Wipe Warmer...yes or no?

[agomalley]

After reading about wipe warmers in the BB book, I'd decided not to get one. Now, I'm second guessing myself. Are they worth it? Are they safe? Which ones are best? Thanks~ Anabelle

[Zansu]

I'd say skip the wipe warmer. It's just one more thing to have to keep on top of the changing area, one more plug to worry about, and one more item to store or donate when you get tired of it.

We had one, and used it for a week or two. It seemed as if the wipes were barely warmer than the air temp, and they were drier than wipes straight from the package.

The other consideration is whether your baby gets used to warm wipes at home, and therefore makes a big fuss when you're out b/c the wipes are cooler than s/he is used to.

Some people swear by them, so it just depends on your preference.

HTH
Suzanne
W&P for Benjamin 5/1/02

[KathyO]

I've never used one, and never missed it. And besides, it's one more item taking up space on/in the change table, and one more plug to find an outlet for, and one more cord/object to keep baby away from when they get mobile. As someone on this board pointed out, if your baby has a problem with room-temperature wipes, you can just scrunch it in your hand for a second and presto - takes the chill off.

HTH,

KathyO

[juliasdad]

I vote skip.

We never used one, and Julia has always been fine.

DW has met two different parents in changing rooms where their babies cried and screamed because their wipes were cool and they had wipe warmers at home.

-dan

[Karenn]

I say don't bother. We had one for a while. We turned it off when we went of vacation and forgot to turn it back on when we got home. Colin never noticed the difference. Also, despite advertising to the contrary, it did tend to dry out the wipes and discolor them.

[Momof3Labs]

I also say skip it. We've never missed it either.

[celfsh]

Hmmm, I wasn't planning on getting one of these either, but my brother gave it to us as a gift and we ended up keeping it. I don't know that I really have a strong opinion on it one way or the other. It DOES keep the wipes warmer; however, DD doesn't seem to notice a difference when we change her away from home and the wipes are cold. As for taking up extra space, you have to put the wipes somewhere whether you use a warmer or not, so that is really a non-issue for me. Although, I DO think it looks nicer in the room than a big bag of wipes...

Bottom-line? I wouldn't have bought it myself, but since it was a gift... :)

HTH!

celeste
mom to olivia 9/25/02

[C99]

We have one. Nate was a preemie and HATES having his diaper changed. We thought it was b/c of the coldness of the wipes so got the warmer. He still fusses, but now he only fusses when we put a new dipe on instead of throughout the whole thing.

hth

[ktdid74]

I didn't have one the first time cause we lived in Texas and it was summer. This time I bought one because we're living in Maine and it's been one heck of a cold winter. I figure I'll keep it next to my bed for those nighttime diaper changes so it's not so shocking.

Katie
mom to Brendan 6/8/00
#2 due 3/31/03

[jfolker]

We we weren't planning on getting one either, but a friend loaned us theirs when their baby outgrew it. It did work fine, and it was handy when our baby got some diaper rash (we didn't know that we needed to DRY his butt before putting the cream on). He did't fuss as much with the warm wipes. But he doesn't seem to care one way or the other now. It may just be that he's slightly older (10 weeks), and the whole diaper change process doesn't bother him so much.

My advise is that if you get one as a gift, keep it, but I wouldn't bother to buy one.

Jim
Dad to Nathan 12/20/02

[petersmom]

We live in Michigan, and this year has been COLD! We really like the warmer, especially for middle of the night changes. It does dry the wipes, but for $15 it's not bad.
Peters mom

[mam615]

Got one as a shower gift, and figured we'd keep it. If baby cried over cold wipes, we'd use it. But she never cried, so we returned it. Her wipes are often pretty cold, but she actually seems to like them that way (maybe the cold soothes any itch or rash down there?). I'd let your baby decide for you. If you do buy one, keep the packaging and make sure it's easily returnable.

[Sarah1]

If you haven't had your baby yet, your best bet is to wait and see how he/she acts during the diaper changes before buying this. You can always order it online really cheaply and quickly.

For the first couple o fmonths, my daughter SCREAMED every time she had her diaper changed, and getting the warmer really seemed to help. Of course, for the first month we didn't even use the wipes because they were too irritating and gave her a rash (you should really use just warm water on a cotton pad). Talk about a pain, carrying her with me to the sink to fill up a little tub of warm water before each diaper change. But I digress. When we started to use the wipes when she was around 1 month old, I was really happy I had the warmer.

Also, what kind of climate do you live in? I live in Chicago and my baby was born during the winter, when it was really chilly. Had she been born in the summer, who knows.

I know people hav ea lot of complaints about the warmers discoloring the wipes, causing damage to their tables, etc. 2 things: 1) put the warmer on a folded up hand towel, so it won't do any damage to your table. 2) Leave the same few wipes on the bottom of the warmer all the time. They get dried up from the heat (this is inevitable) and that way you aren't wasting more wipes than you need to.

I've found the warmer useful. And my daughter doesn't mind when she is wiped with a cold wipe (we spent almost 2 weeks at grandparents w/no wipe warmer), so I don't think you need to be concerned that you can never go back to cold wipes.

P.S. Forgot to menion, I have the Prince Lionheart warmer. This is basically the only one there is, and it's also the one I hear people complain about. But like I said, it's worked for me...again, wait and see how your baby does without the warmer before you buy one.