Advice needed on some secondhand baby goods please!

[Thingiebob]

My DH and I have some very generous friends and family who have given us heaps of stuff for our first baby. Everything has been stored for some time in a garage and loft so we have been warned to give it all a good wash before we use it. No problem.
However, we are not sure how to clean the cot mobiles. They are padded soft toys with a battery pack inside. What's the best way of giving these a good clean without damaging the wiring?

Also we may have inadvertantly offended some friends as we mentioned washing some clothes to be told that they are all clean as they were washed and folded before being stored in plastic bags in a loft. I feel quite bad about this now as I never meant to imply they would give us dirty items however the clothes and bedding have been stored for over a year. Would you give them a wash or not bother?

We have also been given a moses basket, in fact we now have a few! I have been unsuccessful so far in getting the hood to stay in the upright position using the wing screw things on the side. Has anyone managed to use Moses baskets properly? They are both from Mothercare.

Thanks!

[FabBakerGirlIsSURVIVED]

Of course you should wash the clothes.

New mattress for the moses basket too.

Bash the soft toys on the mobile to get the dust off.

[onadietcokebreak]

The hoods are difficult to stay up even on new moses baskets anyway....def new mattress

Not sure about mobile..possibly a steam cleaner.

Of course you should wash the clothes.

[mrswee]

If you want to be able to justify washing the clothes without offending you can always use the good excuse that really everything should be washed in the brand of powder/liquid that you intend to continually use, so that your babies skin will be used to that brand.

[theyoungvisiter]

I wouldn't worry about the cot mobile unless they are obviously dirty.

If you hang it high-ish, it will be a long time before your baby can reach up to get it in his mouth, and by that time s/he will have gnawed far worse things (shoes/pet food/used tissues...)

Of course you should wash the clothes - they are being weird! Don't worry about the hoods - they are a pain anyway.

[Lilyloooohhhh]

Wouldn't worry about the hood mine never stayed up either , was new for first dc is now getting dusted off for 6th use!!
Would definately wash the clothes but would leave the mobile tbh

[butterscotch]

Hood on my moses basket never stayed up!

They are being mad for being offended of course you should wash everything!

Cot mobiles a good bash to get the dust out, I used some Milton Anti-bacterial spray to clean the surfaces on some 2nd hand bits we were given! Smells lush as well!

Defo new mattress your so lucky we had friends who are still having babies or given stuff away a long time ago!!!!

[Thingiebob]

I do actually intend to wash the clothes and bedlinen, just wondered what other people thought. The reaction I got threw me especially when I know for a fact that this couple would do the same thing for their PFB even if I had washed items that day!

I have a new mattress for the one of the moses baskets which I intend to be the primary one in the bedroom next to our bed. The basket I thought I could use downstairs or as a carrycot - would I need a new mattress for this? The mattress supplied, couldn't I just give this a good clean?

Another question as well - are gro-bags suitable for a first born? I have some that are 0-6 months but was told by SIL that the child needs to be a particular size before you can use them.

[Thingiebob]

Thank you very much for your replies.

The Milton anti-bacterial spray sounds a great idea. Someone mentioned some Milton antiseptic wipes as well a while back. Perhaps I can just sponge over the stuffed musical toys. They are lovely but definitely mucky looking!

[theyoungvisiter]

well technically used mattresses are supposed to be a SIDS risk, although having said that I have used the same ones for DS1 and 2, just washed the waterproof covering. However I think I might feel differently about someone else's.

TBH I think I would just buy one new mattress use the same moses for the whole time and carry it around the house - they are meant to be portable and realistically, if the baby falls asleep in moses basket A in the living room, you are not going to want to wake him/her and transfer to moses basket B at night time.

0-6 month grobags are fine for (I think) over 7.5 lbs - so realistically most babies can be in them from birth. However it does vary from brand to brand so check before you buy.

Having said that, many babies are happier being swaddled when they are newborns anyway, so you may prefer to do that for the first few weeks and only try the grobag from (say) 8 weeks or so.

[Thingiebob]

Very good point about using the same Moses basket and I will check re: the grobags. Thanks again!

[onadietcokebreak]

Agree with everything theyoungvisiter said!

[bubblagirl]

moses basket hood the most annoying thing ever and useless mine stayed quite nice in the corner of the room off moses basket no need for it really as if ds was in car seat that had hood

i would get new mattress for moses basket as peace of mind

we had second hand mobile etc babies cannot reach these and by certain age they just get in the way and move them on anyway

we had gro bag for ds but didnt use it till he was around 4 mths he liked to be wrapped tight in blanket and was more comfy this way

yes antibacterial wipes are great we did this with everything but in all honesty half the stuff ds never came in contact with anyway