5 Deep Cleaning Tips for Baby & Toddler Toys

Here on the Maid to Shine we’re committed to giving you professional cleaning advice, helping you save time, and create a healthy, clean environment for your family. You might have noticed we’ve been on a “cleaning for baby” streak, and here is another post in that series.

Cleaning your baby and toddler toys is one thing, but what are some good tips for deep cleaning those toys? Here are five tips we hope will help you!

You don’t have to deep clean baby and toddler toys once a week. Just giving the toys a quick wipe down once a week is enough. However, deep cleaning toys is a chore that can be done once a month or every other month. It’s more involved but not too time consuming; so these tips are meant to be as thorough as possible. But at Maid to Shine, we know your time is valuable; and these helpful tips won’t be a time suck.

Gather Up All the Toys

First things first. Gather up all of the hard plastic toys, especially the toys that your child really loves (the things that get played with, chewed on, and handled daily). You don’t have to worry about the toys that your child rarely touches.

Fill up the Sink with Warm Water & Castille Soap

At Maid to Shine we love all natural cleanings! And a great way to clean your child’s toys naturally is with castile soap. Dr. Bronner’s is a great brand, and it’ll clean the toys well.

Fill up the sink with very warm water and a tablespoon or two of castile soap. Suds it up well, and submerge all the toys. If you have multiple children (or a child with lots of toys) and need something bigger than the sink, fill up your tub the same way, but put in four tablespoons instead of two.

Let Them Soak

Let them soak in the warm water and soap for five to ten minutes, but don’t let the water get cold. You still want it to be fairly warm for later. Soaking the toys will let the soap begin its magic and help loosen the dirt and grime on your toys. If your child’s toys are especially grimy,

Thoroughly Scrub & Wipe Each Toy

After the toys have soaked for at least five minutes, scrub and wipe off the dirt, grime, and bacteria. Be as detailed as possible, and if the toys have lots of crevices or detail, use an old toothbrush to scrub in those crevices. Then, rinse off any residue and dirt that was scrubbed free. Try rinsing them off in very warm water, since this will speed up the drying process.

Let Them Air Dry

Lay out a towel in a space where you can lay out the toys to dry thoroughly. Let them stay there to dry for as long as is needed.

Although this cleaning process is much more involved than a simple wipe down, it’s a thorough cleaning that gets the built up dirt and grime off of your children’s toys.