As a father, I can tell you that your new baby will wake up for feeding sessions anywhere between two and six times a night in the first few months. That means you’ll either spend a great deal of the night walking up and down to the kitchen or you could consider adding a mini fridge in the nursery.
I know it might sound strange to consider a mini fridge, but one close at hand is great for storing breast milk after pumping or even to chill nipple pads. In this article, I’ll be sharing the benefits, risks, and the best types of mini fridges!
- Benefits of having a mini fridge in your nursery
- Concerns about having a mini fridge in your nursery
- Where should I place my mini fridge in my nursery?
- Which accessories do I need besides a mini fridge to have warm milk?
- Best mini fridges in nursery
- How long does breast milk last in a mini fridge?
- Final thoughts
Benefits of having a mini fridge in your nursery
Easy access (no need to go to the kitchen)
The biggest benefit to having a mini fridge in your nursery is the convenience it offers. For starters, you can easily store pumped breast milk that you might have pumped in advance for nighttime feedings.
Secondly, everything in the fridge doesn’t have to be for the baby! If your partner had a C-section, it might make her life a lot easier to have everything she needs within easy reach. This includes bottled water, soda and even some snacks. This will make it easy for her to tend to the little one while she is recovering. It’s especially convenient if your kitchen is far away from the nursery!!
Keeping the breast milk cool
Although breast milk can easily be kept at room temperature (77°F) for about 4 hours, it’s much healthier to keep it in the fridge. Leaving it standing around in the nursery could expose it to bacteria.
As the mother pumps the milk, it can be stored in the fridge, and labeled for specific feeding times. While some parents make use of a breast milk cooler, a mini fridge will definitely make the process easy to follow.
An added advantage is that some mini fridge models can act also as mini freezers for breast milk, so they have a separate compartment for freezing. This allows you to store breast milk longer. This is particularly handy if the mother won’t be home and you’re left caring for the baby for a few hours, or even overnight. Breast milk will be good to use for up to 12 months if correctly stored in the freezer compartment.
Having a separate storage place for breast milk
You might also want to avoid storing your breast milk in the fridge commonly used by the family in the household. There could be several reasons for this. You might fear that someone else accidentally drinks the breast milk or that it absorbs the smells of other foods in the fridge.
Oftentimes, the shared fridge in the kitchen might not have enough space for several little bottles of breastmilk.
Has a nice design
Mini fridge manufacturers realize that these units are for use elsewhere in the house and therefore don’t have to look like traditional fridges. You can buy a mini fridge in a color that adds a pop of color to your nursery. Check out this mini fridge in retro design.
The advantage is that you can use it elsewhere in the home when your little one moves out of the nursery!
Concerns about having a mini fridge in your nursery
Putting a mini fridge in such close proximity to your precious baby might leave you with some concerns.Here are the two most common concerns.
EMF radiation
The biggest concern parents might have is the EMF radiation emitted by fridges. However, as an electrical engineer, let me put your mind at ease. The radiation produced by these types of fridges is so minuscule that it’s not harmful at all! If you want to be absolutely sure, place the fridge e.g. on the other side of the room as compared to where you’re sleeping, since radiation decreases rapidly with distance.
Modern refrigerators are also more energy efficient and use less electricity.
Noise in the nursery
Another concern parents often voice revolves around the noise fridges make. Fortunately, modern fridges don’t make as much noise as older models. The noise emitted by fridges is basically just white noise. These fridges don’t make loud noises at all, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
White noise as you might know is actually good for babies. It creates a calm environment that easily calms an anxious and fussy baby. It also allows your little one to get used to surrounding noises. If your baby seems to have a problem with the noise, you can use a white noise machine that mimics the noises the baby hears whilst in the womb.
Where should I place my mini fridge in my nursery?
When it comes to the location of the fridge in your nursery, an ideal place would be in the farthest corner away from the crib or bassinet. This is so that the noise made by the fridge doesn’t keep the baby awake and you minimize EMF radiation. As long as the fridge isn’t in your way when you’re nursing or changing the little one, you can put it where it fits best. Each nursery setup is different after all!
Which accessories do I need besides a mini fridge to have warm milk?
Mini fridges are ideal for keeping your baby’s milk cold and bacteria-free but, you’ll need something to warm the milk just before feeding. Don’t worry, you don’t have to go all the way to the kitchen to use the microwave oven for heating milk! You can use a bottle warmer right there in the nursery!
I’ve listed two of my favorite bottle warmer options for you to choose from.
Bottle warmer options
One of the most popular bottle warmer options is the Grownsy 6-in-1 Bottle Warmer. This nifty model is so popular because it has 6-in-1 multi-functions which include fast warming, fast defrosting, food heating, steaming, normal warming and constant defrosting. It also has an auto-off feature when the heating and seaming are complete. Since it accommodates two bottles, in my review it’s the best bottle warmer for twins and triplets!
Another option to consider is the Philips Avent, Baby Bottle Warmer. This model works with Phillips Avent bottles, toddle cups, and also most food jars. It easily heats 4 ounces of milk in as little as 3 minutes! It also has a convenient defrost setting that defrosts breast milk and any type of baby food.
Best mini fridges in nursery
I recently posted an article on a few of the more common mini fridge choices. You can read the article for a comprehensive look at a few of the brands on the market. My top recommendation is without a doubt the Black+Decker Compact Refrigerator. It’s also the most popular mini fridge that visitors to my site end up buying.
With its small dimensions, it’s great for a nursery. It can easily store food, soda, and of course the baby’s milk! It’s easy to clean, too and has additional door storage space, and has a low sound operation.
How long does breast milk last in a mini fridge?
Breastmilk can be stored in a mini fridge for a period of 3 to 7 days at a temperature below 39°F. This makes it very convenient for the mother to pump some breast milk in advance if she wants to be prepared for any feeding time. This helps with babies who wake for several feedings in the early weeks. Having milk prepared in advance really does make feeding time less stressful!
Here’s a short clip by Dr. Varsha Saxena, a pediatrician, which gives you an idea of the best way to store breast milk.
Final thoughts
If you want to make the midnight feeding times as easy and convenient as possible, putting a mini fridge in the nursery can be a great solution!
Do you have any other benefits or concerns you think I’ve omitted? Reach out to me, I’d love to help and improve on this article so other parents can also make their lives easier.
Another point you might be wondering about is whether you should put a daybed in your nursery or a TV in your nursery. You might want to check out my articles on these topics.
Last update on 2024-07-23 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
