As the tub is filled with water, the first thing they do after getting into tub is grabbing their toy and putting them into their mouth. You might not be aware of the problem mold seeping out of it. It is gross and dangerous for kids. It is time to learn how to mold off your bath toys.
Alike shower walls, kids bath toys are risky as for mold growth. They come in contact with germs floating around in the bathtub, which can cause illness among children. Follow our tips to clean your bath toys clean and mold free.
Let us check out what exactly mold is, let us take a bath toy and cut into two pieces, you will most probably find some rancid water with black things floating inside. Most of us do not cut toys open, but we do often see the black bits floating in the bath when the toys are squirted.
How can you take care of moldy toys?
Kid’s bath toys should be cleaned once a week, toys should be removed from the bathing area and give them a neat and shine cleaning.
Molds are germs on toys that can cause respiratory problems, allergies and many other health problems that are affective of all age group as it makes immune system weak specially with children.
To wash your molded toys with bleach
- Grab a bucket that fits the mold toy
- Take 3/4 cups of bleach for every 1 gallon/4litres with water and mix the solution.
- Place the toy in the solution and use something to hold on the toy if needed, make sure that the toy is fully filled in with bleach to ensure it is cleaned inside and out
- Leave the toy in the bucket overnight
- Remove the toy from bucket with bleach and discard the solution, and clean with nylon brush to clean off the left mold.
- Rinse off those toys with clean water
That is, it!! Easy isn’t it?
Clean Mold toys with vinegar
Another option to clean those mold toys is to use vinegar, vinegar is a natural agent that can dissolve soap and get rid of stains for making it perfect for cleaning those mold toys. Let us get to the steps of cleaning mold toys with vinegar
- Use 1 gallon/4 liters of water with 1/2 cup of vinegar and mix the solution.
- Immerse those mold toys in the vinegar solution for about an hour.
- Scrub those mold toys (will have to scrub harder than with bleach)
- Rinse off the toys.
How can you sterilize bath toys with heat?
Moment you sterilize those bath toys, the disease-causing germs are killed with the help of high temperature. Most easy way to wash toys at home is with dishwasher. Load toys into top shelf where the heat is not that intense to prevent damaging of the toys. Place toys in a mesh lingerie bag before loading them into dishwasher, if you are afraid of smaller toys might fall off, use a regular dishwasher detergent.
Fill basin with hot water and add a few squirts of dish soap or liquid. Submerge those mold toys and let them soak for several minutes. Wipe them down with clean cloth or sponge. Remember to wear rubber gloves or any gloves to protect your hand from heat. Rinse soap from toys and let them air dry.
Another way to clean bath toys is to Boil them, put them in a pot or in a vessel of boiling water on the stove and insert toys into the pot or vessel for about 10-20 minutes. The only thing you will need to do is to scrub toys and remove gunk off them.
Other Ways to Clean Your Bath Toys
Plug the Holes
Many bath toys, ones that squirt water or squeak, have holes in the bottom, which are target for water to enter and mold can grow. Place hot glue on such toys before placing them into bathtub that will create a waterproof seal on the toy.
Use Disinfectant Wipes
For disinfecting maintenance and routine cleaning, you can store disinfectant wipes in the washroom. After bath time, squeeze out those toys so that any water left inside, then wipe down the outside portion of the bath toy and rinse it with wipes.
How can you prevent mold from growing on bath toys?
Preventing mold from growing on toys is better than cleaning it off. We want to share a few tips to prevent mold from entering bath toys
Seal Toys!
Sometimes toys are not fully sealed in the bag and this means that water can get inside the toy, which unknowingly can cause mold in the toy and can grow much faster you will not even know that it is there!
In case toys have any holes, seal them with a hot glue gun or with some silicone. This will prevent water from entering bath toys. You can purchase pre-sealed bath toys and avoid that hassle.
Correctly Store Bath Toys!
Allow toys to sit in moisture and do not let them dry out in between is a way to grow mold. Store bath toys correctly will make all the difference and keep those bath toys squeaky clean.
You can use a bath toy organizer that can help toys to sit out of the bottom and allow toys to be well aerated and dry out.
That is all! We often think that using special cleaning products will remove or kill off germs. But overusing such products or materials can sometimes results in killing off too much good bacteria. Only best way to clean most of things is just with soap and water.
If you know all the ins and outs of how to clean baby bath toys, sometimes that gunk still will not go away easily. Then that happens, throw them out. It is better for your kids to play with new toys than anything that can get them sick.