Cleaning your breast pump equipment

Read our essential guide to cleaning and disinfecting breast pump equipment to ensure your expressed breast milk is safe for your baby.

When you can’t feed your baby directly, expressed breast milk is simply the best food to give to your baby. Learning when and how to clean and disinfect breast pump parts between uses is vital to ensure your milk is safe to drink. The good news is, if you master the basics of cleaning and disinfecting your pumping equipment, your milk should be safe to keep in the fridge for up to five days or in the freezer for up to nine months – see our guide to storing, freezing and thawing breast milk for more advice.

Before you pump

All the parts of your breast pump that come into contact with your breasts or breast milk must be completely clean and dry (see below). But it’s not just your equipment that needs to be clean when expressing milk – so do you!

Before every pumping session, remember to wash your hands thoroughly with soap for at least 20 seconds, then rinse them and dry with a clean towel. There’s no need to wash your breasts, unless they have cream or cosmetics on them that aren’t compatible with breastfeeding¹ – if in doubt, check the packaging. Many lanolin-based nipple creams are fine to leave on while you express.

Tips for cleaning your breast pump equipment after use^1-3

After you’ve expressed, always wash any pumping equipment, such as bottles, valves and breast shields, that have touched your breasts or milk and then dry thoroughly so they’re ready for your next session.

• First, rinse off your pumping equipment with drinking-quality water (at around 20 °C/68 °F), to remove any milk proteins left behind.
• Then wash all parts with warm water (approximately 30 °C/86 °F) and washing-up liquid.
• Rinse the parts again with drinking-quality water for 15 to 20 seconds.
• Alternatively, you can wash the pump parts in the top rack of your dishwasher using your usual detergent and dedicated disinfection program (as recommended by the pump set manufacturer). Smaller parts can be placed in the cutlery section. Make sure in-bra milk collection cups, breast shields and breast milk bottles are facing downwards.
• Allow the parts to air-dry on a clean and dry dish towel or paper towel. It is important that all residual moisture dries completely.
• Breast pump tubing should not be washed. If tubing has water drops /condensation in after pumping, leave the tubing attached and run the pump for a few more minutes to quickly dry it out. If tubing appears soiled internally discard and replace with new tubing.³
• Don’t forget to check your breast pump instruction for use manual for specific cleaning guidelines.

How to disinfect your breast pump equipment

At least once a day, you’ll need to disinfect your pumping parts after washing them. You’ll also need to do this if your breast pump equipment is brand new or hasn’t been used for a while.

Disinfecting means that the equipment has been thoroughly cleaned of germs and bacteria. You may often hear people talking about ‘sterilising’ baby equipment or see products advertised as ‘sterilisers,’ but disinfecting is a more accurate term. It is impossible to completely sterilise equipment at home, even if you boil it, as our homes are not totally sterile environments. But disinfecting ensures equipment is perfectly safe for you and your baby.

Every product is different, so make sure you follow the disinfecting method recommended by your pump manufacturer, but generally you’ll probably use one of these methods:

• Boil. Place your pump parts in a large pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then keep boiling for at least five minutes, making sure all the parts stay submerged.
• Microwave. Put the pump parts in a microwaveable disinfecting bag or microwave steriliser and follow the manufacturer’s instructions for use.
• Steam. Use an electric steam steriliser, making sure in-bra milk collection cups, bottles and breast shields face downwards inside it.
• Sterilising fluid or tablets. Some people choose to use a cold-water ‘sterilising’ (chemical) solution. If you do, make sure all parts are submerged, with no trapped air bubbles, for at least 30 minutes (and discard the solution after 24 hours). Alternatively, you could use a disinfecting spray.

After disinfecting

Once you’ve disinfected your breast pump equipment, allow to dry off thoroughly before use:

• Remove the pump parts from the pan, microwave steam bag or steam steriliser using clean hands or clean tongs. Be careful not to scald yourself!
• Shake off any excess water, then air-dry.
• Place the parts on a clean surface or in a clean and dry storage container.

Washing your pumping equipment after use and disinfecting thoroughly at least once a day, will ensure your breast milk is safe to store for your baby.

For additional information around cleaning your breast pump parts there are how to videos at www.Medela.com in our breast pump product pages.