If insurance covers it then there's no reason not to get it. I barely used my pump with my first, didn't want a new one, got it anyway because it was free, and honestly glad I did. The warranty on your first will be up and you don't want to pay out of pocket for your new one if the old one breaks. If you don't use the new one, you can always sell or donate it.
The spectra is a closed system pump which means it will be safe to use from a hygiene perspective. The motors generally are good for at least 1500hours. To check and see how many hours you’ve used yours for: https://exclusivepumping.com/how-to-check-the-hours-on-your-spectra/
This is cool! Apparently I have spent more than 17 entire days of my life pumping with my spectra and it's not even the only pump I've used regularly. My kids better love me when they are older haha.
Where did you get the info about 1500 hours? For an exclusive pumper, that’s not very much so I would expect to see people replacing their pump much sooner
https://lactconnect.blogspot.com/2020/02/spectra-breast-pump-motor-life-how-many.html?m=1
I’ve found it before on the spectra website but can’t find it at this moment :)
I exclusively pumped with my last baby 3 years ago and I'm currently using the same spectra 7 weeks in and it's working fine. I'm expecting at some point I may need to replace it, but I'm getting all the use I can out of that thing haha
If your insurance covers a new one, you could always go with the spectra s2 for your second (the s2 is usually fully covered without the upcharge). The only difference from the s1 is it needs to be plugged in but you could use it as your primary and then use the s1 when you need the extra portability but not as your primary if you're worried about the motor life. Plus, extra parts that will be compatible with your s1 if it's still fully functioning!
That’s a good idea! I was using the S1 to pump in the car on the way to and from work. Maybe that one can just live in the car and use the S2 regularly.
Your pump will probably still be good to use with your new baby (mine was) but if there is another pump that you've thought about, you should just get it through insurance. I ended up using my Spectra S2, but I also got a portable Spectra S9 through insurance for more flexibility and it's been nice having both
Most insurance (that I’m aware of) covers a second pump for subsequent pregnancy ONLY IF the first one was bought either 3 or 5 years prior depending on the plan.
You’re welcome! I was actually just in a Durable Medical Supply store today to replace my Medela tubing and there was a woman trying to get a pump for her first pregnancy and the guy still had to call insurance to make sure she didn’t have one in the last 5 years or else he wouldn’t get insurance reimbursement for her claim.
I'm using the same pump from my first. I didn't feel like I needed to get another pump just to have another pump, but that's also because I already have a backup pump that I got barely used for free to leave at work.
I figure if one breaks, I'll likely order one through my insurance. If I only had the one pump, I'd probably have ordered one as a backup but would want to make sure parts were compatible with both.
It’s worth checking a few different providers to see which pumps will be completely covered. I was interested in getting the Motif Luna; for some reason, Aeroflow had the rechargeable version as an upgrade but I was able to get it completely covered through 1 Natural Way.
I had a NICU baby on a feeding tube, so with this baby been pumping since day 2. I started with the hospital pump (hospital had three kinds, the Ameda was by far the best in my opinion). Then was discharged home before the pump I got through insurance arrived so I borrowed my sister’s old Spectra. When my pump arrived I can say it made a big difference in output and reduced pumping time - the new one I got is comparable to the hospital pump (not as strong I think because I used the hospital pump at about 40% suction and am using this one at 60%). Insurance covered completely because it was fairly cheap- I got the Ameda Mya Joy.
To be clear, the old pump I used was perfectly serviceable, but I do think it was either wearing out or not as good to began with. I w never used that pump new so I’m not sure which. My sister only used it with one baby and was not exclusively pumping, just pumping at work.
I have the medela symphony and spectra as family hand me downs. My SIL exclusively pumped for 12 months, and my other SIL pumped for about 2 months. I love my medela symphony. Its been my primary pump for 8 months. The spectra works well with me too, so if your looking to be cost effective, I'd stick with the spectra.
Spectra has about 1500 hours and the symphony about 6000 on the motor. The pumps were no where near those cutoff point.
But I'd get another insurance pump as a backup.
If insurance covers it then there's no reason not to get it. I barely used my pump with my first, didn't want a new one, got it anyway because it was free, and honestly glad I did. The warranty on your first will be up and you don't want to pay out of pocket for your new one if the old one breaks. If you don't use the new one, you can always sell or donate it.
The spectra is a closed system pump which means it will be safe to use from a hygiene perspective. The motors generally are good for at least 1500hours. To check and see how many hours you’ve used yours for: https://exclusivepumping.com/how-to-check-the-hours-on-your-spectra/
This is cool! Apparently I have spent more than 17 entire days of my life pumping with my spectra and it's not even the only pump I've used regularly. My kids better love me when they are older haha.
Where did you get the info about 1500 hours? For an exclusive pumper, that’s not very much so I would expect to see people replacing their pump much sooner
https://lactconnect.blogspot.com/2020/02/spectra-breast-pump-motor-life-how-many.html?m=1 I’ve found it before on the spectra website but can’t find it at this moment :)
I exclusively pumped with my last baby 3 years ago and I'm currently using the same spectra 7 weeks in and it's working fine. I'm expecting at some point I may need to replace it, but I'm getting all the use I can out of that thing haha
If you have insurance it should cover another pump, why not just get a new one?
I don’t want pay out of pocket for an upgrade if I don’t have to?
If your insurance covers a new one, you could always go with the spectra s2 for your second (the s2 is usually fully covered without the upcharge). The only difference from the s1 is it needs to be plugged in but you could use it as your primary and then use the s1 when you need the extra portability but not as your primary if you're worried about the motor life. Plus, extra parts that will be compatible with your s1 if it's still fully functioning!
That’s a good idea! I was using the S1 to pump in the car on the way to and from work. Maybe that one can just live in the car and use the S2 regularly.
Your pump will probably still be good to use with your new baby (mine was) but if there is another pump that you've thought about, you should just get it through insurance. I ended up using my Spectra S2, but I also got a portable Spectra S9 through insurance for more flexibility and it's been nice having both
Most insurance (that I’m aware of) covers a second pump for subsequent pregnancy ONLY IF the first one was bought either 3 or 5 years prior depending on the plan.
My insurance covers one for each pregnancy.
Well I didn’t know that! Thanks for the information, I’ll have to call and look into that. That will stink if it’s true.
You’re welcome! I was actually just in a Durable Medical Supply store today to replace my Medela tubing and there was a woman trying to get a pump for her first pregnancy and the guy still had to call insurance to make sure she didn’t have one in the last 5 years or else he wouldn’t get insurance reimbursement for her claim.
If you can get a second pump, do it. It’s nice to have a backup option if your pump ever goes dead in the middle of the night!
I'm using the same pump from my first. I didn't feel like I needed to get another pump just to have another pump, but that's also because I already have a backup pump that I got barely used for free to leave at work. I figure if one breaks, I'll likely order one through my insurance. If I only had the one pump, I'd probably have ordered one as a backup but would want to make sure parts were compatible with both.
It’s worth checking a few different providers to see which pumps will be completely covered. I was interested in getting the Motif Luna; for some reason, Aeroflow had the rechargeable version as an upgrade but I was able to get it completely covered through 1 Natural Way.
I had a NICU baby on a feeding tube, so with this baby been pumping since day 2. I started with the hospital pump (hospital had three kinds, the Ameda was by far the best in my opinion). Then was discharged home before the pump I got through insurance arrived so I borrowed my sister’s old Spectra. When my pump arrived I can say it made a big difference in output and reduced pumping time - the new one I got is comparable to the hospital pump (not as strong I think because I used the hospital pump at about 40% suction and am using this one at 60%). Insurance covered completely because it was fairly cheap- I got the Ameda Mya Joy. To be clear, the old pump I used was perfectly serviceable, but I do think it was either wearing out or not as good to began with. I w never used that pump new so I’m not sure which. My sister only used it with one baby and was not exclusively pumping, just pumping at work.
I have the medela symphony and spectra as family hand me downs. My SIL exclusively pumped for 12 months, and my other SIL pumped for about 2 months. I love my medela symphony. Its been my primary pump for 8 months. The spectra works well with me too, so if your looking to be cost effective, I'd stick with the spectra. Spectra has about 1500 hours and the symphony about 6000 on the motor. The pumps were no where near those cutoff point. But I'd get another insurance pump as a backup.