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- The Baby Brezza One-Step Sterilizer Dryer ($100) uses steam and heat to sterilize and dry
baby bottles and accessories. - The countertop appliance is freestanding and can be used to sterilize breast pump parts, pacifiers, and teething toys.
- It's an efficient, easy-to-use sterilizer and dryer, but the design could be more flexible to accommodate bottles of different sizes.
When you have a newborn, it seems like your life revolves around feedings. By the time the baby eats and you get everything cleaned up, it's time for them to eat again. So, any device that will help with the process is a welcome addition.
My grandson spent his first few weeks of life in neonatal intensive care. His mother was pumping breast milk for him and he was using tiny, doll-sized bottles. Once home, there was always something that needed to be washed, sterilized, and dried to protect his immune system. He is doing great now and the bottles are much bigger, but there's still a need for all that cleaning. So, when Baby Brezza sent me an editorial review sample of its One Step Sterilizer Dryer, I couldn't wait to test it.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers excellent guidelines on cleaning and sanitizing infant feeding items. For most infants, if you use an automatic dishwasher for cleaning, additional sanitization is not needed. Since our little fellow had a bit of a rocky start, we opted to follow one of the CDC's guidelines for sanitization by using steam after handwashing his bottles.
I have been testing the Baby Brezza for the last month. It's portable enough that I can move it between our houses. On average, we use it three or four times per day to clean bottles, nipples, breast pump parts, pacifiers, and medicine droppers.
How the Baby Brezza One Step Sterilizer Dryer works
A freestanding countertop appliance, the unit uses 120-v power to heat water and create sterilizing steam, plus a heating unit to thoroughly dry the items placed inside. The nearly 17-inches-tall by 12-inches-wide appliance contains an attached accessory rack to hold the bottles or components placed inside.
To use the Baby Brezza One Step, fill the water chamber (about 1/2 cup water) and place the accessory rack on the base. Bottles must be disassembled, washed and rinsed by hand, and then positioned face-down on the rack posts. Nipples, bottle rings, caps, and pacifiers should be placed in the upper rack posts. Finally, put the dome-shaped lid on base and turn on the appliance to begin sterilizing.
There are three settings: sterilize only (takes about eight minutes), sterilize and dry (30, 45, or 60 minutes), and dry only. An LCD panel begins a count-up of the sterilization cycle and then a countdown of the drying cycle you have selected. There are vent holes in the lid to release steam throughout the process. When a cycle is complete, the unit turns off automatically.
What it's like to use
Using the Baby Brezza One Step is very simple. I carefully washed and rinse the lid and accessories rack in hot water before using the unit for the first time. The manual recommends using distilled water to fill the reservoir. I used filtered municipal water and have had no problems so far.
When it came time to load in the bottles, I could not make all six Avent bottles fit on the accessory rack posts. These bottles also have an inner component, nipple, collar, and cap to sanitize, so I could only place three bottles and accessories in the unit at a time.
Once they were loaded, I chose the 60-minute sterilize and dry cycle. The dome became coated with steam very quickly. By design, some steam escaped from the vent holes, and there is expulsion of hot air from the fan vent. The unit becomes quite hot, so place it in a spot where it won't need to be moved while it is in operation. I also placed it on a large trivet to prevent overheating my countertop.
When a cycle is complete, the bottles and components come out completely dry and ready to use. The manual recommends waiting at least 30 minutes between uses so that the unit cools completely. Since only three of our bottles fit at a time, I usually load it right back up after the 30-minute wait and start the process again.
I noticed just a bit of discoloration and scaling on the stainless steel heater plate after a couple of weeks of use. I followed product recommendations for cleaning the area with distilled white vinegar and water and it looks brand new. The discoloration comes from any soapy residue left after washing the bottles and from minerals in the water.
What makes it stand out
Baby Brezza One Step Sterilizer Dryer is simple to use even in a sleep-deprived state. Just pour in some filtered water, load in the bottles, nipples, and accessories and select a cycle. The bottles and accessories are fully dry after each cycle and ready to use. You can easily leave the bottles in the appliance until you need them.
The cons
While One Step is easy to use, I wish the accessory posts were more flexible to accommodate different sized bottles. I did see a bit of leaking if the lid was not placed on perfectly straight.
The bottom line
The Baby Brezza One Step Sterilizer Dryer claims to remove 99.9% of germs using steam. I have no way to verify their claims. According to the CDC, sterilizing removes all microorganisms from an item. Steam is used in hospitals to sterilize equipment, but the steam is usually placed under pressure like in an autoclave.
Sanitizing, also often done with steam, reduces the number of microorganisms to a safe level and is what the CDC recommends for babies younger than 3 months, those born prematurely or who have a weakened immune system.
Perhaps just a subtle name change to the Baby Brezza One Step Sanitizer and Dryer would be the right call. But, overall, I am pleased with how it performs.
Pros: Easy to use, one-year limited warranty, bottles are dry after each cycle and ready to use.
Cons: Not all types of bottles fit well on the accessory rack, slight leaking can occur, and the unit becomes very hot during operation.