Medela Harmony

Does The Job But Wouldn't Recommend – I didn't plan to pump a lot so only wanted a manual one for a small amount of expressing. I had so much trouble getting my milk to come out, I spent so long sitting there expressing, my hand would get sore and I'd get annoyed because I didn't want to spend the whole time bub was asleep expressing milk! It is easy enough to use and clean. I… Read more

found it a bit awkward getting my milk to go down the funnel into the bottle instead of dripping all over me (maybe that was me being useless though).

I also just found expressing milk a bit painful in general, which I wasn't expecting at all.

And then my big problem was I got lumps in my breasts -- blocked ducts! The pump obviously just isn't as powerful as bub. I think an electric one might have more suction and power (I'm guessing) so you might not have the lumpy issue but I didn't bother investing in one as expressing wasn't something I did a lot of anyway.

I did discover a solution to my lumpy boob problem, I took Lecithin tablets to thin out my milk. Apparently some women have thick fatty milk and can have trouble breastfeeding because of this!

I can't say I'd recommend this product because of the lumps I wound up getting from using it and the fact that it would take me around an hour to get 50ml out -- but that may just have been my issue with having thick milk.

Handy for occasional use – As a first-time mum and now exclusively breastfeeding, this pump was so helpful at the beginning when I was experiencing a lot of engorgement, nipple/breast pain during feeding and had to pump for temporary relief. On two occasions I was able to pump in the car and bottle feed during a long drive when we were unable to pull over to feed. I… Read more

currently don't pump at all now at 11 weeks post partum because I love breastfeeding that much and the thought of cleaning a bottle makes me feel tired already. I also love it when my son poops all day haha. I do plan to slowly build a small freezer stash for my return to part time work.

This pump took a little bit of practice before getting used to it. What really helped was combining pumping with breast compressions, heat, massage and hand expression, and getting to know the anatomy and uniqueness of each boob - this yielded much more milk than pumping alone. (Obviously the Harmony will never drain the breast as effectively as baby, so more effort on my part needed).

It was quite fiddly at first fitting my breast/nipple into the standard shield, sometimes uncomfortable and often leaked, until I realised I needed to go down in flange size. This made a big difference.

I had initially considered buying an electric pump but held off until after I gave birth, used the hospital grade one during my hospital stay to help get milk flowing because of attachment issues, opted to buy the Harmony the week I came home and no regrets! I prefer this over the electric as I can control the suction strength and even speed, to the point of holding a steady stream of milk. Reasonably priced. Easy to clean. Portable. Parts easy to replace online or at local shops. Compared to the electric, I also feel less like a cow. :)

The rubber suction doesn't need a crazy clean in hot water as per instruction booklet because it starts to come a little loose as I've discovered. The letdown mode is a little pointless - much better to stimulate your own let down with your own hands. I prefer a specific Pigeon bottle over the Medela bottles so I just have to live with transferring the milk around. Will definitely use this again for next baby if neccessary.

Perfect for occasional use – I am someone who just expresses a little to have a feed or two backup in the freezer and this hand pump is perfect. I have used it occasionally to express a whole feed, but more often express a little after feeds in order to build up a supply or to express for comfort when baby sleeps longer than usual. I find it really easy to use, and as long… Read more

as I can get a let down, it is very efficient and I can get lots of milk. I do find that I sit hunched forward using it, and you do need both hands.

It's easy to clean, and we sterilise it daily when being used by boiling in hot water. I have the hard plastic breast shield which doesn't have the yellowing problems others have talked about. Sometimes it can be a little difficult to get suction, but I have found that making sure the silicone bit in the handle is on properly helps with that.

It's pretty much fool proof, there is nothing mechanical to fail or break, it never runs out of batteries and I can put it in my handbag easily if I'm going to miss a feed and need to express. I think if I were trying to express a lot regularly, though, I would prefer an electric pump.

Like others have said, shop around for the best price! comfortable, cheap, reliable, easy to use, easy to clean need two hands, hard to sit comfortably

Amazing – I had so much trouble pumping with the freestyle flex ($400), it will run it for over 20 mins and I might get 10 - 20 mls from both breasts. I have also tried the Tommee tippee manual silicone pump, it was a improvement, but it was would take quite a while to express. I purchased the Harmony pump while was out shopping and my baby was refusing to… Read more ·  1

feed (potentially from being uncomfortable in the parents room) and I desperately needed to pump to relieve breast engorgement. I can not believe it, it was only about $50 and in less than 5 minutes, I got 50mls. It is so affordable, I think I got lucky with the shield size, I didn't check but I ended up with the 24mm, which is the exact same shield on my electric pump.

My favourite pump – This little bad boy is my go-to pump. I actually prefer it to my Spectra S2 for ease of use and portability. It's portable and silent and you can easily control the suction. Perfect for casual pumping. Show details ·  1

Not great – I bought a hand pump because I was only planning to pump a few times a week. I just didn't get a lot of milk out with this pump, after about 15 minutes all I'd get was about 30mls and a hand cramp.  Show details

Check the breast pad size – Be careful that you buy the right size. I just wasted money on this product because the breast shield is the wrong size for my partner. The box tell you size but it's in microscopic writing on the bottom. Now we have to buy the correct size breast shields separately for $25.99. It's a joke. How about this Medela. Why don't you put large, medium or… Read more

small in massive writing on the box so people don't buy the wrong one. That might be a nice thing to do for your sleep-deprived customers. Will not be buying anything else from this company.

Breast shield cannot attach to breast very well – This is a light-weight and small-size breast pump, very suitable for using outside. The 2 phase design is a very good idea. But a problem of this breast pump is that its breast shield can not attach to breast very well, because plastic material used to make it is not soft.

Great hand held pump – This pump is great and easy to use, the handle has 2 different ways to pump to stimulate the milk. I recommend you read how to use it both ways to understand how to get the best out of it!! Show details

This is perfect! Can’t live without it – Little did it know how effective manual pump is compare to the electric ones. I have been using the double electric medela pump for 7mnths and could never pump more than 150ml. After having milk duct and couldn’t get milk out from electric medela pump, i decided to try manual medela…it was a life changer…150ml from the milk duct breast within 15mins!! Should’ve bought the manual in the first place instead of wasting $400 on the electric ones. Show details ·  1

Super handy! – Easy, light and portable, I found this pump more convenient than my hospital grade portable pump and had the same output. Easy to clean and easy to use, I preferences using this pump. Show details ·  1

Perfect for manual pumping – This product is the most preferred compared to the other brands i have tried. Though i still ended up hiring a hospital grade electronic machine this is easy to take with me when doing ocernight trips away... highly recommend Show reply

Very Good – I bought this for my second baby, and the suction is fantastic. But then again, my milk flow is very good, thus I’m not sure if this would help as much as it did to me than to those mothers who are having hard times with slow milk flow. Even though it’s pretty expensive, but it’s worth the buy. As far as I know, Medela has good reputation in their breast pump products. For cleaning, it’s easy to clean and not too complicated to deep clean it. Show details

Worked well most of the time – Worked well, occasionally will loose suction and milk drops down into pump cup, and will not pump correctly, not sure if this is the product or user error. Purchased Medela as I used their electric version in hospital and was happy with that. Easy to clean and sterilise. Show details

Perfect and easy to use – Using the pump once a day and is great, easy to use and easy to clean. Did notice though if not thoroughly cleaned there can be spots of mould on certain parts of the pump so needs to be washed and rinsed thoroughly. Pump has great suction and takes only 15 minutes to fill a 150ml bottle.  Show reply

Why don’t you try it – I love this pump and crazy about it. From now on I’m not afraid to pump anymore. It pump so fast and does nit hurt you. I feel nothing after I pumped and I can easy to get 100 ml one side of my breast in 4mins. What!!! I asked myself why didn’t I know this before?? Lol... I have electric spectral2 at home and it usually take 10-20 mins to get 100ml each side. It’s painful and left me clogged milk ducks all the time.  Show reply

Prefect pump! – I love this manual breast pump. I am able to actually express my milk quicker with this pump then I am with any electric breast pump. I'm able to empty both breasts within 15 to 20 minutes. And that is with pumping 4 to 5 ounces from each breast. I love the handle as it helps to keep my hands from cramping which is nice. I found that if you don't… Read more ·  1

wash the handle which has the rubber ring on it then you really don't ever have an issue with needing to replace the O-ring on it like some of the other reviewers have said . I'll just wipe the handle down with the baby wipes every once in a while.

Liked it so much I bought a new one – I've bought this twice now. I accidentally left my first to sterilize and walked out of the house leaving it to boil. Poor little thing melted. Fire fighters were finished clearing my house of the smoke by the time I returned (house did not catch fire, luckily!) Once you get the hang of it, it is easy to assemble and disassemble. The suction is… Read more ·  1

strong and I have got litres of breast milk out of my boobs with it. I also found it incredibly helpful when I was struggling with blocked ducts. I could control the pressure and even move it around to express from a particular duct. I honestly credit it for having avoided mastitis!

If you're going to be expressing a lot, maybe an electric pump would work better for you. I only had the occasional night out, so expressed once a day for my child to be used to taking the bottle. This pump was well suited to my needs.

I replaced my electric Medela for this handpump! – I LOVE this pump. I originally was using a Medela brand that was electric however the motor failed and I had to run out and grab a replacement. I chose the Medela Harmony and was surprised at how much more efficient it was! Although a hand-workout at first, this manual pump allowed me to control my pumping and ended up being considerably more… Read more ·  1

effective. I was comfortably doing 10-20min sessions per side, and then DISHWASHING majority of the parts. What a life saver!

Easy n quick – I found this pump very easy to use. My child was born prem and i have to express the milk every 4hrs to increase my milk supply and this was a life saver for me. Thanks to medella really recommend one's who is stuiggling hard like me.ot is easy to clean and to use again and again.  Show reply

Worst $400 I have ever spent!!! – I bought the double head swing pump for $400 and my $100 crappy single head pump works better. I am constantly undoing it and doing it back up to try and get the suction to work. It is so unbelievably frustrating when I have to pump every three hours. I literally spend more time trying to get it to work than I do pumping. Complete waste of time and money. I will never purchase medela products again

Better than my eBay purchase – Being a first time mum I had purchased a cheap hand held pump online not thinking I would actually ever need to use it... because you just attach the baby to the breast right? So anyway, I didn’t thing the hand held was great so I purchased a medela in hope that it would help and boy did it!!! It was so easy to clean in comparison and to use! I love this pump.  Show 2 replies

Easy to use and store – Used it when I gave birth to my daughter. Very easy to use. My milk supply is good so I easily fill it up. It came handy when I went to Sydney with my mom without my daughter- had to pump my sore breast. And even when I weaned my baby recently, it relieved me of the discomfort

Perfect compact hand pump – I didn’t pump much and this pump was perfect. It’s easy to assemble, clean and maintain. It’s very comfortable to use (although I had to buy the part that goes onto the breast in a smaller size). It was quite fast for me to pump what I needed, not more than 10min. But that obviously is a very subjective thing and depends on the flow. I would definitely use again.

It’s alright – I rushed out and bought a pump just to help with oversupply. This seemed to have consistently decent reviews. I had no idea that this only and with (large) nipple sizes, so it really hurt until I ordered the right size. They were difficult to track down and cost $29.95, which I thought was outrageous for two pieces of plastic. I don’t know… Read more

whether it’s my breasts or the pump, but I got more milk by hand-expressing. It’s okay for urgent situations but in hindsight, I should have just invested in an electric one. I would have used it more. Don’t think this is worth the price tag. Also, my son could not figure out how to get milk out of this bottle...and neither could I!

Good for the price paid – The medela harmony was easy to put together and use. At one stage I was using every hour to try and increase my milk supply supply. I loved the stand that comes with it as I could easily place back into the fridge without spilling any. I did find there was a specific way you had to hold it for the milk to go down into the bottle with spilling… Read more

anywhere and that’s the only downside. The pump was easy to pull apart to clean and sterilise. I would recommend as a pump but if you can afford to definitely get an electric one

Pumping in Harmony – Medea Harmony is very convenient Compact smart looking light weight Comfortable easy to use clean & carry I tried 4 or 5 over 6 years & on 3 children & Medea Harmoney is by far the best for me I highly recommend to hire try or buy for yourself & your baby

Did the job well – The Medela Harmony was the best pump I tried. It is easy to use. Because you're pumping manually, you can control the speed, force, etc of the pump which I think helped me loads. The only downside was that the pump handle sometimes popped off and I needed to stop and re-attach it. Apart from that, I was very happy with the product.

Good product but very slow process – My wife used this for a while with my daughter. For a cheap option it works quite well and does not make much mess. The main down side is that it takes a long time to fully pump. We borrowed the electric version from a friend and wife said was much better. Definitely recommend if you cant afford the automatic pump or you want something a bit more portable but suggest upgrading to the non manual pump.

Best purchase – Purchased this pump as a back up before having my twins. Its GREAT! had to end up using it every day, every 3/4 hours for one of the twins for about 3 weeks and it was fine to use. For a manual pump it works really well and fast and even with that much use at the start, its still working really well. Handy that its also portable. Would recommend this product to all new mums.

Value for money – Wife has had this with twin pregnancy and it has surprisingly worked very well. It was used several times a week but could be used more. It is manual but pumps efficiently. Medela brand is a good one. It is also quite easy to clean and maintain. A quality, value for money product.

A nice pump for the money! – A convenient pump for anyone who wants to use couple of times per day. Easy to use, easy to clean and the pump works well with stimulation mode. Not recommended for people who use daily to extract milk for the whole day as electric pumps would be suitable for that purpose. Buy with an offer, so it'll be more value for money!

Thankful – I didnt breastfeet but i have a few time ended up with bad mastitis and need some instant relief. This product save me so many times from having to go to hospital even tho i wish i opted for the electric to make it a bit easier im so happy with the pump i got as any thing was better then nothing when your in pain.

Affordable and efficient – I got this from Coles for $60 after seeing reviews so it was reasonably priced and it works perfectly. Easy to understand instructions and troubleshooting for correct pumping and the right size for you. Easy to clean and put together. Has a handy holder to keep it all together in your cupboard. I am very happy with my purchase because I was hesitant on spending so much money on something like this but its been well worth it.