How to Clean Bath Toys in the Washing Machine

DIY Bath Toy Cleaning in Washing Machine

How to clean bath toys in the washing machine quickly and easily.

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Bath toys get disgusting. This is a huge frustration for many parents, I’m sure, but it’s important to wash the toys to remove any… grossness. Washing the bath toys in the washing machine is the easiest solution for me because our washing machine and dryer are on the top floor- the same floor my kids take baths.

Recently, I went through all of the boys’ bath toys to organize, declutter, and clean them. Some had to go in the garbage or recycling- I don’t think it’s feasible to get mold out of some of these toys. I know some people try, but there’s really only so much you can do. And more mold grows back.

I am trying to find toys now that don’t have the holes, in hopes that there will be less mold buildup to worry about. I hate throwing things away. These boats and ducks from Boon are supposed to be good options. The Matchbox Boat and the Octonauts Bath Toys are mostly non squeeze toys too. They’re a bit easier to drain and dry off, as well as to wash.

Supplies Supplies listed below may include affiliate links to the products.

Mesh Laundry Bags
Dirty towels
Dirty bath toys
White vinegar
Laundry soap

Tutorial

To begin, I placed all of the toys into mesh laundry bags.

Use mesh laundry bags to keep things together.

My experience has been that heavy items in the washing machine or dryer tend to be loud (and my old dryer door would even pop open). Placing some towels in the machine with the toys will help keep them from banging around too much and from making too much noise.

I used regular detergent and a rinse cycle with white vinegar.

I used a quick wash on cold, extra heavy, medium spin cycle, and fan dry. Hot and even steam might be a better option, but I wanted to be sure not to melt any plastic. I had some stick on things that are made of a weird material in there that I was also concerned about.

Once your wash cycle is complete, remove the bath toys and let dry more separately. Dry the towels in the dryer or line dry.

Google Web Story: How to Clean Bath Toys in the Washing Machine

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Cleaning children's bath toys in the washer is easy and quick. Learn how here.

More from the Organization Series:

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Jessi

Monday 22nd of April 2019

You can put a bead of hot glue on the hole of any bath toy to avoid water from getting into them. Not sure if the glue would hold up because I haven’t tried it personally but I did see it on a Pinterest. mom hack. Just an idea :) good read!

Rosa

Saturday 10th of November 2018

Proper cleaning of bath toy is essential for baby health, otherwise germs can attract baby. Thanks for the idea how to clean bath toy. I have boils toys regularly. I will use vinegar and bleach to wash bath toys. Thanks for sharing really helpful guide.