Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer: like a helpful butler? 🤔

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Pregnant with my second baby, I set out to find a good baby bottle sterilizer, one that would keep my baby’s developing immune system safe from bacteria.

Table of Contents hide

1 Back in the day

2 Rediscovering the Dr Browns deluxe bottle sterilizer

3 Fancy, yet simple at the same time

4 What’s included?

5 PROS / What I LIKE about the Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer

5.1 The Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer works fast

5.2 Auto shut-off

6 CONS / What I DON’T LIKE about the Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer

6.1 Deluxe sterilizer vs microwave sterilizer

6.2 Dr Browns vs Philips sterilizer tongs

6.3 The fastest sterilizer

6.4 Price vs other baby bottle sterilizers

6.5 Any regrets with the Dr Brown’s deluxe electric sterilizer?

7 Similar bottle sterilizers

8 I could recommend the Dr Brown sterilizer

8.1 Do I need the Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer?

Back in the day

Sterilizing baby bottles was a grand production. I remember mom would take a big pot of water, boil it, and sterilize lil bro’s baby bottles in the water.

Drying the bottles was another story, and in itself, time-consuming.

So isn’t it awesome how nowadays we get to enjoy the fruits of modern invention?

Rediscovering the Dr Browns deluxe bottle sterilizer

As I searched for baby items I wanted to put in my baby shower registry, I discovered this deluxe baby bottle sterilizer from Dr. Brown (hi, if you’re wondering, there is a Dr. Brown). It looked big and fancy. The cost was a bit high at around $60. But if it offered safety and convenience, it’d be worth it, I thought.

Fancy, yet simple at the same time

The Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer has a top and bottom level, which allows me to separate parts. Big parts of the baby bottle and feeding bowls. Then the breast pump accessories go in the bigger compartment at the bottom. This area is huge, so I can put mostly anything in there. Bottle collars, nipples, pacifiers, and other smaller items like feeding spoons go in the top compartment. There are slats at the bottom, so water doesn’t pool there.

The heating element sits at the very bottom of the sterilizer.

This is what turns the water into ‘electric steam.’

Doesn’t that sound like a really exciting marketing term?

What’s included?

A measuring cup with a line, showing you how much water to use. It’s an accurate amount, you won’t need a lot. There’s also a pair of dark grey sterilizer tongs.

Then in the big compartment is a removable tray. I can lift this out and set it on a clean surface to dry baby bottles or wash and clean the tray.

PROS / What I LIKE about the Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer

It’s awesome that I can organize things in this deluxe sterilizer. And it’s everything that I could keep the small and big parts separated, in the top and bottom compartments. This way, I know where to find what immediately, and it’s easier for me to put baby bottle parts back together.

I don’t need a lot of water to sterilize. And weighing the water once, I think it was less than 3 oz. So using different baby bottle brands is not a problem. Because they all fit fine in the big sterilizer.

Also, it’s electric. So I don’t need to use my gas stove . I like that.

Finally, the sterilizer has a simple structure. The parts are easy to reach and clean.

The Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer works fast

Sometimes I boil water on the stove in a small saucepan, which takes around 8 minutes. How much longer would it take to boil water for 6 baby bottles? Not to mention that that manual process can be extremely dangerous, if we’re not careful.

With this Dr Brown’s sterilizer, I safely sterilize and dry baby bottles in 12 minutes.

Sterilizing (steaming icon in red lights up) only takes a few minutes, and then it’s cooling (blue snowflake icon). After a few more minutes, it’s good to go (green checkmark). At this point, I open the cover so the parts start to dry. I then use the tongs to move the bottles to my drying rack.

Sterilizing was not meant to be kind of fun.

‘Fun’ used to describe only things like eating salad. Or doing cardio.

Not sterilizing bottles. The word ‘fun’ was never meant for that.

But this Dr Browns deluxe sterilizer seems to have changed that.

Auto shut-off

Using this sterilizer also means not having to worry about ‘forgetting to switch the stove off.’ Because the sterilizer shuts itself off after doing its job.

Finally, an auto feature of it that I love is that it goes straight to cooling mode whenever I forget to put water in the sterilizer. So it knows that there’s no water in it and doesn’t try to sterilize.

When sterilizing has become the high point of your day…

and forgetting to sterilize the 1 bottle that ended up under the couch is the low point.

CONS / What I DON’T LIKE about the Dr Browns Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer

OK. So I’ve compared the Dr Brown’s deluxe sterilizer with boiling water in a pot on the stovetop. But I think a more practical thing to compare it with would be a microwave sterilizer.

Deluxe sterilizer vs microwave sterilizer

So yeah. If I’m being honest (or as the kids say nowadays, “ngl“), I haven’t been 100% loyal to my Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer.

I have been using a microwave sterilizer.

It’s low maintenance.

It’s like your only friend that shows up when you make a PSA that you need help moving to your new apartment.

You make this friend listen to you go into detail about your dreams. And complain to them about how Matt from Accounting always hangs around a little too long by the water dispenser.

And even when they disagree with something you say, they nod and try to understand your perspective.

You know they deserve the world, and yet somehow you end up getting them either a $7.99 mug or an $8.99 shirt from Amazon year after year for Christmas…

Why must you do this!?!!

While this microwave sterilizer requires 2x+ more water (7 oz), I can use just tap water with it. Yes. Tap.

Direct from the faucet. You don’t need to drive to the store to get water from a bottle. Just so you can clean another bottle.

Let’s face it: distilled water is not accessible unless you have a water distiller. Or live right next to a grocery store (my mom’s dream). And, well, maybe you don’t.

You don’t need a fancy futuristic car to get milk from the grocery store. Your Corolla will do just fine.

The Dr Brown sterilizer is big. I wouldn’t recommend lugging it around. In comparison, my Philips microwave sterilizer seems lighter and more portable.

Dr Browns vs Philips sterilizer tongs

The Philips microwave sterilizer comes with a pair of mini sterilizer tongs. While small, it has one purpose: to help you pull a bottle nipple through the collar without having to touch the nipple. It’s sturdy enough for this purpose.

Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer diagram and tongs — Whoever designed these mini tongs needs a hug.
Then whisper to them, *“It’s OK, it’s OK.”*

Whereas Dr Brown’s sterilizer tongs are flimsy and awkward. Using these tongs, I struggle to pull the nipples into the collars of baby’s MAM bottles.

The fastest sterilizer

Last but not least, I mentioned above that the Dr Brown sterilizer works fast (about 12 minutes). Now that’s well and good. Mostly, compared to sterilizing bottles the old-fashioned way.

Because if we bring the microwave sterilizer into the picture, this throws a monkey wrench into the blender. At least that’s what I think the expression is. The microwave sterilizer works faster and is done sterilizing in just 2 minutes.

angry hippo — **One sixth of 12 minutes?!**
*Preposterous!”*

Price vs other baby bottle sterilizers

The Philips microwave sterilizer wins. It only cost like $16+ at Target when I bought it. Whereas the Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer cost around $60.

me after buying the Dr Brown’s deluxe sterilizer

AI says these on the left are plastic sterilization tongs. idk.

Any regrets with the Dr Brown’s deluxe electric sterilizer?

I can only sterilize my cutlery sets with metal in them in my Dr. Brown’s electric sterilizer. Also, I can keep parts more organized in the Dr. Brown’s. It seems to be able to fit slightly more bottles.

That said, it wasn’t all roses with the deluxe electric sterilizer. Towards the end of its lifespan, the heating element appeared to show some rust. This did happen after a good amount of use; not sure if by chance or otherwise.

At that point, I didn’t need to sterilize my baby’s feeding stuff anymore.

Similar bottle sterilizers

Hauture Baby Bottle Sterilizer with Drying feature $$

Baby Brezza Baby Bottle Sterilizer $$$

Dr. Brown’s Clean Steam Baby Bottle and Pacifier Sterilizer and Dryer (updated version with dryer) $$

I could recommend the Dr Brown sterilizer

⭐⭐⭐ (3 / 5)

If they can fix the rusting heating element. I feel like they should reconsider the placement of this heating element, so that it sits at an angle that allows water to naturally slide off of it and not pool on top of it.

And with that fix, I think this product would be close to perfect.
Obviously, none of us want our babies ingesting rust.

Rust aside, I see Dr Brown’s vision creating the Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer as sterilizing equipment that provides a smooth, enjoyable experience. In sterilizing your baby’s stuff. I guess that’s been a thing nowadays. Dr Brown says so.

Do I need the Dr Browns Deluxe Sterilizer?

No. I don’t need my fancy Dr Brown’s sterilizer.
But it sure is handy and fun.

And if you want a feeding bottle sterilizer that kills bacteria, offers convenience, makes sterilizing bottles fun, and makes you feel assisted and kinda fancy…

Then this sterilizer and you could become best friends. You must ride off into the sunset now.

A simple, cheap microwave sterilizer will kill bacteria. But they have their limitations. They depend on microwaves. And you can’t put metal in them.

I feel like the microwave sterilizer is like this neurologist I went to for some nerve issue I experienced a while back. This doctor explained my issue to me this way…

“This is what’s wrong with your foot.
And this is how long it will take to heal.
Good-bye.”

So cold.
So matter-of-factly.
So like…

“Your bottles.
I kill de germs.
Bye-bye.”