Recommendations for duo breast pumps?

[zebra15]

HI,
I am expecting twins in September and wonder if there are recommendations for which duo breast pumps work best. I have been told to go for the Avent Isis Duo, but looks like there are also hospital grade Ameda and Medela pumps that one can hire? Which machine works best? Should I hire or buy?
Many thanks!

I used an Ameda double that was passed on to me and it was so old it broke within a few days of using it! It also wasn't very comfortable and it was tricky adjusting the speed when holding two bits to your boobs! Luckily I had a Medela Swing single and just bought another of these. They are fantastic pumps because they simulate a baby feeding by starting fast then slowing once your let down happens. Its much more efficient than a single speed. The other bonus is you can buy them 2nd hand and a single will be easier to sell on. I am still breastfeeding at 8 months and couldn't have done without them in the first 6 weeks (check out Gina Ford's advice about expressing because although hard work it really helps with milk supply and coping with growth spurts). I am a midwife too and would recommend Medela pumps in general - I used a single hand pump with my older son and it was also excellent. Hope this helps and good luck...I found twins easier than one!!! (By the way, with Medela pumps you can buy bigger/smaller cup pieces if the standard ones that come with your pump doesn't fit well. This is important to avoid chafing and soreness when expressing and I don't think other pump makes do this. Got mine at expressyourself website).

I spent over £100 on a top of the range Medela pump from Mothercare and hated it - made a noise like a rowing machine and left me a bit traumatised! My twins went through special care so I expressed for Britain and ended up hiring a SMB pump from here. Was brilliant, allowed me to do both sides at the same time. Was bottling over a litre a day, my DH suggested I open my own dairy . Wish I had hired to start with rather than buying one.

They do next day delivery so I would suggest waiting to see how you get on and order one if you need to.

A mum at my local twins group put together a useful doc on feeding twins, you can download it here. While I don't agree with all her advice but it is a useful read with lots of good tips.

I hired a Medela double pump from Manchester but have lost the number, sorry. I am sure you could find it on the net. It was brilliant, quiet and super efficient and the service was great - they couriered it to the door and when it broke (once in about 6 months) they replaced the parts immediately. It meant I fed my twins for nigh on 9 months. Would highly recommend it. Good luck! I also managed to find extra Medela bottles on line.

A friend gave me an Ameda Lactaline personal - a double pump for home use but they call it 'professional grade'. I found it very easy to use, comfortable and quick.

I used the Philips Avent double pump (which I think is the same as the one you were recommended). It works fine. You can vary the intensity of suction somewhat, and the speed as much as you like. It works better if it isn't too dry - still covered in steam from the steriliser is best.

The only real problem with it is that the comedy expressing bras (sorry, they do look totally ridiculous) are not designed to work with the Avent pump. I still did use the bra, but it was awkward.

I found I was able to express much more using a single Avent Isis than a double, hospital-grade electric Medela. Took me about 7 mins on each side as opposed to 20 mins in total, and I could walk around and do other things at the same time, which sounds ridiculous but I reckon when you're pumping for twins, any possible multitasking time is useful!

I found the Ameda Lactaline fabulous. Quiet too.

My twins were born prem so got used to expressing using a hospital grade pump in SCBU. Used both an Ameda one and a Medela one double pumping as it took so much less time than otherwise even if it does make you feel like Daisy the cow! Once boys were out of SCBU, borrowed one from the midwives/health visitors which i kept until finished expressing when boys were 10months old - try to find out if can do this from yours as it saves so much money!!!

Ameda Lactaline is great! Definitely recommend it and if you don't want to buy one of those breastfeeding tops to hold it in place, just get an old bra and cut 2 holes in it to hold the pumps in place and then you are hands free!!

I loved the medula hospital grade which you can hire from the medula website to arrive the next day. Brilliant customer service....

One snag, you can't actually turn it on if you are holding the receptacles to both breasts (no hands!). This caused much hilarity in our household and our 5 year old soon got the hand of hitting the on button (and not the increase flow switch!).