https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:23:52 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/freezing-milk-with-dry-ice#post-2834030 Sun, 15 Jul 2018 06:57:49 +0000 Amorini 2834030@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Hypatia: Not the same, but I used dry ice when we evacuated with my already frozen BM supply for hurricanes. And I added my fresh stuff to it as well, though I had use of an industrial hotel freezer. (Would that be an option?) </p> <p>What I recall is...<br /> - I broke up the dry ice in chunks so that I was spread throughout the cooler, not just at the bottom, and it was wrapped in butcher paper and then plastic bags.<br /> - I eliminated dead space on the cooler with torn up newspaper and paper bags. The tighter the cooler is packed, the slower things melt.<br /> - Dry ice (in the 5-10 lb size it’s sold) will last 24 hours so you will need to buy more regularly.<br /> - I packed regular ice around the dry ice.<br /> - I double froze what was already frozen, meaning I put the milk bags in another larger ziploc bag (protection) and then put them in an even larger ziploc, added water and froze it. They were rock solid by the time we returned home. Maybe even more effective than dry ice, if the hotel allows you to use the freezer.<br /> - As I said, I kept mine whole cooler in a cold place so I would plan to use the mini fridge. Also I’ve found that mini fridges in hotels can be cold enough to freeze milk. Turn the whole fridge up to the coldest it can go.</p> <p>Hope it helps! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/freezing-milk-with-dry-ice#post-2834020 Sat, 14 Jul 2018 21:52:04 +0000 Hypatia 2834020@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@cyntist: Good point! Dry ice is the preferred way that donated milk gets shipped with, so I'm thinking it should be okay, but better safe than sorry. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/freezing-milk-with-dry-ice#post-2834017 Sat, 14 Jul 2018 21:13:18 +0000 cyntist 2834017@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don’t know how it might affect the milk, but you should definitely test the bags beforehand. Some plastics can’t take temperatures that low. I’m a scientist, and I’ve encountered a lot of plastic bags that crack at that temperature. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/freezing-milk-with-dry-ice#post-2834015 Sat, 14 Jul 2018 20:34:23 +0000 Hypatia 2834015@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>There's a good chance I'll be pumping while on vacation next year, and the only thing we'll have access to is a mini fridge without a freezer compartment. Has anyone tried to freeze their milk with an insulated cooler of dry ice?</p> <p>Dry ice has a temp of -109.3, so it seems like it should be able to freeze bags of breastmilk, especially if I chilled them in the fridge first. </p> <p>Has anyone experimented with this? I don't want to be forced to dump a ton of breastmilk (we'll be gone five days with a long car ride so I doubt it'd last unfrozen). </p>