electric steam steriliser for hard water area

[aendr]

Hi,

Can you recommend a steam steriliser which will cope with very hard water? Preferably which will take 2 sets of pump components (one for each side).

Thanks,

AEndr

Back story:

With my first child I needed to do a lot of expressing (as we didn't ever manage to actually breastfeed.) We got a really good pump - Ameda - but the parts cannot be microwaved. In our hard water area, the Philips Avent steriliser we had packed in repeatedly (even just after descaling) and I had to re-run the sterilisation cycle in order to get through to the end of the cycle. This of course was a complete pain in the middle of the night ready for the next pumping session. I was actually relieved when we moved completely over to formula and could just use a microwave steriliser (though had lots of negative feelings about failing to breastfeed).

I'm now expecting my second child, and we expect to have many of the same physical breastfeeding difficulties again. If I manage to breastfeed, I still want to express sometimes so that my husband and the grannies can do some of the feeds. If I don't, then I want to express to get as much breastmilk into her as reasonably possible. As we don't want to change our really good pump, we need to find a steriliser that isn't a microwave one which will cope with our really hard water.

I don't want to cold water sterilise as the smell of the solutions invariably make me feel ill.

just a thought but could you fill the steam steriliser with previously boiled water from the kettle or bottled water?
Also when I was searching for a new washing machine, you know they have, customers also bought bits, there was a device that you fit onto the pipes that softens the water before it goes into the washing machine don't know if that could be used on your cold water tap?

I'm not convinced by water softeners, and I think boiling probably acts to remove water rather than solids, and bottled waters aren't necessarily that soft. But you gave me the idea of getting distilled water, and that would only cost another 40p or so per cycle, which isn't toooo bad weighed against the hassle of the machine failing.

[http://www.h2olabs.co.uk/?gclid=CJ6RlZHM1qICFds_3god7wMX0w] is this worth the price? what else would you use distilled water for?

don't know why that link hasn't worked?

Can you not just boil the bits?

jenroy: no, not really. One can use it for steam irons too.
LilRedWG: I can, but I can still remember last time after the 3am pumping trying to get it ready for the next session; I can't see myself wanting to watch a boiling pot in preference to crawling back into bed and trying to sleep for as long as possible before the baby wakes up yet again.