Stupid question about sterilising bottles -

[GinsterCowgirl]

I'm sure I'm being stupid but Please can someone advise me. When I've sterilised 4 bottles in a microwave steriliser how do I keep the spare ones sterilised until I need them later that day? On the instructions it says as soon as you take the lid of they're not sterilised anymore - not a problem for the one I need at that time but what about the other three? Is it ok to leave them in there & put the lid back on or should they be dried & the lids put on?
Thank you

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

No idea sorry but if you ask MNHQ to move this to infant feeding, you should get someone who knows

[Christelle2207]

When you open the steriliser put the lids back on and seal. I don't dry as that would expose more germs.
Use them within a day or two, sorted

[DawnMumsnet]

Hi, we're moving this thread over to our Infant Feeding topic now.

[sycamore54321]

I believe the advice is to assemble all the bottles once you open the ateriliser, and then they can be considered sterile for 24 hours after the steriliser finished. I don't have a link to an official source though.

[sycamore54321]

Oh and do not dry them, touch them only with tongs which you have also sterilized alongside the bottles. The condensation is nothing to worry about.

[GinsterCowgirl]

Thank you very much

[whereintheworld5]

That's for asking this question. I have the same confusion.
I have another related question so I'll add it here. ... if I boiled water and and stored it in the bottles how long is the water sterile for.
Most of my friends do this and then add powder to cooled sterile water but this seems flawed because then the powder doesn't get sterilised.
But, how about I make up the formula exactly as instructed by the tin (i.e using freshly boiled water) then instead of having to wait for the formula to cool I add the cooled sterile water to chill it instantly.
Is this safe?