up to those planning on using washable liners.

When I first got my Diaper Champ, I had problems similiar to other reviewers - the blue ring got stuck every time I flipped the lid over. I had to tuck the blue ring back into to it's slot to keep it from getting hung up as the mechanism swiveled around. It was very frustrating. I called the company I told them about my problem. I had no receipt because I got it for a shower present. They sent me a new replacement for the entire top of the Diaper Champ at no cost. Now it works perfectly. I gave the product four stars for the hassle of having a defective product initially. However, I was very pleased with the no questions asked customer service. I love that I can use shopping bags and don't have to buy special bags for it.

I am very disappointed with this diaper pail, I don't find that it contains the smell at all. It is especially bad when you flip the top to put a new diaper in. I actually took it out of my daughters room because I didn't want her to sleep in a poopy smelling room. I would not buy this product again and I would definitly not recommend it to anyone else.

We have twins and so I actually bought a genie and the champ and even though I HATE buying the inserts for the genie, the champ just let too much of the smell out, which by the time they were 5-6 months old and eating solids was just too much to take. We have two genies now and I still HATE buying those inserts, but I don't smell a thing.

All I have to say is OH NO, keep away!! I had originally bought the diaper champ since it seemed to be it the more economical choice since I could use any bags I wanted with it. I have had the thing for two years now, I use good quality kitchen bags, I air it out, spray it with Lysol and am very careful to correctly install the bags...HOWEVER... this thing STINKS!!!!!! When it is closed, the odor is bearable (but still detectable), but when you go to remove the bag...OH GOD HELP YOU!!! I cannot tell you how awful the smell is, especially once they start eating solid foods! The worst part is I had recommended the thing to all my friends because I really believed it was the better option and now we all hate it and won't use it anymore! It's bad.

This product is great. I used to have a DiaperGenie with my first child and I hated it. I tried this one and it is just perfect! No odor!

While the design of this diaper champ is, indeed, streamlined (it is easy to use and doesn't need expensive special bags) it fails completely in the main purpose: to contain odor! The champ is not airtight, has no fan, no filters - so of course the smell of dirty diapers quickly permeates the room! I was changing the bag everyday and still could not contain the smells. I would NOT recommend this to anyone - better off to just use a plain bag and save your money!

I sincerely cannot believe how anybody will give a 5 stars to this product after using it for a week. It is a complete gimmick... My wife and I bought for it "felt" like a solid piece of equipment for containing odors. At first looks it seems well-constructed and pretty innovative about keeping an "airtight seal"...

On reality though: The mechanism fails to work on second use... Cloth diapers get stuck almost right away. The lid does not rotate as intended and you end up using not only both hands (instead of the advertised one-hand operation) but both feet as you struggle to contain the basin while removing the malfunctioning lid. My wife cannot even do this without my help as it takes some forceful maneuvering.

It is not a problem of manufacture, it is a problem of the intrinsic design. On careful inspection (I am trained as industrial designer) I realize that it is over-engineered, and adds too much complexity with a focus on emotional perception on first buyers rather than actual science... The mechanism will fail after the pail fills-up (in less than a week with 20-23 cloth diapers with aided manual compression). The gravity-driven drum does not have enough weight to compress diapers and these will push up... making it to jam when you try to rotate as advertised.

Bottom-line: DO NOT BUY IT... IT IS A BAD PRODUCT. I have not tested it on disposable diapers but I feel that it is a rather large waste of plastic. Simpler solutions will do much better.


***** 3-Month usage UPDATE *****

Yes, I have still tried to use this faulty product (since I paid for it, regretably so). SInce it was proven NOT to work with cloth diapers... I switched it as a trash bin for disposables (which we use on the baby on night time or on long trips). Not good either, as the stained diapers do touch the sliding drum, and they are prone to smear it while you sruggle with the cumbersome mechanism. So there, a bad product no matther how many chaces I gave it. Now, I have to figure out what to do with so much plastic taking space in the baby nursery.

Got it on the advice of my sister in law, who is a ditz. This thing gets stuck when you put a wet wipe in it, gets poop down the inside of it and the piston just drags the poop through it if the diaper is not perfectly sealed up. It stinks, literally. After only a month of use as the babies diapers got more smelly, so did her room. It poorly contains the odor. Shoulda just got a diaper genie, like my own sister had. I hate to buy the refill's but its better than having a stinky room when people come to visit. I have to clean the inside of it all the time. THis thing sucks.

I purchased this item for my two children about two years ago. Last night my 11 year old Alaskan Malamute suffocated to death while getting stuck in the opening. My dog, like many, had a penchant for dirty diapers, last night he knocked over the diaper champ, and knocked part of the top off. When he couldn't get to the diapers inside, he put his head into the opening (the top opening where the ball is), and got stuck. He eventually suffocated from the plastic bag. My husband and I replayed what happened with him, and discovered that a child could easily do the same thing going after a toy that fell in there, or just playing. If the child is monitored it would be easy to remove the bag, but the child would still have to have the ring removed (which took about an hour and half with a hack saw). If the product was 3/4" wider in diameter, my dog's head would not have been stuck. My dog's head is about the size of my 4 1/2 year olds head. I would not recommend this product at all, and I am attempting to contact the company WRT this accident.

We had this with our first baby and it worked fine, but was very smelly after a while. I think we used it about 18 months and then it became unbearable.

You really don't need a diaper pail unless you are going to use cloth diapers. Just use the kitchen trash. You think that might smell, but since most people empty their kitchen trash frequently, there are not as many dirty diapers in there. Put solid poop in the toilet, otherwise you can just toss the diapers. Our daughter is 11 months old, eating solid food, and we've never had a problem. We do have a cheap pail for the cloth diapers, but we clean it thoroughly when we launder the diapers.

I have been using the Diaper Champ for 4 months and really like it. The only problem I had was that the blue ring on top stuck making it hard to flip over. I just taped it down with regular clear tape and have not had a problem since. Other than opening the Diaper Champ to remove and replace the bags (ANY bags can be used), I never have dirty diaper smells escaping from it.

After 18 months, our original Diaper Genie 2 had basically taken on the diaper smell and couldn't be cleaned anymore. With Baby #2 on the way, we decided to try Diaper Champ. Big mistake.

Mechanically, it worked soundly, so no problems there. However, with every turn of the drum a "puff" of foul, diaper stink floated up.

My decision to return it was made immediately upon opening the compartment to change the bag. The bag just sits down inside, but is wide open. The odor immediately filled the baby's room, and several adjacent ones. With eyes watering, I grabbed the bag, tied it off, then double-bagged. Fortunately, we could a few open windows and turn on a fan to disperse it.

I hope I can get my money back.

This broke before my son was even 4 months old. The blue ring/seal around the top stopped working, which made it impossible to put more diapers into it. I called baby trend, and they emailed me instructions to fix it, but they didn't work. I have a friend with the exact same issue. Save your money and buy something else.

Not only is this poorly designed, so far... no response from the company. I really took the advice of friends when I bought this, but I didn't consider asking more than two - one I didn't know (word of mouth) and the other only had hers a month when she recommeded it. She doesn't like it now either. The problem is in the blue ring around the top. It comes loose after a bit, especially if someone uses it and say "forces" it to turn when it won't or just sheer misdesign (not sure which), and then doesn't work very smoothly. In fact it's annoying to be wrapping a diaper (which is annoying in itself) with a newborn crying and then turn to use some perceived wonderful item to find it getting stuck and not working at all. I'm going to try the diaper genie NOW.

I've used the Diaper Champ for 2.5 months with twin babies. It keeps the stink contained and is usually easy to use. There have been times when I couldn't flip it over, but it might be because a wipe got loose or a diaper wasn't rolled up real good (directions state the wipes cannot be placed in the compartment by themselves - just wrap them up in the diaper). My only complaint is the storage capacity which is why I give it 4 stars instead of 5. The container looks like it would hold more than it does. With twins, we are changing a 4-gallon bag once a day. I recommend an 8 gallon bag. A good thing about this container is that it can use any bag (or none if you are in a bind). I recommend the Safety 1st Pail over the Diaper Champ since it can hold more and is similar in performance.

I've never had a problem with the Champ sticking or the closing mechanism not "rolling" correctly. The best part is, you can't close it once the thing is full and you are forced to change it. If you are like me, if you can't smell it, you're not going to do anything about it until it's gross. This thing makes you keep up with the diapers.
I've got a 4/5 month old and we have to change the bag twice a week. We just use our tall kitchen trash bags. I give the thing a quick wipedown and we're off and running again.
It is also small enough that my baby's tiny room isn't overwhelmed by a diaper contraption.

My Diaper Champ wouldn't work properly (the drum won't rotate to dispose of the diaper) because the blue ring inside the device interferes with the rotation. The problem is very common with the new model. Just go to [...] and read the complaints and the poor customer service reply. I followed the instructions from the customer service three times with no luck. I am going to return this piece of plastic to Babies R Us this afternoon.

After we tossed out the worthless Diaper Genie, we bought a Diaper Champ. It's a world of difference. This uses any trash bag, so you don't have to buy a proprietary bag pack. You just put the dirty diaper in the top, grab the handle, and flip the top over. Works great. There's only only little problem--if you toss wipes in the top, they can (and often do) get stuck in the mechanism and jam it up. I see some of the other reviewers noted this as well. We just stick the wipe inside the diaper when we toss it in, and then close up the diaper with the velcro. We almost never get a jam this way, and it helps keep the smell down when you change bags. I strongly recommend the Diaper Champ.

The lid doesn't turn and the blue lip gets stuck. You have to wrestle with this with both hands while holding the bottom with your foot. And the wipes fall out all the time. It's just AWFUL!!!

Short and sweet:
1) You use regular garbage bags.
2) One handed operation.
3) It holds a lot.
4) It is easy to use/empty/clean.
5) There is no smell at all.
6) It can fit in small areas.

If used correctly there is no odor at all. I think people experience an odor problem if they put things in the "chute" that don't belong and it begins to rip the seal as things get caught when it rotates back and forth.

I've tried the diaper genie and several other diaper pails. Nothing compares to this. Not even close. This is BY FAR the best.

I opted to buy a Diaper Champ over a Diaper Genie because I didn't want to have to buy special bags to fit inside, and the Champ seemed easier to use. It is VERY easy to use! Target plastic shopping bags fit perfectly (but be sure to turn them inside out or you'll have red all over the inside of the Champ from the red bulls eyes on the bags). I always roll up the wipes in the diaper and secure with the tabs before putting it in the Champ. The only time I've ever had a problem with a diaper getting stuck (or basically the handle not flipping over) is when the Champ is full. I would definitely recommend changing out the bag every 2-3 days to minimize the stink...sometimes we go a week before changing out the bag and it does get quite stinky. I wipe the Champ down with bleach cleaner every time we switch out the bag and I also spray it with an antibacterial/odor eliminating spray on a daily basis to try and minimize the odor. Overall, this is a great product and I highly recommend it!

Do you like wrestling with a big plastic bin?

Do you like opening up the cover to see why the mechanism is jammed every time you try to dispose of a diaper?

Do you like having to open the cover and shove down the diapers after only a few are in there?

If so, this is the product for you.

If not, may I recommend making an investment in a quality trash can with a lid that closes. That's about as good as you're going to get with these diaper pale products.

My wife and I are dealing with our newborn and we are using cloth diapers. We generate many per day, meaning that even if this device worked as promised, which it does not, we would still need to empty it several times a week into a larger bag for collection by our didy service. Consider whether you enjoy moving dirty diapers from one plastic bag to another.

But that hardly matters, because the device does not work properly anyway. I'd say when the device is completely empty, it jams two out of three times. When it is half full or more, it jams 100% of the time.

Seriously, I have never seen a more poorly engineered product in my life.

Ever.

Stay away.

PS -- Why is zero stars not an option?

Good item for a diaper pail that taks regular trash bags. The only hang up of this pail is that the handle sometimes sticks on the turning mechanism. You have to wiggle it a bit to get the diaper to go down. All in all I really like this.

I purchased this pail because I wanted to have the option to use regular trash bags to refill it instead of the expensive custom diaper pail refills. The pail is ok but does not have a lot of space and fills up quickly. Also, the handle does get stuck quite often. Baby wipes tend to get stuck in the flip top and shoot back up at you. To open the main compartment takes a bit of wrangling as it is a button that has to be pressed while lifting up the lid. After 6 months of use I'm not really happy with the overall design, ease of use and will be purchasing a different system.

Placed the order within the time limit I had before the baby shower....the mother-to-be wanted the pink one. I was notified 5 days before the party that they didn't have it in stock and they wanted me to order the white one intstead. When I palced the original ordered, the pink was in stock. Talk about blotching an order!! *grr*
The product arrived AFTER the party. I was not pleased.

When and if the opportunity shall rise again to get this fabulous product....I'll go to Babies-R-Us instead of Baby Age! >:(