Steriliser to use with Medela pump & wide bottles?

[japhrimel]

Please bear with me...v confused first time Mum-to-be! I would've posted this in "Products" but there doesn't seem to be a place for steriliser questions???

Anyway... I've decided to get a steriliser to use with my pump and to then use with bottles for expressed BM and if we end up mix-feeding.

I'd like to get it before baby arrives as we're budgeting for baby stuff now and I can't imagine I'll have more time to look at options after baby is here!

But I'm so confused as to what to get.

I want an electric steriliser that will take the bits from the Medela Swing pump, and that will also take wide-necked bottles and preferably multiple brands of bottles.

I had thought to get the Tommy Tippee steriliser as I was going to get Closer To Nature bottles to try first. But some of the reviews are bad - saying it leaks, etc.

The Avent steriliser has better reviews and I like the digital option and the fact it stays sterile for 24 hours (especially as I'll only be using it for the pump at first). But I can't find/work out if it will take wide necked bottles. Anyone know?

The Lindam Universal steriliser looked like a good option but I think it doesn't actually keep things sterile???

How on earth do you choose these things?

I found the best thing was a cold water steriliser. basically a 5 litre bucket and you put milton sterlising solution in it. It sterilises all in 15 mins. No need to panic if you get a power cut and i used medela swing and tom tipp bottles and it all fits in. It only costs £9.99!!!

I think most bottles fit most sterilisers tbh. The wide neck bottles are pretty much the same circumference.

If it's any use I have the Tomee Tippee microwave steriliser and it takes most bottles and my Medela pump too. It was reduced in the sale at Mothercare.

Think most sterilisers keep things sterile for a period if kept locked inside. Wouldn't worry about it needing to be sterile for 24 hours. It doesn't take much just to refill the steriliser and stick in microwave again if needed.

As an aside, one piece of advice would be not to put breastshields from a breastpump in the steriliser - I melted mine.... now they get a clean with very hot water or a trip through the dishwasher on the top shelf.

If you are planning to BF, and things go ok-ish to start with, then I don't think you really need to overthink this one yet, tbh. If you do express, you need very few bottles and 'kit' - and if you suddenly have to switch to formula, there's the internet and next day delivery for everything you'll need. I'd get the smallest cheapest steam steriliser you can right now, that's sufficient for a few bottles and small bits and bobs like dummies - then I'd wait and see how it all goes.

If you've got the medela swing, and the bottles/teats that come with it, you've got enough to get started, IMO. After all (not to be a wet blanket) you don't know yet if you can express easily, or if your baby will take a bottle, even. No reason at all why it should be a problem, but you don't want to get stuck with expensive kit you never use.

If equipment only comes into contact with breast milk, no need to use sterliser. (Advice given by midwife at the Portland).

I think you will see similar advice on other threads.

I never used sterliser and DS (13 months) is fine and well.

I've got the medula pump and just use cold water sterilisation. Easy and simple to use.

Hi japh I would get cold water, Tommee Tippee do one for about a tenner, as do Boots. You can keep things sterile for as long as you like so its not a prob if you don't use the equipment often.
Most of the ones available fit both kind of bottle but you will fit more standard ones than wide neck.

yes, i no longer sterilise my pump/bottles. the key thing is washing them in really hot soapy water, rinsing them and air drying them/drying them with kitchen roll. although the lactation consultant at the hospital told me this very early on, i did start off sterilising as i was paranoid, but just used a bucket from a pound shop and milton for cold water sterilising.

Yeah, I'm still not sure as to whether to bother with a steriliser.

I'm getting all set up for expressing as I want to build up a stash of ebm as soon as possible after baby arrives because if I have to go back on my meds for my Fibro (chronic condition I have) then I'll have to quit breastfeeding.

If that happens, we'll probably end up mix-feeding with frozen ebm, so would need a steriliser for formula bottles. Maybe I should just leave it for now....

I've been using the tommee tippee electric steriliser and haven't had any problems with it. That being said I think for your circumstances cold water sterlising might be best.

It's the bucket-and-milton method in our house. Quick, cheap and has the major advantage that you can bung things in in advance and they stay sterile for 24 hours. With steam sterilisers, you are supposed to re-do things after a few hours, I seem to remember.

I had same pump and bottles as you and used Avent steriliser- worked fine. Added Milton bucket when I exclusively expressed for 3 weeks early on and, due to thrush, needed a separate breastshield for each breast and lots of bottles. Both sterilisation methods worked fine, now use steam for dummies and cold water fir teethers.