Bath tub toys - rules and procedures

[laohaire]

DD loooooooves playing with toys in the bath. But they get really gross. What can I do to improve this?

For example, she has this Ariel doll which is not specifically a bath toy. So it has "clothes" and "hair." I noticed this morning a black spot on the doll's leg so I assume that's mildew? What can I do?

Can/should I run this stuff through the dishwasher once or twice a week? Or the washing machine maybe?

Should I just forbid playing with dolls in the tub? That's not going to go over well AT ALL with DD, lol...

We also can't afford to be replacing these toys - and frankly wouldn't want to anyway, environmentally speaking (we don't buy her these toys, they come from grandparents).

Also, after the bath is over, where do I put the wet toys? Frankly, more often than not they just stay in the tub. I don't like the idea of putting them in a box or something, that seems like a recipe for even more mildew. And as for putting them in a wire basket or something, that seems like a recipe for a mess (dripping all over the floor).

So what do I do???

[SandraS]

We have a little toy net that hangs in the tub to put the toys in. I'm big on the foam toys - after all these years, I got tired of the little balls filling with mold (why oh why can't they make balls with no holes???) and things like that.

Dolls and other toys I do just run thru the dishwasher about twice a month. But anything that has an "inside", I try to be more diligent with - I'll fill a sink partially with bleach water and fill them with that and let them soak overnight.

The net rocks, though - it really delays any mildew growth.

[laohaire]

Are there other solutions that help battle mildew - maybe vinegar?

I don't use bleach.

I think all the toys are going to pay a visit to the dishwasher today!

[peainthepod]

Vinegar works for us. I use a 1:1 vinegar-water solution to wipe down his waterproof baby books, starfish thermometer, and toys. And I soak the toys that have holes in vinegar water for about an hour once a week. It seems to keep the mildew in check and gets rid of the sliminess.

[Jeannettea]

DS (almost 3yo) has lots of bath toys as well - and some are really weird shapes so were hard to fit into the net.

I found the perfect solution at the Dollar Store - a dish drainer (like you would stack your clean handwashed dishes in)! It was $1, and it sets in the bottom of the tub. We let the water start draining, dry off ds, brush teeth, and by then the water is out enough that the strainer won't float so we just put the toys in it really fast. We make a game out of it to see how fast we can put all the toys back in (can we do it before we sing the Blue's Clues song? or Row Your Boat? or count to five? LOL).

Best $1 I ever spent.

[ssh]

My DD plays with model sea animals, model animals, and cups and funnels. We shake and then dry off her toys before she gets out of the bath and then put them in a bathroom drawer. We get the water out of toys that can squirt. The occasional doll with hair gets stood up in a bucket after being dried off with a towel. No mildew yet.

[Ceili]

We have this scoopy thing where we keep all the bath toys and it works really well for us. I put the toys through the dishwasher about twice a month or so. We only have on baby doll that goes in the tub and it has a loop on it's back to be hung up to allow for draining and that baby can go in the washing machine (and does a couple times a month or so)

[lilyka]

make sure they dry. this is the most important thing. everything dries and gets air. mesh bags or baskets with lots of air flow work well.

also for rubber ducks, squeaky toys etc, a little hot glue or super glue on the holes will seal them up.

repurposed bath tub toys. things like spray bottles, shampoo bottles with a squirty top, funnels, plastic tubs etc all work great and then when they get gross you can toss them in the recycling bin without shame or guilt.

[eepster]

We keep the bath toys in a plastic/wire easter basket that came to us one year. It has a very open mesh (much more open than your typical easter basket.) So far it has let stuff breath enough that we have had no mildew issues.

We clean the tub with baking soda, I occasionally also sprinkle it over the bath toys. We had a mildew problem in DS's laundry basket, and we started to sprinkle baking soda over the laundry after adding anything damp to it.

[averlee]

Originally Posted by eepster

We keep the bath toys in a plastic/wire easter basket that came to us one year. It has a very open mesh (much more open than your typical easter basket.) So far it has let stuff breath enough that we have had no mildew issues.

We clean the tub with baking soda, I occasionally also sprinkle it over the bath toys. We had a mildew problem in DS's laundry basket, and we started to sprinkle baking soda over the laundry after adding anything damp to it.

we also use a plastic easter basket. and every once in a while i wash the toys with a soapy washcloth.