Cleaning toys

by Dalene

Cleaning toys is an activity few parents ever do. So, not only do baby toys quickly look dirty and old, but they’re also a great starting place for bugs and germs causing all kinds of baby illnesses.

My father used to say that children should not be clean. That merely reflected his idea that children should play a lot and in the process not worry about being clean.

If your child is also like this you’ll find that most of your baby's toys become greasy and dirty after a while. The same happens at my business where I literally see hundreds of children every month.

Every few weeks I spend a weekend to clean all the toys. Not only do they look new again, but it's much more hygienic (you'll be surprised to know what children can actually do with "ordinary" toys!).

The easiest and best solution I've found to clean them is to half fill my bath with lukewarm water, and wash them with soap, water and a stiff brush. I even wash the texture toys.

Dry them with a normal bathroom towel and put them somewhere to dry.

My suggestion is not to dry your puzzle pieces in direct sunlight, especially if it's made of laminated wood. I found a few of them to crack after drying them in direct sunlight.

Hang your texture toys on a washing line as you would do with normal washing. This way of cleaning toys works well and is simple and easy to do.