Cleaning bottles...

phxgirl5 · December 2012

Ok so I am a first time mom and went out and bought this electric steamer to sanitize the bottles in. I have since taken it back because everything I have read is that you can just stick them in the dishwasher to clean them. Then you can just sanitize them with those bags or boil them in water like once a week.

So here is my question... What do you ladies do? Thanks in advance!!!

Wufroggy79 · December 2012

The dishwasher is fine, but I never did it. I only had six bottles because we had some expensive Avent ones, and I never ran my dishwasher often enough to have enough clean bottles. I used my Avent microwave sterilizer every single day for all of year one. I loved that thing. Super quick and easy.

nanabanana06 · December 2012

I just used hot soapy water and used the dish washer as a sanitizer. Since essentially that's all a dishwasher does, sanitizes. I never bought any of the fancy sterilizers. I personally find them to be a huge waste.

Mamapoo · December 2012

I wash them with free and clear dish soap with a bottle brush. Every other day I run then through the dishwasher.

NotSharknado · December 2012

I boiled them for the first year every couple of weeks. Now just hot soapy water.

ATMmom324 · December 2012

I washed them with hot water and soap or in the dishwasher depending. If I needed a bottle and the dishwasher wasn't ready to run I did by hand.

kmm2150 · December 2012

We bought enough bottles for several days of daycare and usually wash them in the dishwasher every few days, just along with our regular dishes. I have one of the little baskets to hold small parts like nipples and also pacifiers, and pit the bottles themselves in the top rack like glasses. After the first time I've never sterilized them again.

phxgirl5 · December 2012

Thank you all for your responses!! I am glad I took the steamer thing back!

shibby00 · December 2012

I used the evenflo glass bottles and always put them in the dishwasher. I did not have time to be sanitizing bottles!

ridesbuttons · December 2012

I think soap and water and a bottle brush and air drying is ok. It's what I did with the same 4 bottles I used for 2 kids.

Manateearmz · December 2012

I hand washed mine on a nightly basis. The one time I tried to put them in the dishwasher it fell from the top rack and melted into the bottom of the dishwasher.

Smootchy · December 2012

MrsSkull1107:
I boiled them when I first opened them. After that, I just washed them with hot, soapy water and put them on a bottle drying rack.nbsp;

Same

[If there are dirty bottles and I'm running the dishwasher and there's open space, I'll throw em in]

brinaroze1 · January 2013

kmm2150:
We bought enough bottles for several days of daycare and usually wash them in the dishwasher every few days, just along with our regular dishes. I have one of the little baskets to hold small parts like nipples and also pacifiers, and pit the bottles themselves in the top rack like glasses. After the first time I've never sterilized them again.

So it's safe to run the bottles with your dirty dishes? I was wondering about food particles and such getting up in the bottles/nipples/etc. I live in a house with a bunch of "boys" and our dishwasher is old, so I didn't know if it was a good idea to use the dishwasher. I guess if I thought a load was especially gross, I could hand wash to be on the safe side. I hate washing dishes by hand.

thetheisens · January 2013

I always just ran the bottles in the dish washer on the sanitize cycle. Dh is pretty anal about almost completely washing the dishes before putting them in the dish washer. I only had 5 bottle for dc because I bf at home. We just threw the bottles in the dish washer with the rest of the dishes at night and than ran the normal cycle followed by the sanitize cycle. He is still alive and healthy, so I assume it worked out alright.

ASmallWonder · January 2013

MrsSkull1107:
I boiled them when I first opened them. After that, I just washed them with hot, soapy water and put them on a bottle drying rack.

This. Plus if he was sick. The doctor made it a point to remind me that the minute you pull them from the sterilizer/boiling water, they're no longer sterile and they're exposed to the same germs floating around your house that they're always exposed to. Like I said, it he was sick, I did them again.

[Deleted User] · January 2013

elmoali:
MrsSkull1107:
I boiled them when I first opened them. After that, I just washed them with hot, soapy water and put them on a bottle drying rack.
This. Plus if he was sick. The doctor made it a point to remind me that the minute you pull them from the sterilizer/boiling water, they're no longer sterile and they're exposed to the same germs floating around your house that they're always exposed to. Like I said, it he was sick, I did them again.

This. I think I only used the steamer bags once. Plopping them in hot water is fine to sterilize, which didn't need to be done but rarely.

missyishere · January 2013

Like others, I wash with hot water and soap using bottle brush. If they start to become stinky, I put a dab of dilutes vinegar in them before washing them thoroughly. I also boil on occasion. DH uses dishwasher, but I find it doesn't clean as well as I can hand washing.