Cleaning Baby Bottles: Care Tips and Hacks for Twin Parents

When it comes to feeding your infant twins, cleaning all those baby bottles can really feel like a beast of a job to take on. But food safety and limiting the risk of harmful bacteria is so important for tiny humans with developing immune systems. So here are some helpful tips and hacks for all that bottle washing you’ll be doing as a twin parent. 

Looking back on those early newborn twin days cleaning baby bottles, I now wonder whyyyy? (Especially when I see my toddler twins take a mysteriously old cheerio from their car seat and put it in their mouth. Lol, cringe.)

However, when I think back on those infant times, I wouldn’t have done anything different about how clean their bottles were. Newborns and infants have next to no immunity towards bacterial and viral pathogens. Every germ sticks. (My daycare parents, where you at?  You know what I’m talking about).  

This means that the germs that find their way into your little ones’ mouths have the potential to cause some potentially serious harm. And of course, exposure to some germs helps them build immunity over time, but it’s best not to overwhelm their developing systems when at all possible. So, let’s quickly talk about bacteria and food safety. 

Bacteria like to grow in warm environments filled with food. And what do infants and newborns eat/drink?  Warm breastmilk and/or formula chock full of nutrients for those hungry, hungry germs.

Thankfully, many foodborne illnesses can be fought with good kitchen cleaning and sanitation habits. 

Just like washing your hands will bring down your chances of catching a cold, the same goes with cleaning baby bottles. Washing and sanitizing properly, especially in those first few weeks, can help limit foodborne germs and bacteria.  

So without further ado, here are some helpful tips and hacks for cleaning baby bottles carefully for those sweet twinnies of yours!

1. Make sure your hands are clean first 

This may give you some PTSD back to those early COVID-19 days. But before handling your twins’ bottles, make sure you wash your hands first. 

You’re probably doing this already, but with mom brain (plus changing all those poopy diapers all day), we know it doesn’t hurt to have those little reminders!

2. Completely disassemble the bottles

Again, this one may seem obvious. But with all the high-tech baby bottles on the market these days, be sure to fully disassemble every part. 

For example, make sure you take the nipple out of the bottle collar. (This is the ring-like part that fastens onto the bottle around the nipple). And if you’re using Dr. Brown’s bottles, remove and take apart the internal venting parts. 

Having the bottles completely deconstructed will make sure that every little nook and cranny is able to be cleaned and dried fully. 

3. Choose your washing method 

There are a few ways you can clean baby bottles with our twentieth century technological advancements. Of course, you can always handwash. But you can also use your dishwashing machine or a bottle washer. 

Here’s some insight on each bottle washing method!

Hand-washing baby bottles

While hand-washing may take the most “effort” on your part, it’s also the quickest method for cleaning baby bottles.

So here’s how to clean your twinnies’ bottles safely and thoroughly:

1. Empty out any remaining milk or formula first. 

For safety, any remaining formula and breastmilk should be thrown out within an hour after starting the bottle feeding. This is because once the baby’s saliva mixes in with the milk or formula, it can cause bacteria to grow after sitting out. 

2. Do a basic rinse of the bottle to get out any excess formula/milk. 

3. Use a dedicated washing basin like this one. 

Avoid cleaning the bottles directly in your kitchen sink. Sinks tend to build up with germs over time (even when kept clean) since there’s always water hanging around them. If you don’t want to buy a legit cleaning basin, you can simply use a large mixing bowl. Just make sure that you only use that bowl for bottle cleaning (at least for the foreseeable future). 

4. Fill the washing basin with soap and hot water, soak, and clean. 

Once you fill the basin, let the bottles soak in the water for a few minutes to loosen up the milk or formula residue. Then, using a dedicated bottle and nipple brush like this one, carefully clean each bottle part. Lastly, rinse the items under clean, hot running water. 

If you want to learn more about safe soaps and cleaning solutions for newborns, check out this article! 

5. Dry in a dedicated drying rack area. 

To make sure the bottles dry completely and safely, avoid placing them in such a way that air isn’t able to flow freely. You want to make sure there is air flow underneath so that the leftover moisture doesn’t get trapped inside of the bottles and bottle parts. 

Also, steer clear of using dish towels for drying as they could house bacteria from coming into contact with dirty dishes or hands. 

Here are two examples of safe drying areas and drying organizers: 

Dr. Brown’s Drying Tower

This Dr. Brown’s Drying Tower is great for drying and organizing the whole gang of bottle parts including the nipples, collars, bottle, caps, and even the brush! The way that this drying rack is set up also allows for tons of airflow to ensure each part dries completely. 

Boon Lawn Baby Bottle Drying Rack

The Boon drying rack provides plenty of airflow and has an antimicrobial tray to help limit the growth of mold and mildew. It’s also a great place for drying pump parts since the drying space accommodates all sorts of sizes and dimensions!

Twiniversity tip: If you get the Boon drying rack, be sure to remove and thoroughly clean the tray every few days. This will avoid extra water accumulating in the tray which could lead to mold and mildew. 

Using your dishwasher

Yes, you can use your dishwasher for cleaning baby bottles! 

It’s recommended to put the smaller parts in a mesh container or organizer inside of the dishwasher. This can help preventing the small parts from getting lost or falling through to the filter. 

Having a dishwasher basket or container (like this) allows those smaller items to still get  sanitized without going astray. 

Using a baby bottle washer

If the thought of hand-washing sounds like too much to handle on top of all your other twin parenting responsibilities, you might consider a bottle washer. 

There are tons of bottle washers on the market, but here’s one that lots of twin parents love and recommend constantly.

Baby Brezza Baby Bottle Washer

The alpha of all cleaning baby bottle appliances is a designated dishwasher for your baby bottles.  If you have the counter space (and a very generous aunt who may want to buy this off your baby registry), you can get an automated baby bottle washer.  This Baby Brezza Bottle Washer Pro, for example, has 6-cleaning functions, a dirty water reservoir (so no plumbing required), and it can sterilize and dry.  

4. Sterilize your baby bottles

If you want to take your baby bottle cleaning a step further, you can also sterilize. This is definitely something to consider as a new parent of twins. This is because sanitizing baby bottles is especially helpful for babies under two months, preemies, and babies with any additional health issues. 

You don’t have to sanitize after every use, but it’s good practice to sanitize once a day for those first 8 weeks. 

We LOVED our bottle sanitizer, and they have come out with a lot more since we bought ours. There are ones that just sanitize, and ones that sanitize and dry.

You also don’t need a fancy sanitizer. You can simply boil water and let the parts sit inside for 5 minutes before removing with clean tongs! You’re supposed to do this before using the bottles the first time anyway.

If you do opt for a handy bottle sanitizer though, here are two helpful suggestions that come highly regarded by twin parents:

Baby Brezza Baby Bottle Sterilizer and Drying Machine

This Baby Brezza sterilizing machine holds up to 6-bottles, pump parts, and some toys (that can be run through a sterilizer.)  Please check labels cause we’ve melted a few toys, unfortunately).  This also houses different bottle sizes.  

Dr. Brown’s Deluxe Electric Sterilizer

Certain brands have their own sterilizers which is great if they have special parts or odd sizes. The Dr. Brown’s sanitizer below has a slotted rack to hold their smaller bottle parts.  This one can hold up to 6 bottles as well.  

Additional bottle cleaning hacks from other twin parents

While the above tips are helpful for safely cleaning and sanitizing your twinnies’ feeding supplies, here are a few extra helpful twin parent tips: 

• If you are pumping or using bottles around the clock, keeping everything neatly organized in your drying area is a game-changer! Drying racks and organizers are definitely worth the investment (and counter space). 
• If you don’t feel like hand-washing bottles or using your bottle washer all day long, consider buying extra bottles. After you use a bottle, you can gently rinse it and let it sit in your washing basin with hot soapy water to be cleaned and sanitized later. This way, you know you already have plenty of other clean bottles to use without stressing over immediately cleaning those ones. 
• If you choose to handwash your baby bottles, bless you. I did this too, which is fine, but I would recommend an ultra-mosturizing hand cream, too. (Scaly, cracked hands can get so painful!)

Final takeaways for clean baby bottles

Whichever way you choose to clean your twinnie’s bottles, the key take away is cleanliness.  Especially in those first two months and if your twinnies are born prematurely. 

The extra effort and steps may feel annoying and overwhelming, but I promise you they are well worth the energy. Avoiding any unnecessary illnesses is huge as a parent of twins!

Want to learn more about safe cleaning methods and baby bottle best practices? Check out these articles too:

• Best Baby-Safe Cleaning Products for a Less Toxic Home
• How Many Baby Bottles Do I Need?
• The CDC Issues New Breast Pump Cleaning Guidelines

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