Large Bottles of Ready to Use Milk

[KoalasAteMyHomework]

We've recently switched to using the ready made sterile formula and bought the 1 litre bottles of formula that last in the fridge for 48 hours. I know they last 2 hours at room temp but can you transport feeds/keep with a cool bag for 4 hours like you do with powdered stuff?
I do have some of the little 200ml bottles to use when out and about if I need to, but it's already costing a fortune using ready made all the time as it is, and at least the litre bottles work out a little cheaper than 75p a feed if I use the small bottles.

So, is there a way or is it a case of using a small bottle each feed if I'm out for the day? I presume if I go round someone's house I can pour the milk into sterilised bottles before I go and just pop them in the fridge?

If you put it in a cold/hot bag surely it will be fine for a couple of hours, I am guessing it starts to form bacteria when its introduced to heat outside of the fridge after opening... so as long as it is kept cold should be fine.

Just use a small bottle if you’re planning to go out.

I know it costs a bit more, but I’d happily pay a small premium to avoid the headspace of worrying about keeping the opened big bottle cool enough.

I found the big bottles leaked really easily as well!

Why are you using ready made? I had a friend who did as she was too intimidated to make up from powder.

Thanks HJWT.

Sorry Grapefruit, I meant putting the milk in feeding bottles and keeping them cool rather than carrying the whole big bottle around as yes, can imagine that would leak and be harder to keep a large bottle cool. But probably best to just stick to the small bottles when out then.

I have done powder for 3 weeks (and used powder with my first DS) but am finding it essentially massively stressful to feed on demand whilst following the guidelines. DS1 has SEN and is currently settling in to a new school which is a 25 min drive away and he only goes for 3 hours at a time presently. So I am spending 50 mins in the car, 2 hours at home and then back in the car again which makes it tricky with the powder and all the faff with boiling the kettle, waiting for it to cool etc etc (not to mention the amount of water wastage!) especially if DS2 is already hungry by the time we arrive home. Also DS2 is getting bad colic and bouts of constipation and I was told the ready milk can sometimes make their stools looser so hoping it helps a little bit. It's obviously massively expensive to use the ready milk but I have a LOT on my plate at the moment so DH and I just decided it was worth the expense for easing some of my stress. I did try and make up feeds in advance and store in the fridge even though you're not supposed to (although WHO guidelines say it's ok) but even finding time to make the bottles up was proving tricky and I wanted to ensure that doing it that way wasn't causing the bad wind/colic.

Sorry that was quite an essay!

This outlines how to make up feeds in advance safely

www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/micro/PIF_Bottle_en.pdf

I’d do that and buy small ready made when you’re out.

I used to do 4 at a time

Thanks Missanony that's the advice I was already following when I made feeds up. I was using within 12 hours where possible. But with everything going on at the moment we are just going to stick to ready made for now.

To conclude that for speed, in order of ideal formula prep:

1. Make up fresh
2. Make up, rapid cool and fridge for up to 24 hours. Heat when needed.
3. Room temp water plus powder and consumed immediately

I'd only add formula to 70 degree water although appreciate other people might do the third option.

Hi

I would just use the small bottles when you are out, i know you don't want to use powder but i never waited 30 minutes for the kettle to cool with my 2nd baby as he would scream the place down, I just made it up with boiling water and then ran the bottle under the cold tap to cool it down...

No doubt someone will come along and say how dangerous this is but all three of my dc survived this method of making up formula

Or you could get one of those perfect prep machines?

I used ready mixed formula the whole time with my DD. I often used the 200ml cartons but also found that if poured from the big carton in the fridge into a sterilised bottle and kept in an insulated cool bag they’d stay cold for a few hours so I was happy doing that too.

For home I would seriously look into getting a perfect prep machine they are brilliant

Have you considered a prep machine Op? Total life saver!

Perfect Prep machine has been a game changer for us, bottle ready in 2 mins and no faffing of boiling the kettle/letting it cool etc etc.

I use that at home then small bottles of ready made for out about.

Thanks to the PP who linked to WHO guidelines, I didn't know you could make up in advance and use within 24 hrs - DS doesn't seem to mind it straight from the fridge so will make some up for night feeds tonight!

Thanks @MamaFlintstone that's good to know.

We had a perfect prep with DS1 but it got ruined in storage. And I'm also wary because of some of the stuff on watchdog since I had DS1 and the health teams advising not to use one. Am sure it's fine but we've decided ready milk is the best fit for our family right now.

I just use the little bottles for out and about, you can get them slightly cheaper on Amazon.

I think you will be fine to take them out and about for a few hours. I would treat it exactly the same as a made up bottle. In reality you'd probably have a bit more leeway since the ready made stuff is pasteurised, so by following guidelines for storing made-up bottles while out and about, you'd be erring on the side of caution.

I'm not sure why people are ignoring your actual question.

I also highly recommend a Perfect Prep, OP. It was a total game changer, the stress of making bottles literally disappeared overnight. The midwife recommended we waited until the baby was 6 weeks and had built up some degree of immunity which we did, but honestly if I was doing it again I would use the Perfect Prep straight away (the only upset tummy the baby ever had was before we started using the PP, and I’m convinced it was probably due to some error on my part during the whole boiling/cooling/reheating/slowly losing the plot process).

I use the PP at home, and to make bottles to take out and about in an insulated pouch if I know they’ll be used within 2 hours. Otherwise I use the 200ml ready made formula bottles.

Thanks @BertieBotts that makes logical sense.