Buying a Breast Pump
Emily writes “I’m looking at buying a breast pump and would like a bit of advice/recommendations. I am currently breastfeeding exclusively and wanting to get a pump for a bit more freedom. I intend to pump between once a day and four times a week, for maybe a feed for dad/grandparent to do and/or when heading out of the house. My boy is currently 5.5 weeks old”
Maybe Emily’s question sounds familiar to something you are thinking? So we will try and answer in general to put this on a blog.
The type of breast pump that I recommend always depends on how often you plan on using it – as some are only suitable for low use. Low use would be classified as 1-2 times per week, in which case I recommend any of the manual breast pumps. (If you are going to be pumping any more often than twice a week, its definitely worth upgrading to an electric pump so that expressing doesn’t become a chore.)
Its also a great idea to use a pump to give yourself some freedom, so that others can help with feeding time too – make sure they wash the bottles for you too!! Based on a planned usage of four times per week, I would recommend an electric breast pump. Either the Medela Mini Electric, or the Unimom Allegro Breast Pump would be suitable for this frequency.
The Unimom Allegro Breast Pump has a slight advantage in that it can be used as a manual pump
(you just need to purchase the “switch kit” for the correct pieces) whereas the Medela Mini
electric can only be used as an electric. The Unimom Allegro Breast Pump can also be adapted to double pump (if you buy an extra breastshield kit) as the motor has enough capacity to use as a double pump if you decide to do that in the future. So this gives you a good backup/upgrade plan if you need to pump more often in the future.
If you had needed to express 3-4+ times per day, then I would suggest the Unimom Forte double pump, or the Medela Swing, or Medela Swing Maxi double. These are all similar in performance, the double pumps just have the advantage of taking less time. The Unimom Forte is a good value purchase at this price.
Let me know if you have any other questions, I’m happy to help. And I know it gets confusing
Franny x
