manual vs electric breast pump?

[HoolenT]

Hello ladies!

I am hoping to do breast and bottle feeding so that OH can share some of the feeding. I am going to have to express in order to do this and wondered the difference between manual and electric pumps, other than of course one is electric and costs more! Are the manual ones just as easy to use? Is there a real benefit to the electric ones? Anyone got any experience they can pass on to me, this is my first so a complete newby to this and a bit lost........

 

[Cloberella]

I have been wondering about this as well, I think we will have a bit more money than we thought post Christmas and I'm thinking of spending a bit more on a breast pump than I originally planned.

I'd be interested to know what people think too

 

[Wiggler]

I had a manual pump last time, it was great, but I got really bad armache using it so this time I will be buying an electric pump. With a newborn and a toddler to run around after its much more convenient for me. x x x

 

[KandyKinz]

With my first I had a cheap Gerber breast pump and it sucked.... and not in a good way!

With my second I purchased an avent manual breast pump and it was absolutely wonderful! I went back to uni full time when my daughter was 8 weeks old so a good pump was essential. Then when she was 6 months old I had to go in for surgery and when I was in the hospital they let me use the double electric medela pump while I was there and found that the volume of milk I was able to express with that was much less then it was for me to pump both breasts seperately with my manual over the same period of time so I ended up getting hubby to bring in my manual avent for me. On the flip side, I know of several several women who absolutely swear by the electric medela pumps....

 

[MrsBandEgglet]

Got the electric vote here. I exclusively expressed up until Arf was 6 months and I used the Medela Swing, it was awesome!! Before I was EE I had the Medela Mini Electric which I would defo recommend, highly

 

[2016]

I heard the manual pumps take ages and are a pain. However, I have also heard loads of bad reviews from people who bought the Tommee Tipee electric pump (which is always on offer....hmmmm I wonder why).
I have just bought a Medela Swing because so many people on the parenting forum were raving about it!

 

[MrsBandEgglet]

I've heard manual pumps are good but I am prone to CPS so it would be too uncomfortable after a while. I've heard many people say hand expressing is just as effective, if not more. xx

 

[moonbeam_sea]

I used the Ameda purely yours breast pump (a double electric) with my son. I exclusively pumped after 6 weeks with my son and it worked great. I pumped until he was 8 months old with it. I've heard great things about the Medela's, too, though, so they would seem like a reasonable option if you want to go electric as well. There are ways to make any electric pump "hands free" which is handy if you want to do something with your hands besides holding the pump. When my son was asleep, it made it much easier to be on the computer while I was pumping, which was almost all the "free time" I had when he was little between working full time after my 6 weeks maternity leave and taking care of him.

 

[2ndontheway]

I could never get my electric medela pump to work for me, but had no problems with my manual pump. I don't think this is normal though. I couldn't ever figure out why it wouldn't work for me-it was strange. If the electric works for you (which I guess would be hard to figure out w/o buying it unless you rent one first), I think that would be the way to go-it's supposed to be faster and if you get a double pump, that would make it even faster. I am an odd case, I think.

 

[MrsBandEgglet]

There are ways to make any electric pump "hands free" which is handy if you want to do something with your hands besides holding the pump.

Yup! I used to do the ironing, washing up and hoovering with mine tied to my bra Couldn't do it whilst holding LO because he didn't like the sound. xx

 

[KandyKinz]

I could never get my electric medela pump to work for me, but had no problems with my manual pump. I don't think this is normal though. I couldn't ever figure out why it wouldn't work for me-it was strange. If the electric works for you (which I guess would be hard to figure out w/o buying it unless you rent one first), I think that would be the way to go-it's supposed to be faster and if you get a double pump, that would make it even faster. I am an odd case, I think.

Hmmmmmm you're like me then! an odd case!

Not sure why I my milk never let down with an electric pump when I had no problems with the manual.....