How to Clean Baby Toys & Your Home With Babies Around

How to Clean Safely, But Thoroughly For Your Little Ones

When it comes to kids and hygiene, it’s not always an easy combination to deal with. But, although there are challenges, it’s something you have to get right, for the sake of your children’s health and your own sanity! Little ones bring so much into your life, including a little person to care for and keep safe. That includes ensuring their toys and your home are clean enough for them to engage with and won’t irritate their delicate baby skin.

But, don’t despair – there are lots of ways to keep your home looking pristine and your children’s toys safely clean, so read on for these tried and tested tips!

Alternative and Safe Cleaning Solutions

While there are a number of ‘natural’ and ‘allergen-free’ cleaning products on the market, there are other solutions too. Home-made cleaning solutions using natural and harmless ingredients are a great alternative around your home and particularly on your children’s toys.

• Lemon juice mixed with water is a great cleaning solution and one that is recommended when wiping down your children’s toys. This solution is also a good surface cleaner alternative, if you want to remove all harsh chemical cleaners from your home.
• Water and white vinegar is a slightly stronger solution, used more as an alternative to bleach cleaners. Think items in your bathroom or a muddy kitchen floor after the kids have been playing outside.
• Baking soda mixed with lemon juice is also a great deodoriser – pop a small amount in a dish, out of your kids’ reach, and their room should smell fresher in no time.
• Sprinkle some corn-starch on a fresh greasy carpet stain the kids have made; wait 15-30 minutes and then vacuum – the results are sure to impress!

How Often to Clean Baby and Toddler Toys

One common worry, particularly among first-time parents, is how often to clean your baby’s toys. Of course, you want to keep things clean and safe, this is most important when your child is still under one year. But, there is a fine line between safely cleaning and being too clean, whereby you could actually weaken your child’s immune system due to underexposure to germs.

Unless your little one has vomited all over his or her toys, then a good wipe over with a damp cloth (lemon and water solution) every week-to-two-weeks, is a good rule of thumb. And, if they go in the washing machine, pop them in there every couple of months, just to stop them from smelling, more than anything else!

If you’re at the stage where everything is going in your child’s mouth – it can last a while, by the way – then wiping them down every evening after they’ve been played with, is a good idea. For those toys that go in the washing machine, maybe increase the frequency to every two-to-four weeks. How often depends on how well-used each toy is.

There is Another Way

As you can see, there are options when it comes to keeping your family home and children’s toys clean and safe for your little ones. And, chances are, if you begin using truly natural cleaning products around your home, there will be fewer allergies in your family.

But that’s not all. Watching you mix and create could also encourage your kid to become the scientists or inventors of the future!

See Baby Luno's full range of baby toys here.

Thank you to Sally at Penn Jersey Cleaning Services for this very important guest blog for new parents.