What to clean mould and limescale off Children's Bath Toys?

[tutu100]

Please help, ds's bath toys look like he will catch something off them. They are dull and have what I presume is a limescale residue on them. Also inside some of the water holding toys I can see small patches of mould.

I have already washed them in hot soapy water and scrubbed at the mould with a toothbrush and then sterilised them in milton but they still look no better. How do you clean bath toys so that they look new again?

Any suggestions will be tried otherwise I think I may have to bin them and I really don't want to have to do that.

Thanks in advance.

[Desiderata]

Well, all bath toys gather black mould through the little holes. If you squeeze them, it all comes pouring out.

Try soaking them in Miltons Sterilizing Fluid ... and squeeze, squeeze, squeeze.

I wouldn't bother about the limescale marks. Any treatment for that would be too harsh and would probably perish the structure.

[foxinsocks]

I just chucked them when they got that bad

mine just do with a few plastic cups and a funnel

just don't get the toys where mould can build up from now on I reckon!

[tutu100]

I've chucked the squezzy toys as I felt there was no way I could get the mould out of those (I could see it when I held them up to the light). It's the hard plastic toys that are left. Ones that are differnt shapes that you can stack and the water pours through them IYSWIM. I was thinking like you Desiderata that anything that gets limescale off would be too harsh on toys, I guess I was hoping someone had a gentle miracle cure.

Foxinsocks I am thinking that plastic cups and funnels are fine he played with them really happily whilst we were on holiday, the toys I've chucked are ones we bought him, but the ones that are left my dad bought for his birthday, so I really want to try and resurect them if possible for sentimental reasons.

[foxinsocks]

the best stuff for mould and limescale is the stuff in the green bottle - I think it is Limelite. But I'm not sure you should use it on anything that's going to go in his mouth - it's very strong. But it would definitely get the mould/limescale off if you just wanted to keep the toys iyswim.

[tutu100]

He does tend to put them up to his mouth so probably too strong. I am gradually coming round to the idea that I am going to have to chuck them. They will definately not be replaced by anymore expensive bath toys. He can have the picnic tumblers and an empty shampoo bottle.

Do you think putting them trhough the dishwasher woul be any good? It couldn't damage the dishwasher could it?

[fruitful]

Soak them overnight in coca-cola. Works on my toilet anyhow! Or white vinegar.

[tutu100]

Thanks fruitful. I'll try that tonight. Without sounding really stupid does it matter if it's diet coke? If that doesn't work I think I'll run them through the dish washer.

Dish washers are hot enough to kill off mould spores aren't they? I don't want to spread legionnaires disease or something round my dish washer.

[MerryMarigold]

I chucked all my ds's squeezy toys as couldn't get the mould to stop coming out! The rest I clean with fairy liquid as has eczema and uses an oily product in the bath. They don't look new again, but they are improved.

[Flibbertyjibbet]

I chucked all the original ones that got mouldy - ugh when its fired out of a squirty toy at your babys head!!!! Of course that only happened ONCE before they were all straight in the bin.
We have plastic cups, boats, and their fave things are washing powder scoops to pour water over each other, themselves, the floor...

[tutu100]

We alway leave them to drain in the sink after use and then they are stored in a box well away from the shower. I have to say I am ashamed that I have not noticed the state they are in until now. Luckily ds is 2 so hopefully hardier than if he was a baby. If this had happened before he was 18 months old I would be sat here crying now, thinking I am a terrible neglectful mother, and wondering whether I should take him to the dr's tomorrow.

Tonight they will be soaked in coke. I shall report back tomorrow morning.

[FrannyandZooey]

LOL wait till he is 4 tutu, you will just tut a bit and let him carry on playing with them

the best bath toys are the beaker / tumbler / jug / bottle sort anyway. And maybe a box of plastic fish. Ds never played with all those squeezy floaty bobby thingies I don't think. They just sat there, bobbing mouldily.

[MerryMarigold]

LOL at bobbing mouldily. dh called me in the other day to complain that i hadn't cleaned the bath as it was 'full of little black bits'. i couldn't understand it. only later figured it was the squirty things (dh plays with them, not ds). i am mould-phobic so imagine my DISGUST when i found out my darling, pfb, boy had bathed in mould. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU.

[rebeccaw]

I tried the dishwasher - made no appreciable difference to the mould although did get rid of the baby oil scum!

[tutu100]

Thank you all for your advice. I soaked the toys in coke overnight and OMG it is amazing. The toys now look almost like new. It got rid of the soap scum, limescale and mould. Actually it's pretty scary that it worked but it was great. The sink is also nice and shiny now.

Fimble Island and a large crab thing we had were too big to go in to soak so they were cleaned with Mr Muscle bathroom cleaner (he doesn't put them near his mouth).

Anyway I feel much better now his toys are gleaming again. Coke seems to be the way to go (I did sterilise them again after though).

[tutu100]

I don't drink it much anyway, but after seeing what it stripped off those toys it will not be drunk for a long long time.