?s about formula prep

Water_Wedding

Some comments I'm reading on the board make me doubt my understanding of what i thought were formula basics.

RTF is called that because it doesn't need to be refrigerated or heated right?

Can I leave several bottles with 4oz of water at room temperature and then add the 2 scoops of formula at feeding time?

Most formulas say the scoops should be loosely packed which means to me scoop it and level. I called the Similac feeding experts line and the woman said that meant scoop it, tap it on the counter and level. It's hard to believe that's right. Thoughts?

eb1113

I'm no expert in formula, but here's my understanding...

RTF -- not refrigerated unless you open it and say, pour some into a separate bottle.   We used those in the beginning, but Abbie was only eating 2-3 oz so we didn't use the whole bottle we had.

I have prepped bottles with only water and added the formula when needed. 

When I scoop the formula, I do what the Similac woman told you.  Otherwise, I have noticed pockets of air in the scoop.  

HTH

Water_Wedding

eb1113:

When I scoop the formula, I do what the Similac woman told you.  Otherwise, I have noticed pockets of air in the scoop.  

HTH

She mentioned the pockets of air too. Thanks!

IAM4UK

RTF can come in a variety of sizes. There are the 2oz. nursers that are great to use in the beginning when the babies are only eating 2oz. Those you can open and use right away with no refrigeration or heating.

There are also quart sizes where once opened, you need to refridgerate. You will then need to warm the bottle if your baby is picky, but sometimes a baby will take a cold bottle.

With powder, you can prep the bottles with water and add the powder as needed. The water will go to room temperature.

As far as scooping, I do what the Similac rep suggested.

MaddysMama07

RTF doesn't need to be refrigerated or heated.

 We put water in the bottle and then put the formula in when we need it. This works awesome at night. We fill 3 bottles and keep them on the nightstand and then we have one of the formula dispensers already filled with formula so at night we just have to open the bottle and pour in the formula.

 I do what you do when it comes to scooping the formula. I just scoop it and level it. I'd say if you tapped it on the counter that would be more "tightly packed" than "loosely packed."

Water_Wedding

Duplicate.

kmawb

I mix up a big batch of formula once a day (~20oz worth) in a large Nalgene bottle and store it in the fridge along with the little bottles of my pumped BM.  Then when it comes time to feed DD, we pour the necessary amount into a feeding bottle (we use NUKs) and heat it with a bottle warmer.  If there's any formula left in the big bottle when we reach the 24h since making it mark we toss it and mix up another big bottle (there's usually no more than an ounce or two left, so we're throwing out very little formula). The main reason for us doing this is that we feed DD 2oz of pumped BM first at every feed (I can't EBF due to low supply) and then give her formula to finish the feeding (this way we're sure she takes all of the BM and is only rejecting extra formula once she's full).  As for the powder we do the scoop, tap and level technique because of the air pockets in the scoop.

Mama_SAS

MaddysMama07:

RTF doesn't need to be refrigerated or heated.

 We put water in the bottle and then put the formula in when we need it. This works awesome at night. We fill 3 bottles and keep them on the nightstand and then we have one of the formula dispensers already filled with formula so at night we just have to open the bottle and pour in the formula.

 I do what you do when it comes to scooping the formula. I just scoop it and level it. I'd say if you tapped it on the counter that would be more "tightly packed" than "loosely packed."

Exactly this.

Plus I use the 2oz RTF bottles in the diaper bag for now, but I'll eventually just use water and the formula dispenser once we run out of 2oz bottles.