Smarter, greener & kicking the economy to the curb

Breast Pump Info/Experience to share?

I am pregnant with my first child and am the main bread winner for my household. Therefore - I plan on being a working, breastfeeding mom. I have started looking at pumps and got completely overwhelmed with all the options, the price-ranges (I don't really have $300+ to spend on a pump).
Does anyone have any experience or insight to share? Also - re: buying used pumps: I know you can but replacement tubing, but is there a way to replace EVERYTHING the milk touches for a reasonable price? (I'm not comfortable with the sanitary issues).
Any info you all have to share about pumps or just tips/advice on pumping in general would be much appreciated.
Amy

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Permalink Reply by dalewhither on June 17, 2009 at 11:21pm: The breast pumps are available in 3 models like manual, battery operated and electric. The manual breast pumps are the least expensive and most popular. These are light weight and can be carried easily. The battery operated model breast pumps are also portable but are slow in pumping. Whereas the Electric breast pumps are more popular than the others because of its efficiency and speed. They are more comfortable for the working mothers.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Latrisha Fall on June 21, 2009 at 1:08am: I don't know if you qualify for WIC but if you do they loan you pumps for free. And for as long as you need them. And they only part of them pump that is reused is the actual machine all the attachments are new for each mother and you don't return them,; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Vanessa Santos on June 25, 2009 at 2:41pm: First make sure your employer knows that you intend to breast feed after returning to work and that you will need to take 10-15 breaks often through out the day. You also need to make sure you have a safe place to keep it durring the day.. Cooler? I bought a double breast pump by evenflo for under 100.00 I believe at Target. It worked awesome. It had variable speeds.. Dishwasher safe. Most pumps come with silicone breast cup covers that can be removed and I assume replace just like the tubing. My pump worked with almost anysize baby bottle.. not just the ones that it came with, so those could be replaced also. My suggestion is go with the double breast pump so you can pump more faster durring the work day. Make sure they run on batteries and a charger and have variable speeds. Do not buy a manual pump if you plan on getting any work done they can be very slow!! Pumping is a little intimidating the first few times.. especially if you set it on turbo :) But hang in there. Good Luck!!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Barbie Bagley on July 13, 2009 at 12:47pm: I had the evenflo double pump and I hated it. Didn't work well at all for me. I ended up switching to the modela single pump. I had an electric and a handheld one. Both worked great.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Egleis Ramirez on October 11, 2009 at 8:33pm: I use the Ameda Truly Yours double electric pump and in my opion it's great. I'm a SAHM so I don't use it that often, but it's meant for daily use...so it would work great for working moms. If you search the internet you can find it for as low as $160 I think..if you want the bag which you might since you be transporting it to work with you...then it'll cost a little more, but it's worth it. The lactation consultant at the hospital advised me not to pump untill the baby was 4wks or more because the baby is much more effective at getting the milk and that's very important in the first few weeks when your body is building supply.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Amy Laban on October 18, 2009 at 8:41am: Thanks for the info. Sorry about your difficulties, I hope things are going well now. I ended up buying a Medela PIS new. I doubled up on coupons and got it for $80 off retail. I have used it a couple of times when Violet refused to eat and think it's going to work great!
Good luck to you and your little one.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Egleis Ramirez on October 17, 2009 at 9:47pm: The lactation consultants at the hospitals will recommend the medela brand but it's very expensive. The Ameda is a great pump...it's fast and effective. I've also read that the Lansinoh is of equal quality. My sister-in-law let me use her Playtex Embrace and it took me a long time just to get a few ounces. The one thing I really liked is the shields...they were so comfortable. More comfortable than the Ameda or the Medela, but just not fast enough. Don't get a manual pump no matter what anyone says...it takes for ever and your hand will be hurting from all that manual pumping...plus it's not even dual.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by noni2009 on October 18, 2009 at 6:34pm: If you have $50 - $60 I HAVE to recommend the manual Avent ISIS breast pump that's mostly sold anywhere!!! I have a 2 and 3 year old and both were breast fed babies. i had tried so many different types becuase my milk production wasn't that much but this pump was by far the BEST I have ever used!!! It has patented petals that help with let down and no noise of course!!! (I had electric ones that were EXTREMELY loud!!!) I went back to work and they allowed me to pump at the same time every night that I worked and pumpin was 1-2-3 and I would store the bottles in the fridge and voila!!; ▶ Reply to This