Cleaning Rubber Duckies

Updated on March 01, 2011
K.D. asks from Concord, NC
10 answers

Can anyone tell me how to get that black yucky stuff out of rubber duckies? I've tried filling them with bleach water then squirting it out, but I couldn't get it all out. Let me know if any of you have had success. Thanks.

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A.G.

answers from Minneapolis on

I had that problem also. All my son's water toys filled with black mold. I just threw them away and bought new ones. I think its impossible to get the slime out.

6 moms found this helpful

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S.O.

answers from San Antonio on

Rubber duckies are cheap. I would pitch the ones with the black gook and get new! Not worth the risk for a dollar or 2....

6 moms found this helpful
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J.B.

answers from Atlanta on

You have to throw them away. I tried bleach water initially with my first child, and I couldn't get rid of it, so when the mold shows up -the bath toy goes in the trash! I make sure to let my kids know up front that if they want to play with it in the bathtub, eventually it will bet moldy and have to be thrown out. It helps to keep the tantrums at bay when that happens (that and I've told them how gross it is and how sick it can make them).

2 moms found this helpful

J.L.

answers from Los Angeles on

I did a test run with one in the dishwasher and it did fine. So I put them all in the dishwasher and they came out sparkling. Although the cheaper, more flimsy ones, didn't survive. =)

2 moms found this helpful
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D.D.

answers from Pittsburgh on

I agree with most of the other posters. I have had many rubber duckies and thrown them all away when the mold appears. I have tried to empty them of the water after each use, but eventually the mold shows up. I say toss them and buy new. Probably not what you want to hear but rubber duckies are replaceable.

1 mom found this helpful
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S.B.

answers from Los Angeles on

I usually let the bleach water sit inside for 10 minutes or so, and that seems to work. I've seen other people suggest vinegar instead of bleach.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.P.

answers from Portland on

Once you get new ones, you may be able to keep the mold out. My grandkids rubber toys never got the mold and it may be for a variety of reasons out of my daughter's control but then again she may have helped. She emptied them of water as she put them loosely in a plastic basket outside of the tub.

Some of their plastic toys were on the spendy side which was the reason for doing this. But rubber duckies are inexpensive and easy to replace.

Addition: I've also put plastic toys thru the dishwasher and they do come out sparkling and sometimes nearly new looking. One toy had a music box and the music still played once the toy dried out.

1 mom found this helpful
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E.M.

answers from Louisville on

throw them out, you will never fully get it out and that black sy=tuff is mold. next time try the ducks with out holes. i found ours at target

1 mom found this helpful
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W.M.

answers from Nashville on

I fill the sink or tub with bleach water and squeeze until the duck of full of bleach water, then I let it sit for at least 15 mins. Then shake it up so it is loose in there and then start squeezing it out. Maybe have to squeeze to add more water in and shake and then squeeze out. I no longer buy those type of toys will holes in them b/c they get so gross. Good luck

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T.M.

answers from Little Rock on

I used Vinegar & Water. It works great. Once I got it clean I make sure to clean it after every use. Imagine the funk that comes off your kids. That is what is getting inside and causing the black yucky stuff.

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