Cleaning Toys

[DancingQueen]

I wipe things down as kids are playing with a hot rag. I sort of putz around wiping things down off and on throughout the week but not always getting all of the toys - usually I'm getting the stuff that looks visually dirty. We have a wood stove and sometimes we get a layer on things that looks like dust but the toys that have whtie on them look dirty and I hate it so I have to wipe them down regularly.

I don't have babies (under 1) so not a lot is being mouthed. Things that do get mouthed I try to grab and toss in the sink and when my daughter does the dishwasher at night she throws those in as well.

I also have begun using Lysol. I don't know if it works but I'm tired of the colds going around. Every single night I spray everything in my house LOL

My question is this. How do you clean the wood stuff. I can't toss it in the tub to soak, I can't toss it in the dishwasher - but there are a LOT of pieces.

Like peg puzzle pieces, or wooden train tracks or blocks etc. What do you do about those? Do you really scrub them down individually?

[Blackcat31]

Getting some germs is how they build up ammunities. JMHO

AGREED!!!! I can't be too far off because I have had only a rare few illnesses pass through our care this whole last year, a UTI and a few minor colds, but nothing else and we are pretty busy (10-12 kids per day) so mine are definitely building up some great immunities!

[SilverSabre25]

AGREED!!!! I can't be too far off because I have had only a rare few illnesses pass through our care this whole last year, a UTI and a few minor colds, but nothing else and we are pretty busy (10-12 kids per day) so mine are definitely building up some great immunities!

Another big AGREE! Colds are all that we've had in a year of doing this, besides things that aren't contagious such as ear infections.

[Unregistered]

Great Cleaner!

I also have an issue with bleach, it gives me a horrible headache. I can't imagine how bad it is for the kids if I have this problem. I use a homemade cleaner and have had great results. We are a very healthy bunch consisting of 12-16 kids a day. We have not had more then a cold since I began using this no Croup, Flu, Strep, or any of the other nasties out there.

In a gallon milk jug:

2 cups white vinegar
2 cups rubbing alcohol
fill the rest of the jug with water

We use this everywhere from cleaning toys to windows to high chairs. It smells kinda funky but the kids think it smells like pickles, which is much better then the headache from bleach.

[Abigail]

Our county regulations only specified bleach/water mixture. That you should use to clean your wooden blocks/tracks/puzzles. I would not takes hours to do it at once, but try to spend half hour a week on something. You sound like you have a larger group of kids so you probably require more blocks and other wooden toys you have.

The plus side! I spent some time with a provider who is working on getting licensed soon and she said puregreen24 has been approved. I'm not sure 100% but I'll worry about it when I'm working on licensing. If that's true, then I'll be using puregreen24 and order it online. It's a spray bottle premade chemical free and is safe around pets and children. It does the same job as bleach/water solution. It's in the mid $20 range for a bottle, but something simple and safe is worth it to me....only if it's approved locally for me or else I'll still stick to the bleach/water mixture.

[MarinaVanessa]

I clean mine once a week too. Throw all of the hard toys into the dishwasher then into a bin with a water and bleach solution and leave it for a few minutes then pull them all out and dump them in the sink and let them air dry.

The cloth toys and blankets get thrown in the washing machine on hot with a bleach also and Dreft then get thrown in the dryer.

Anything big that won't go into the dishwasher or washing machine get sprayed with a bleach and water solution and then left to air dry. Things like the table, high-chairs etc get wiped down and scrubbed with soap and water and then get the spray bottle with water and bleach. Doesn't take too long and I love it. I even use the water and bleach spray bottle to clean my glass kitchen table and surprisingly it doesn't leave streaks.

[kendallina]

I clean when I rotate toys in and out usually, so every couple of weeks. I don't do it as often as I should, but am trying to do more this winter with all the colds and such. I usually just wipe down with lysol wipes or throw things in the dishwasher if I'm feeling really motivated (the toys are on a different level of the house from the dishwasher).

[renodeb]

I clean all the dishwasher safe toys every weekend, they go through dw and then sprayed with lysol..(I use mesh bags to gather the smaller toys) As long as it says Kills 99.9% of germs I can use it. I wipe down the surfaces with clorox wipes. Mouthed toys get washed as needed throught the day. I thought we had to clean toys to kill germs, not every state specifies though?
Debbie