Philips Avent Advanced Bottle Steriliser, Kills 99.9% of Germs*, 10 min Sterilising Cycle - SCF291/01

Product Information

For cold water sterilisers, a full container will be very heavy and should be kept away from children so they can’t pull it over onto their head. Sterilisation fluid is made from sodium hypochlorite, a mild, non-toxic bleach that decomposes into water and a small amount of salt. We spend hours researching, speaking to parents, analysing data and listening to experts before we test out the products on our shortlist. The length of a sterilisation cycle varies wildly between brands. If you’ve got a set-up where you intend to batch-sterilise once a day, a longer cycle won’t matter so much. But if you’re planning on sterilising more often, you won’t want to wait by the steriliser juggling a hungry baby. 4. Noise Have multiple babies, use a lot of bottles per day or want to sterilise a variety of items including breast pumps, toys and dummies It takes one touch of a button to start a cycle and, if you have any accompanying Tommee Tippee bottles, each bottle is clearly marked to show how much water to add to the steriliser – a thoughtful touch that our tester really appreciated.

Tommee Tippee has put a great deal of thought into the redesign of their electric steam steriliser and it really shows. The Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced Electric Steriliser is made from tough BPA-free plastics and is exceptionally straightforward to use, with plenty of room for bottles and breast pump parts over two tiers.

How we tested and chose our recommendations

If you’re bottle-feeding full-time, however, and need something reliable that will fit in all of your gear, the Dr Brown’s Electric Steam Steriliser is a good choice. We tried electric and microwave and ended up using cold water Milton - it’s so easy just keep adding bottles after washing them and they’re sterile in 15 min."Tried and tested by Mumsnetter CharlieB93 Our verdict

Baby plates and bowls, cutlery and sippy cups will also need to be sterilised if they’re used before six months but, after that, washing in hot soapy water should be sufficient. Should you sterilise baby bottles every time? Plus, they’re usually more expensive to run than electric sterilisers as they have a smaller capacity (so you’ll be running more cycles) and microwaves ultimately use more energy. 4. Travel steriliser Items inside stay sterile for 24 hours and the lid is designed with a flat lip so it can be laid horizontally in a smaller microwave – a useful feature we didn’t find in any other travel steriliser. The type of steriliser that’s right for you will depend on your baby’s routine as well as your environment, so it’s perfectly alright to wait till after the birth – maybe buying a box of sterilisation bags as an interim measure – and assess your sterilising needs in the days and weeks afterwards. Microwave sterilisers are smaller, but not exactly portable. They could sit on top of the fridge or stay in the microwave itself if you’d rather not keep them out. 3. Cycle timeElectric sterilisers attract limescale on their heating plate over time so will need regularly descaling (manufacturers will specify a frequency, but it’s usually once or twice a month). To reduce limescale build-up, pour out the water after every use and wipe down with a soft damp cloth. Rachel Jeffcoat has worked for 15 years as an editor and writer, after starting her career managing science and technology journals. I recommend Mam bottles, so easy to sterilise in the microwave!" Recommended by Mumsnetter Isababybel Microwave steriliser bags have also become more popular in the last few years. These are reusable pouches made from a tough plastic and work by sealing baby equipment in the pouch with some water and microwaving for a set time. These tend to be more roomy than the cup model, with the best fitting two bottles in at a time, and able to be reused around 20 times per bag. Drying function means bottles can be used immediately after the cycle without you waiting for them to dry or cool down

Because travel sterilisers need to be compact enough to carry around, they’re usually short on bells and whistles. What we loved about the Milton Solo was that, travel steriliser or not, it’s more adaptable and comes with more useful design features than any other travel model we tested. For Mumsnetters who want to avoid buying a steriliser altogether, these MAM self-sterilising bottles are a great option. The bottle comes apart and can be assembled in such a way that they work as their own steam steriliser in the microwave, making keeping them hygienic a doddle. After cleaning, rinse off each item in cold, clean water and then you’re ready to sterilise. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions exactly, especially when positioning items in the steriliser and adding the correct amount of water or sterilisation solution.

Customer reviews

Not the most budget-friendly electric steriliser we tested, and a more expensive initial outlay than microwave or travel versions Capacity: Four bottles | Materials: BPA-free plastic | Included: Sterilisation unit, bottle/food warming unit, two 160ml MAM Anti-Colic bottles, two 0-2 month dummies, and teat tongs Good for parents who The items are sterile after a manufacturer-recommended 15-minute cycle – the NHS recommends 30 minutes – and remain so for as long as they’re in the solution. Plus, they don’t need rinsing off when they’re needed. Items can continue to be added and removed as necessary over 24 hours when the solution will need to be remade. Capacity: Six bottles, plus breast pump parts | Materials: Plastic | Included: Container and weighted grid Good for parents who