Are you a breastfeeding parent who sometimes needs to pump on the go or at work? Here’s how to use a wet dry bag for pump parts to make transporting everything easier and more sanitary.
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Why use a wet dry bag for pump parts?
Wet dry bags can come in really handy when you regularly pump breast milk!
For example, you may want to use one when you’re packing your breast pump bag to pump at work or on the go.
When you’re putting everything in the bag, you don’t want to lose little pieces like backflow protectors or duckbills somewhere in the bag. Therefore, it’s a good idea to be able to keep everything organized.
Then, when you’re done pumping, your pump parts can be wet and have some milk residue left on them (especially if you’re not able to rinse them off after pumping). Putting your dirty pump parts in a wet dry bag can help keep the rest of your pump bag clean.
Some parents also use a wet dry bag for the “fridge hack,” where you put your pump parts in the fridge in between sessions without washing them. (Note that the CDC recommends washing after each use; this video is a great take on the fridge hack from an IBCLC.)
How to use a wet dry bag for pump parts
This is pretty easy – to use a wet dry bag, you just put your pump parts in the bag.
If you’re using the bag to store clean pump parts, I suggest putting them together before putting them in the bag.
This makes it easier to notice if you’re missing something, so that you can avoid sitting down to pump and realizing that you left your breast shields or a valve at home.
If you’re bringing multiple sets of pump parts with you (say, you’re going on a long flight or a road trip), you may want to bring multiple wet bags. You could keep each set in its own bag, or you could have one bag for clean parts and one for dirty parts – there are a lot of different ways that you can set it up depending on how many sets and bags you have.
Best wet dry bag options
Here are some of the best options for reusable bags for pump parts.
1. Idaho Jones Robin
This Idaho Jones bag is the one shown in the stories above. It’s insulated, has a staging mat, and has a pocket in the front that you can use for wipes, breast pads, etc.
The fact that it is insulated makes it useful for transporting bottles, even when you’re not pumping. You can fit several bottles and an ice pack in it, and it’s easy to throw in the diaper bag.
(Note: Idaho Jones reached out to me with a coupon code – you can use EPUMP10 at checkout for 10% off on any bag on their website.)
2. Pumparoo
I used the Pumparoo for several years to transport my pump parts back and forth from work and really liked it. It’s also insulated and comes with a staging pad.
Also, when you’ve weaned from the pump, you can use it for any number of things – putting wet swimsuits in, packing your lunch, etc.
3. Boob Bag
This super cute Boob Bag is a great bag to keep your pump parts and other accessories in.
It’s not insulated, but it works really well for transporting all of your small pumping gear.
You can see more of it in these stories:
What are the downsides to using wet dry bags for pump parts?
The only one that I have identified in months of use is that with the insulated bags, you usually can’t put them in the dryer. I put my first Pumparoo in the dryer by mistake and ruined it. (It was my fault – I knew better, but just forgot to pull it out when I was moving laundry from the washer to the dryer.)
Additionally, line drying isn’t ideal, because it took about 24 hours to dry when I hung it up, and obviously I needed to use it every day.
(I ended up buying two. So every day, I washed a big batch of bottles and pump parts, and then I washed the Pumparoo in the sink. I hung it up to air dry and then used the other one until the next day, and then switched again.)
Have you used a wet dry bag for pump parts? Tell us how it worked for you in the comments!
What about just using a Tupperware that you can easily wash every day?
That totally works too if you’re mostly pumping at home! The bag is just helpful when you need to transport parts or are using a public fridge.
How is this better than a wet bag?
I think it’s pretty much exactly the same. I had to google wet bag because I had never heard of it before your post, but from what I can tell there are no differences. If you’re using a wet bag already, there is no need to buy this.
I agree that the Pumparoo is an awesome product! I was doing the same thing – storing pump parts in plastic bags between pumping sessions – and it did feel really wasteful. The funny thing is, even though I was looking for an alternative to my plastic bag system, I still didn’t find the Pumparoo for quite a while. I eventually treated myself to one, but at that point only pumped once or twice a day, so it was nice to have but not as much of a necessity as it was when my son was younger and I was pumping at least 3 times a day in the office. Anyway, it was nice to see this post about the Pumparoo and I hope more women can find it before they go through loads of plastic bags like I did (and yes, I did try washing my plastic bags and reused them when I could… but they started to look dirty pretty quickly and I got worried about them really being clean). I have germ-o-phobe tendencies!