Cleaning Old Toys

I use a water/vinegar solution to wash my kids' plastic toys. It disinfects them like Clorox, but it not hard on the plastic. I also use this for bath toys.

For the wood toys I would use Lysol or one of the cleaners made for children's toys. If you use the Lysol, let them sit for a couple of days to let the chemicals dissapate before letting the kids play with them.

Hi J., good old soap and water will clean your leggos just fine. You shouldn't clean them with bleach as that will leave a very toxic residue on them. I would check to see if you find out what year the Lincoln logs were manufactured in case they would contain lead based paint. Otherwise, again soap and water will do the job. Chlorine bleach is the number 1 poisoner of children in the US, so be really careful with where you use it if at all. Blessings, J.

i always wash my kids toys in the dishwasher on the top rack...the wooden ones i'm not sure about, although i have washed some wooden blocks in the dishwasher & just let them dry out in the sun, but they were not anything special so if they got messed up i didnt really care.
i wouldnt know about the standards though...your main concern would be the paint, but i think lincoln logs are stained...so i'm not really sure about that.
if you decide that you didnt want your little one to play with them but still wanted to keep them as a keepsake you could put them in a shadow box, you know like make a little house or something & put it in there & put them on the walls in their room.

The clorox could be harmful if your youngster put the toys in their mouths! You should be looking to use all natural cleaners, so that you don't have to worry about it. I can recommend some great products, that are safe, cheap and work great! As far as "recalls" and being old toys, I'm not sure about that...but good luck and congrats on getting those great toys!

T.

Not sure how I'd clean the Lincoln Logs. Perhaps a soak in a Lysol solution and good wash with a vegetable brush and dishsoap afterward, but the Legos could go through your dishwasher at least on the top shelf in a mesh bag or container.
C. S.

cleaning any toys in bleach is not really safe. a much better and totally safe option is hydrogen peroxide (I read it in a "mommy" book on cleaning). It disipates fast and leaves virtually no residue. What little residue it does leave is safe for babies (even if put in mouthes, on skin, etc).

As for wood, i'd try the dishwasher if you aren't worried on how it will dry out the wood (it dries out wood-handled knives over time, but that is only with repetitive use).

Just my thoughts!

T.