Perfect Prep Machine

[Marshmallow1992]

I’m 29 weeks so starting to really think about routines etc. I will not be breastfeeding at all and wanted advice from any mums out there on the best way to make up formula. I know you aren’t meant to make bottles and leave in the fridge so is the perfect prep machine easier for making bottles then? Especially thinking for those night feeds early on. I’m worried about the cleanliness of the perfect prep machine and mould etc? My midwife told me to steer clear of it as it’s not safe but I’ve seen so many mums use them so really wanted to know from mums who formula fed the easiest way to make bottles and get into a routine. Thanks.

Hey so with my previous two bareing in mind every year it seems to change the best way to make bottles🙈. i use to make up 4-6 bottles and then keep them on the kitchen side to let them cool to room temperature ive never put them in the firdge. Then i just warmed them up as and when i needed them etc this has never caused any of my kids problems etc..

I have got a perfect prep machine this time im only 29 weeks and planned to use one but ive recently read of babies becoming ill from them because the tubes get mouldy easily so tbh im in two minds if to even use one or just to simply do it the way i always have. X

@Boymummy3 I have heard of that too and the midwife told me to steer clear! That’s why I’m asking but I know so many people that use them. Yeah you’re right it does change, my mum told me she made all mine in the morning then kept them in the fridge but the midwife told me not to do that and that you need to make them as you go. Just don’t want to have a screaming baby and then have to wait half an hour on the kettle cooling down to make the bottle! Don’t know what to do for the best that’s why the perfect prep seems like a good idea but put off it now.

It's not safe to keep bottles on the kitchen side. If they're made up in advance they need to be cooled quickly, stored in the coolest part of the fridge, and used within 24 hours.

I know some midwives and HCPs don't recommended it, but we used a perfect prep machine for our first. Currently 26 weeks pregnant and plan to use it for the second if breastfeeding doesn't work out. I've been scrupulous about cleaning it monthly and replacing filters as needed with the official tommee tippee ones. I wouldn't buy a second hand machine as you just don't know if it's been taken care of properly.

Another option, especially for night feeds in the early days, is the ready made formula that comes in cartons. It's more expensive, but there's none of the faffing about that you get with making up the powder version.

Bottles should either be made as required or made up with hot boiled water & cooled quickly in the fridge & used within 24 hours.
It has never been safe to make bottles & leave them to cool on the side. Formula needs to be mixed with hot water to kill any potential bacteria.

To me the Perfect Prep is a godsend- I never had mould as I followed the instructions. A lot of the stories about the mould turned out to be people not cleaning them properly or using non Tommee Tippee branded filters

Thanks for the replies,
So for night feeds, do you think I’d be safe making up the bottle in the evening, cooling it quickly, storing it in the fridge, then all I’d need to do is heat it up and feed through the night? That would make things so much easier!

If you're bottle feeding then a perfect prep machine will be the best thing that you buy. I bought two (one for home and one for caravan) second hand on Facebook. They are brilliant.

Also, you don't need to wait half an hour for the kettle to cool. Boil however much you need, give it a couple of minutes to cool so that it's no longer actually boiling but over 70 degrees, make up the bottle then cool under the tap or in a jug of ice water. Takes a just few minutes, although feels like forever when baby is screaming in the middle of the night!

I did it this way in the day for a while as I could tell when baby was starting to wake so had enough warning to get a bottle ready. Not so good at night though, we used ready made for night feeds till we got the perfect prep machine.

I also bought new filters and put it through the full clean and scale process before using with each one of them.

This is really helpful thank you!
What do you do when you’re out and about for say, the whole day? Do you make the bottles and then take them out with you and just feed them the cold bottle?
Sorry if I’m sounding really really silly here. FTM and absolutely no babies in the family since me 🙈 so don’t have a clue!

I loved the perfect prep. I cleaned it regularly, and used their filters. No issues with mould (I checked periodically). We used ready made when out of the house. Just chuck a sterilised bottle and a carton in your bag, when they’re ready for a feed you open and pour. It couldn’t be easier.

@expressedways and it doesn’t matter if the bottle is cold? Sounds really easy thank you.

Out and about we'd buy the ready made ones that you just pour into a sterilised bottle. My daughter was happy to have them at any temp luckily! They're about £3 odd for 4 but so easy to have on you. I always had some in the cupboards at home 'just in case' x

Can you still buy the cartons of ready to drink formula? They don’t need to be stored in the fridge. I kept them by the bed with a wee pair of scissors to open and a couple of sterilised bottles. Mega quick!

Mine was always happy to have it room temperature. It doesn’t have to be heated but some babies might have a preference for a warmer bottle. We also used ready made (at room temp) for the first couple of weeks- the smallest bottle the perfect prep will make is 4oz, and also for night feeds as it avoided going to the kitchen so I think she was fairly used to it.

Jazzy is right about the cost, so we only used them at night

We got a perfect prep machine this time around. Absolutely worth every penny!!! Asda had them for £60 recently too, mothercare also has a sale on them too at the moment.

To be honest it will take you longer to boil a kettle and warm a bottle than it would to make one fresh with the pp machine.

When we go out we used to use ready made bottles or cartons. Dd is now 12 weeks and I'll probably start making a bottle, cooling it quickly and taking it out in a cool bag soon rather than using ready made. But only if we need one or two bottles not a whole days worth.

The pp machines are fine if you run the cleaning cycle regularly and buy the proper tommee tippee filters.

Different countries have different advice. In Finland, you still store them in the fridge. In New Zealand, you make up bottles with COLD water. In the U.S, sterilising bottles isn't required because bottles tend to go in very hot dishwashers. It really doesn't matter that much unless you're stupid or filthy.
NHS guidelines tends to cater to the lowest common denominator. Congratulations on your baby!

Thank you so much everyone for your replies, very very helpful! I love the idea of the premade bottles for through the night, don’t even need to leave the bedroom!

@Marshmallow1992 i used a flask for overnight feeds. Fill it up before bed, take a jug of cold water, bottles and formula to bed. Make up bottle and stick it in the jug to cool, its so quick!

I kept clear of a perfect prep machine! They are so unhygienic with the mould etc. Plus you should make a bottle with boiling water and cool it for bacteria purposes which the prep machine doesnt. It uses 70 degree water, i dont think anyone can ignore what the professionals say on this one x

They are not recommended https://static1.squarespace.com/static/59f75004f09ca48694070f3b/t/5a5f913c0d92977380f39cbd/1516212541405/Statementonnformulapreparationnmachines_Nov+2016.pdf

Perfect prep machines are fine as long as you use the correct filters, change them on time, and run the clean cycle once a month. I am pretty sure that they found the mould to be calcium deposits which aren't harmful; and in all cases the users had used cheaper filters ie not the TT ones. Midwives tend to never recommend anything to make formula feeding easier, but that's another story! I would definitely get one, if you are out and about you can either use the ready made bottles, or just take a flask of boiling water, some cool perfect prep water, and you can buy travel tubs to put powder in rather than take the whole box, and a bottle. It sounds like a faff but it doesn't take long at all, and you soon get into the swing of it.

Midwives don't recommend them because they don't make the formula safely. It's not the filters, it's the 'shot' of water that cannot hold its temperature long enough to make the powder sterile.

I never liked the idea of a perfect prep machine for exactly that reason- mouldy tubes! Plus for the price of them they don’t actually do anything you can’t do yourself.

With my last (2015) I had a very high quality flask that kept water as close to boiling as possible for a few hours. When I needed a bottle say I was doing a 6oz bottle I’d do 3oz boiling water from the flask (obviously if your at home can use straight from the kettle- flask is for when out or in middle of night if you don’t want to go downstairs like I didn’t) in with the formula- mix. The if have bottles with 3oz of boiled, cooled water in the fridge which I would then add making it up to 6oz. This is exactly what the prep machine does anyway and for a fraction of the price.

We used the Perfect Prep for all 3 of ours.

Fantastic machine. Highly recommended. Just keep it clean, change the filter as required and follow the instructions.