Bathtub Toys

C.,
No, no perfect way to get the mold out.

We play with the toys but we also make sure they are squirted dry and set in a dry place, as well as a arm one., So they dry out.

Your preference if you want to get more of the same. Just treat with care, and you'll be all set.
Good luck!
M.

I do bleach my dtr's squirtable bath toys from time to time. Sink full of hot water, 1 cup of bleach, fill the toys with the bleach solution and let them sit in it for an hour or so. then obviously rinse really really well! At some point this won't work anymore (or they just get too nasty in general) and they'll have to be trashed :)

I tried cleaning them and they never really came all the way clean, by the time they are moldy, they are ready for the trash in my opinion! So now they still like them, but I just get a few out at a time.

I have the same problem and so do all my mommy friends. I have never met anyone who has a great solution beyond storing them at night with ALL water squeezed out. I have always wanted to try boiling them, but I have been too lazy. I would buy more cheapy ones and just throw them out as needed--your son will notice the difference if he really likes the squirt ones. My son's favorite bath toys are and old empty bottle of johnson and johnson's because he can take the cap on and off (and with the cap on it does squirt, plus the bubbles coming out when he fills it up under water--god a million things you can do with it!!) and flimsy plastic drinking cup that we got at seven 11 when I was pregnant and obsessed with slurpees. Because the openings are larger they never get moldy. And for whatevere reason he never gets tired of these!
Good Luck!!

I almost bought them by I will soon there located in Whole Foods there rubber toys like a ducky and others that are made with plastic that is nontoxic or some nontoxic material.

Hi
If my girls don't squeeze out all the water we have the same problem. fill up the squirt toys with hot water and bleach and let them soak for a while. Empty them and refill half way and shake the toy ,it helps to loosen the black gook inside the toy. RInse by continuously filling and squirting.

I have tried different ways and nothing seems to work. I throw them out and buy new periodically when I see dark in the toy. The pool toys get he same way even with the clorine in the pool water. It is safer to toss and start over. A.

Hi C. (my sister's name, too, by the way lol),

Use a 1 part bleach to a 3 part water solution to clean out those toys. Rinse well. I do this once a week in my kitchen sink with those toys. For everything else--all other toys--I bought Clorox "anywhere" spray. It's great for keeping all his toys "fresh" and it requires no rinsing! It's safe for kids and pets.
Good luck, and happy squirting!!
-T

Yes, these toys are really terrible. My son loves them too. I had to throw some out because they were just so dirty. You have to make sure to remove ALL the water out of them after each bath. My advice is to either buy new ones, which are a waste of money or buy some other toys to take his mind off of these. My son loves little bowls.

Of course you can clean them but it takes time to fill those things and rinse them well

We had the same problem when my oldest son was a baby. We threw them out and haven't bought any since. When it comes to anything with mold near my baby... there's no compromising!!! It's gone! We've moved on better toys like boats, watering cans, fishing sets... things that make less "water mess" on the floor!

Good luck,
T.

I had the same problem. I just soaked them in hot water with a little bleach and kept squirting them until no mold came out. Then soaked them a little longer and then rinsed really well. I try to make sure they're empty when I put them away, but I still clean them with bleach and hot water every month or so. I just always make sure to rinse really, really well to get all the bleach out.

We try to remember to squirt out all the water each time (try!) and then I soak them in hot water and vinegar once a week, making sure they get filled up. Then we rinse 'em out.

You could try soaking in a solution of water and bleach. Or vinegar and water. If neither of those solutions work I'd toss them.

You could try washing them in a dishpan with warm water and one or two capfuls of bleach. If you fill and squirt the toys a few times each it should get the mold or whatever out. In Girl Scouts we used a dishpan of water with one capful of bleach as a last rinse for dishes when camping. If it is safe enought to eat off it is probably okay for toys that are chewed on (plus the outsides will get rinsed even more in the bathwater). If it doesn't work you can always decide to replace the toys later.

I just throw them away and buy new ones. I'm not sure if there is a way to avoid them.

Yes, we had this problem too with bathtub toys. It's because it's a moist environment inside those toys and it never quite dries out. Also when the non-squirty ones (e.g., boats and cups) would get slimy inside -- but that's easy to solve if the toys are "open" by running them through the dishwasher. However, for the mold....

You can try filling the toys with a weak bleach solution (1-2 tbsp of bleach to a quart of water) and swishing it around, squirting it out and then rinsing thoroughly with clear water, or you can also try doing the same with rubbing alcohol. I found that the bleach worked better. Bleach kills mold and mildew. Just be very careful to really rinse and rinse and rinse and rinse to remove all traces of the bleach. But don't be surprised if you have to do this often to keep the mold from coming back -- those kinds of toys, unfortunately, are just a breeding ground for mold.

I know, doesn't that stink!? We too love those toys. We clean them with 1 part bleach and 3 parts water pretty often (and rinse).. After awhile they start to stain, and get re-moldy quicker, at which point you just need to throw them away and buy more. If only they could make mold resistant ones!

You've had great advice - my kids love squirt toys, but I've tried to introduce other kinds of containers like cleaned squirt mustard bottles, iced tea or formula scoops, empty shampoo bottles, spray bottles and other recyclables. We also use a small plastic watering can to introduce the idea of "water on your head is fun, not torture". Water play can also be "cooking" time as you pour from one cup to another or "bath" for animals that aren't squirty. I also have a set of stacking cups that have small holes on the bottom for sprinkling each other. Good luck!

Bathtub toys are one of those things that have to be replaced every once in a while. We try to buy ones that don't squirt now because they don't last long. My kids have a little net that they can scoop up fish and links in (got it at Babies R Us for $4 I think) and a couple boats that they like. Their favorite toys in the tub are colorful measuring cups and spoons to scoop the water up and pour it out.

Yes, been there, done that. You'd think the toy companies would figure out a way to make fun bath toys that didn't get all slimy and moldy. I threw away the ones with mold -- I wasn't going to take any chances with them. I would stay away from bleach, but I've been wanting to try vinegar - as others have suggested - to keep a residue from building up on the toys. And, by the way, if you're looking for bath toys made of safe plastics, here are a few ideas:

http://www.thesoftlanding.com/bath-toys.html

Dollar tree has cheap squirting bath toys from time to time (stock up), at least you won't feel bad when you throw them out.
My daughter loves her Abc's, Numbers and Sea Creatures from Target, they are foam and stick to the wall. I haven't noticed any ripping, mold or anything else like that. She also loved the Crayola bath crayons:-)

I would just throw them out when they get moldy. They're so cheap that I just buy new ones when needed. I tried to soak them in hot water and bleach but it didn't get all the mold. They're fun, but get so disgusting!

When in doubt, throw it out!
Lynsey

I would buy cheap ones and use only one at a time. After a week or two (depending on your bath schedule) toss and use a new one. I'm sure you can find cheap ones in the dollar store or even online.

Hi,
we've had the exact same problem with our multiple ducks, fish and other bath friends. Two solutions:
1. throw them out and buy new ones at the dollar store (they come in a pack of 3 for $1), so you can replace as often as you wish without breaking the bank; or
2. Use a dropper/syrengy type of device to fill up the toys with bleach (or an organic cleaner of your choice), shake well, leave it in there for a while and amazingly all the mold will come out. You will then have to rince them thouroughly several times to make sure all the cleaning solution is out.
I did this and it worked well, but you have to do once every 2 weeks or so.

hope this helps!

I noticed this w/ ours as well. I used hot water and hydrogen peroxide poured into them and squirted it out after letting it soak about 10 minutes in a pail. Now I keep them dry in a shower netting (for kids toys) in the shower on the wall. I also eliminated getting anymore of these. My son enjoys them just as well outside of the bath so he uses them there mostly.

Hi C.- before you throw them out try the bleach treatment the other mom's spoke about. In addition, I remove the little plastic on the bottom (the part that causes it to whistle) so it can completely dry out after each bath and in between each bleaching. Happy bathing!

I tried to soak ours w/ mold in a bleach & water solution then scrub them. It didn't really help, so we threw them out and bought some new ones. Lately I have been using plastic tupperware cups & bowls which they seem to like better. GL!

Throw them out. There is no way to get rid of the mold.

You can bleach them and try to be as diligent as possible about cleaning these toys and they will NEVER get totally clean - I hate bath toys since it's impossible to keep them clean - and its very hard to find any that don't have holes in them - I would toss them and buy new ones.