Hello Mamas! I bought my 10 mo old some toys at a giant kids/baby consignment sale today (along with a whole bunch of summer clothes for super cheap!) and was wondering the best way to clean them. DS puts everything in his mouth, so I want to make sure they are thoroughly cleaned but don't want him to get any residual chemicals in his system either. They are pretty big with moving parts: Little People vehicles (airplane, dumptruck, etc) and a good old fashioned xylaphone. Thanks for the advice!
I always use vinegar and baking soda to clean the used toys my son gets. One part vinegar to two parts water, add a little baking soda if needed to get smell out or stains off of it. Use a spray bottle, and then wipe the toys down with a towel.
I always put all parts that will fit and not be destroyed in the dishwasher....sometimes in a mesh bag if I have one.
I also use vinegar and water (sometimes a tiny dab of dish soap) and wash large items in the tub, smaller items by spraying them.
Just watch the stickers on the toys so you don't ruin them. :)
And let everything air dry really well.....sit in the sun if you can. You can also put them over the heating vents in the house if you are using heat.
I use Basic G by Shaklee. It is a powerful disinfectant, but much safer than Lysol and bleach. My church also uses it for the children's areas.
In child care with mist all the toys daily with a mild bleach water solution. It is safe if you follow the directions. It is about 1 tablespoon to a quart of water.
This is used almost universally in child care settings. It is the most approved way to disinfect toys. If the toys have obvious dirt on the then just wash them in hot soapy water. The soap disinfects too.
Allowing everything to air dry is the most sanitary. In child care dishes, toys, table, etc....are not allowed to be dried. They must air dry for sanitation purposes.
I clean all those types of toys in the dishwasher. The rinse cycle will remove the chemicals from the detergent. After all we eat off dishes that have gone thru the cycle.
If they don't have "running parts" so you would need to use batteries, put all hard plastic toys in the dishwasher. I always used top rack and never melted or hurt anything and I felt they got really clean without my taking tons of time to wash and dry them myself. For smaller parts, you can toss them in a mess garment/laundry bag and lay it on the top rack of the dish washer.
I loved the dishwasher for the smaller plastic items.
You can also use a bleach solution. Yes, it's safe. It's what used in day care. Just make sure you rinse it well and let it air dry. Since the weather is nice in OK, after washing the toys let them dry in the sun.
When my girls were little, I bought a lot of toys at consignment shops and yard sales. I would just scub them down with liquid dish detergent mix with a bucket of warm water and rinse.
The playgroup we were in when my son was younger used mouthwash to clean the shared toys.
