washing toys

SmoothieQueen

so, i figure with plush and soft toys, i'll just throw them in a mesh bag and wash them in the washer, and for hard plastic toys, i'll give them a wipe with a little dish soap and hot water... but what about the in-betweens? my MIL graciously gave our LO three small plush toys with plastic doo-dad's on them- are they safe to put in the washer and dryer (no or low heat)?

PipSqueak0313

For washing hard toys, dip them into a bleach water mixture after washing to sanitize -- especially after an illness. 

I try to avoid any toy that is not either machine washable or easily washed in dishpan. 

For the plushies with plastic, try washing with regular plushies -- if the plastic comes off in wash you definately don't want LO playing with it. OR use it as a decoration in the nursery instead of a toy.

songs4drowning

I had several toys like that for the kiddos I babysat when I was watching toddlers. I washed them in the washing machine with the rest of the plushies, and dried on low heat without any problems.

wittyschaffy

I grew up in the era of Carebears - they got laundered after we were sick.  The paint on the plastic for their eyes would scratch in the wash but considering the alternative, nobody minded!  Ditto PP - if the plastic comes off, should your LO be playing with it??

As for hard toys, a dishpan with bleach and water with a good rinse will take care of most anything.  

SmoothieQueen

thanks ladies!