Spectra Review

Before I got a pump, I scoured the Internet for reviews and other information I can get about pumps in general and about the different brands and models of pumps out there. To pay it forward, I would like to contribute to the pool of resources available online.


What I love about Spectra in general:

• Cheaper than other brands, their hospital grade pump is still cheaper than those of other brands that are NOT hospital grade
• All the pumps use a closed system which means there are no backflows I wrote about this here a few months back.
• Quiet motor
• Great reviews online
• Easy to assemble
• Great service via BabyMamaPH
• Spare parts are easy to purchase online with one day delivery
• Cheap bottle system
• Cheap milk bags
• Cheap nipples
• All the parts are made in Korea

 What I hate about Spectra in general:

• Storage bottles are terrible. For some reason, the locking disc becomes loose. 
• Threading of the bottle to the flange sometimes become loose. We have associated it to temperature. When bottles tend to be warm, it seems to be more loose. We have tried so many experiments. At first I blamed the flange but now I am down to just the Spectra bottles. Avent works with the pump but it does not screw on completely which made me not use Avent for pumping. I have seen others use Avent though and they seem to be happy with the setup.
• Threading of the bottle to the nipple becomes loose sometimes. How many times has my baby had an unplanned milk bath because of this. Again, when the bottle gets heated, the lock becomes loose causing spillage. 
• Wide neck bottles only come in pink.

As you can see, most of my problems stem from the bottles. I could have opted not to get them because as I have said, Avent wide neck bottles work with the pump but the bottles were cheaper and they were supposed to work perfectly with the pump. I have also read one comment online complaining about the threading so it is just not me.

To date I have been able to use the following pumps:

Spectra S2 
I love this pump because it has helped me build my milk supply without giving me much pain. Initially, there will be some discomfort because you have to find the best vacuum and cycle settings. Vacuum is the suction strength and the cycle is the frequency of suction. This feature helped a lot when my nipples were cracked from my baby's incorrect latch. It also has a massage function that mimics the way the baby sucks. This is meant to encourage your body to give more milk. What I found to be most effective is to first use the usual vacuum and cycle I am accustomed to. When I feel my milk slowing down, I use the massage function until I see more milk come in again. I then switch back to the usual vacuum and cycle. I can experience multiple milk let downs this way. Another milk booster is the silicon massager that can be bought separately. This also makes the pumping process more comfortable as the silicon massager is soft.

What I love about Spectra S2:

• Hospital Grade
• Quiet
• Cheaper than other known brands
• Dual Electric
• Less parts to assemble
• Parts work with the Spectra 9+ and Spectra Wideneck Manual Pump
• Gentle
• Settings for Vacuum and Cycle
• Auto shut off after 30 minutes
• Can be used 12 times a day (according to BabyMamaPH)
• Nice design
• Multiple awards
• Backlight
• Easy to use
• Works well with the silicon massager

What I do not like about Spectra S2:

• Its weight: 3lbs

Spectra S1
I do not have this pump but the only difference between Spectra S2 and Spectra S1 is that S1 is battery operated. I was told by a friend that Spectra S1 can be used while charging. My friend used this pump for 2 years and it is still working perfectly. She only had to get the battery replaced because it would not charge anymore. 

Spectra 9+
We eventually decided to get the Spectra 9+ two months after I got back from work. The Spectra S2 was very bulky to carry plus I worry I might damage it in transit. The deciding point was when I was asked to travel for two days and I could not bring my Spectra S2 for fear that I might damage it during the flight. I had to make do with a manual pump during which time, my milk supply declined. Also, I ended up spending twice the usual time pumping.

We figured it will be great to have the Spectra S9 because this means that I can now pump in the car because it is battery operated. Rather than finding a way to make the Spectra S2 work with our car charger, this is a safer way to go.

What I love about Spectra 9+:

• Very light, less than 1 pound
• Very small, it fits into my tote bag
• Quiet
• Backlight
• Settings for Vacuum
• Battery operated
• Battery from my experience can last for 3 30 minute sessions
• Less parts to assemble
• Parts work with Spectra S2 and Spectra Wide Neck Manual Pump
• Auto shut off 
• Dual Electric Pump
• Massage Function
• Easy to use
• Works well with the silicon massager

What I do not like about Spectra 9+:

• Not as gentle as Spectra S2
• Does not have settings for Cycle
• Can only be used 5 times per day (according to BabyMamaPH)
• May not be used while charging (according to BabyMamaPH)
• Battery should not be drained (according to BabyMamaPH) 
• Must not be overcharged 

Spectra Wide Neck Manual Pump
We got this when I was 1 month post-partum. It dawned on us that if ever there was a power outage, I will be unable to pump. I tried hand expressing but I only get a little and it is very messy. I mean push comes to shove, if I need to do that again, I will but given a choice I'd rather not.

What I love about the Spectra Wide Neck Manual Pump:

• Very light
• Less parts to carry 
• Quiet
• Sturdy
• Less parts to assemble
• Easy to use
• Cheap

What I do not love about the Spectra Wide Neck Manual Pump:

• Silicon Massager does not work well with it or you have to get a bigger flange
• Not as gentle as the electric ones
• It takes twice the time to pump using this
• Can get messy
• One breast at a time
• No hands-free option

At the end of the day, the most important thing to ensure that the breast pump will not hurt is the flange size. I initially thought that the 28mm flange size will be perfect for me because that is the size that comes with the pump. I later on discovered that my size is 24mm. Here is the size guide from BabyMamaPH. I checked this before I got my pump but I thought feeding will increase the size of my nipple. It did but the change was not dramatic enough for me to change flange sizes.

I hope this will help you in searching for the best pump for you.

On Breast Pumps

I was disassembling the pump my brother and SIL lent me because I wanted to learn how to sterilize the different parts. I was planning to teach the house help on how to do this so I can delegate this task later on. However, in the process of learning how to take the parts apart, particularly the membrane because I could not take it out, I came across articles on open and closed systems.

Apparently, the Medela Swing, Medela Pump in Style and Medela Mini Electric are single user devices because they are open systems. This means milk can backflow. This is the reason why the tubing can have molds. This also means that it is not hygienic to use because the other parts that are not sterilized come in contact with the milk. Many sites, including La Leche League says that open system pumps are not okay to share so getting a second hand open system is not a safe option for baby. Medela Symphony is a closed system but it's so expensive.

I started searching for the best pump that has a closed system and found Spectra S2. It's actually made in Korea. The price is lower than Medela, it's a double electric hospital grade pump and it has wonderful reviews.

This is probably what I will get.

I was a bit disappointed today that we have to get a new one because I really liked the idea of saving but if it will risk my baby then I would rather invest in a new pump. If I stick to breastfeeding, in the long run, we will be saving money anyway.