How to Clean Bath Toys (and Get the Mold Out)

To clean bath toys, scrub them in warm, soapy water, use a small brush to get into tight spots, rinse with clean water and let them air-dry completely. For a deeper clean, one sanitizing option in the CDC’s child care guidance is to soak toys after cleaning them for at least 2 minutes in 1 tablespoon of unscented bleach per gallon of water. Between baths, drain every toy and let it dry, because the EPA says “The key to mold control is moisture control.”

Below: the everyday routine, a step-by-step deep clean, the exact bleach mixes the CDC gives, what toy brands say about vinegar and the dishwasher, how to deal with mold inside squirt toys, and when a toy should go in the trash. Our sources are listed at the end.

Clean, sanitize or disinfect: what each one means

These three words are not the same thing, and the difference tells you which mix to use.

Step	What it does	For bath toys
Clean	“Cleaning removes most germs, dirt, and impurities from surfaces. Clean with water, soap, and scrubbing.” (CDC)	Warm, soapy water, a brush, a rinse and a full air-dry
Sanitize	“Sanitizing reduces the number of germs on surfaces to levels public health codes or regulations consider safe.” (CDC)	CDC child care soak: 1 tablespoon of unscented bleach per gallon of water, at least 2 minutes
Disinfect	“Disinfecting kills viruses and bacteria on surfaces using chemicals.” (EPA)	CDC mix if your bleach bottle has no directions: 5 tablespoons (1/3 cup) per gallon of room temperature water, wet for at least 1 minute

Always clean first. The CDC says: “Remember to clean first, and then sanitize or disinfect if needed.” The CDC also says “Cleaning alone removes most harmful viruses or bacteria from surfaces,” and that you should disinfect your home “when someone is sick.”

After every bath: drain, squeeze and dry

Toy brands and pediatric experts give the same advice:

• Infantino: “Always drain the water out of bath toys at the conclusion of bath time.”
• Northwell Health: “squeeze all liquid out of the toys and put them on a clean towel so they’ll dry thoroughly.”
• Cincinnati Children’s: “Shake them off well and set them on the side of the tub to dry overnight.”
• Infantino: “After bath time, turn on the exhaust fan to help humidity from becoming trapped inside the toys.” It adds: “You may also store toys in a dry place outside the bathroom.”

The EPA’s mold guide backs this up: “Run the bathroom fan or open the window when showering,” and keep indoor humidity “below 60 percent (ideally between 30 and 50 percent) relative humidity.”

Yookidoo says that if you don’t rinse, drain and dry its toys after every use, they “will need a good cleaning every two weeks or so in order to remain mold-free.”

How to deep clean bath toys, step by step

1. Wash with soap and water. NYC Health’s toy cleaning sheet says: “Scrub in warm, soapy water. Use a brush or dishcloth to get into small spaces. Rinse with clean water.”
2. Get the inside of squeeze toys. Infantino says to “suck the cleaning solution into squeezable toys (such as ducks and squirters) and shake it around,” then “squeeze excess cleaning solution from the toy and rinse thoroughly with hot water.”
3. Sanitize if you want to. The CDC’s child care steps: “Prepare a bleach solution of 1 tablespoon of unscented bleach per gallon (16 cups) of water in a clean wash basin.” Then “Soak items for at least 2 minutes.”
4. Don’t rinse after that weak sanitizing soak. The CDC says: “Do not rinse because germs could get back onto the sanitized items.” (NYC Health gives a different rule for mouthed toys after disinfecting. See the next section.)
5. Dry all the way. The CDC says to “allow to air dry completely before storing or using.”

How to clean bath toys with bleach (the CDC numbers)

These are the numbers from the CDC:

• To sanitize toys (child care settings): 1 tablespoon of unscented bleach per gallon of water, soak at least 2 minutes, no rinse.
• To disinfect, if your bottle does not have directions: “5 tablespoons (1/3 cup) of bleach per gallon of room temperature water,” or “4 teaspoons of bleach per quart of room temperature water.” The CDC says to “leave the diluted bleach solution on the surface for at least 1 minute,” and “The surface should remain visibly wet during the contact time.”
• Rinse mouthed toys after disinfecting. NYC Health says: “Rinse toys that children are likely to put in their mouths with clean water after disinfecting them to remove any potential chemical residue.”

Bleach safety rules from the CDC:

• “Use regular unscented household bleach.” Most household bleach “contains 5%–9% sodium hypochlorite,” and the CDC says not to use one outside that range or without a stated percentage. Some laundry or splashless bleach “are not appropriate for disinfection.”
• “Make a new diluted bleach solution daily.” The CDC says bleach solutions “will not be as effective after being mixed with water for over 24 hours.”
• “Never mix household bleach (or any disinfectants) with any other cleaners or disinfectants.” The AAP adds that bleach and ammonia “should never be mixed, because the mixture produces a poisonous gas.”
• “Make sure you have good ventilation while using bleach products indoors,” and “Wash hands after cleaning or disinfecting.”
• “Store and use chemicals out of the reach of children and pets.”

Can you clean bath toys with vinegar?

Some toy brands give a vinegar method:

• Infantino says to “soak pre-washed toys in a solution of 3/4 cup bleach (or 1 cup vinegar) and 1 gallon of water for five minutes.”
• Yookidoo, for its spout toy, says to “fill up a bucket with water and add in some vinegar,” soak it “for around 20 minutes,” then “Repeat this step with clean water to wash out the vinegar.”
• Northwell Health writes that “Toy company Fisher-Price suggests soaking them in a solution of 50% hot water and 50% distilled white vinegar once a week.”

We did not find a CDC, EPA or AAP vinegar mix for toys. The bleach mixes in the bleach section above come from the CDC. The EPA notes that it “regulates cleaning products only if they sanitize or disinfect,” and says to follow the label directions on EPA-registered products. For more, see our guide on how to disinfect baby toys with vinegar.

Can you put bath toys in the dishwasher?

Check what the toy’s maker says. Some say yes:

• Boon Fleet stacking boats: “Top Rack Dishwasher Safe.”
• Ubbi bath toys: “place on top rack of dishwasher for an easy clean.”
• Green Toys Tugboat: “Easy to clean and dishwasher safe.”
• Lovevery’s Bath Set: “many can even go in the dishwasher,” so not every piece.

The CDC says “A dishwasher with a sanitizing cycle can be used for some items.” Watch the heat: Whirlpool says “Heated-dry cycles can cause temperatures much higher than even some dishwasher-safe plastics may not be able to tolerate,” and suggests: “Consider using the air-dry option or loading items in the uppermost racks and away from the heating element.”

How to get mold out of bath toys (and why squirt toys get so gross)

The dark buildup inside squirt toys is called a biofilm. A 2018 study (Neu and colleagues, published in npj Biofilms and Microbiomes) cut open “19 bath toys used under real conditions.” What they found:

• “Fungi were identified in 58% of all real bath toys.”
• About 70% of the real bath toy biofilms “had areas of black discoloration (indicative of mold growth).”
• 80% of all the bath toy biofilms studied “showed positive cultivation results for at least one indicator organism or potential opportunistic pathogen,” and 61% of the real bath toys tested positive for P. aeruginosa.
• Toys used with dirty water had about ten times more cells than toys used with clean water.

The researchers list “the organic carbon leaching from the flexible plastic material” as one factor, along with nutrients “introduced by care products (soap, shampoo, conditioner) and the human body itself.” Cincinnati Children’s sums it up: “Water plus a source of carbon – like bath soap – equals mold.”

What to do:

1. Try one deep soak, for a toy worth saving. Cincinnati Children’s pediatrician Dr. Nicholas Newman offers this for a toy that is “expensive, or special to your child”: “Put the toy in a mixture of ¾ of a cup of bleach and one gallon of water overnight and then let it air dry.” Infantino’s tip for any soak: “suck the cleaning solution into squeezable toys.”
2. Check again. Dr. Newman says: “If you don’t see or smell any mold on the toy it’s safe to go back in the bath, but keep an eye out for any mold regrowth.”
3. Close the hole, or pick toys without one. The study’s authors write that “the easiest way to prevent children from being exposed to bath toy biofilms is to simply close the hole.” Cincinnati Children’s suggests toys “made of solid plastic or ones that can be opened up to fully dry.” Munchkin sells sealed toys such as its Bath Bobbers (“Hole-free, watertight design prevents mold and mildew”).

When to throw a bath toy away

• You can see mold. Cincinnati Children’s: “when you see mold on a toy it’s best to throw it away.”
• Cleaning didn’t fix it. Infantino says that if its cleaning steps “do not resolve the issue, please dispose of the toy.” Northwell’s Dr. Minu George says that if toys “still have dark slimy stuff in them,” it’s “better to simply toss them out.”
• It can’t be cleaned. NYC Health, writing about toys of children who are or may be sick: “Any toy that cannot be cleaned and disinfected should be thrown away.”

Is bath toy mold dangerous for babies?

Cincinnati Children’s says “Mold is most harmful if it is swallowed,” and if your child swallowed a little, “it was most likely not enough to make him or her sick.” If a child did get sick, “you will probably see vomiting, diarrhea or an upset stomach.”

Northwell’s Dr. George says “Healthy children have plenty of good immune function that allows them to breathe mold spores in and handle it.” The bigger worry is for some children: “Mold becomes a more serious concern if your child has a mold allergy or compromised immune system” (Cincinnati Children’s). The CDC adds that “People with asthma or who are allergic to mold may have severe reactions.” If your child has any of these, or you’re worried, ask your child’s doctor.

Bath safety, toys or no toys

• The AAP: “Never leave a baby alone in the bath, even for an instant.” It also says to “Use touch supervision.”
• The AAP: “Children can drown in only a few inches of water.” Bath seats and rings “will not prevent drowning if the child is left unattended.”
• The CDC: “Drowning happens in seconds and is often silent.”
• The AAP says “Young infants don’t really need bath toys.” Once a baby is in the big tub, “Containers, floating toys, even waterproof books make wonderful distractions.”
• Toys under 3 that have small parts are banned by the CPSC because they “present a choking, aspiration, or ingestion hazard.”

If a bath ends with a poop in the tub, see our guide on how to clean toys after baby poops in the bath. For every other kind of toy, start with how to clean baby toys safely.

Sources

• CDC, When and How to Clean and Disinfect Your Home
• CDC, Cleaning and Disinfecting with Bleach
• CDC, How to Clean and Disinfect Early Care and Education Settings
• CDC, About Mold and Your Health
• CDC, Preventing Drowning
• EPA, What’s the difference between products that disinfect, sanitize, and clean surfaces?
• EPA, A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home
• NYC Health, Toy cleaning guidance (PDF)
• AAP (HealthyChildren.org), Cleaners, Sanitizers and Disinfectants
• AAP (HealthyChildren.org), Bathing Your Baby
• AAP (HealthyChildren.org), Bathroom Safety
• CPSC, Small Parts for Toys and Children’s Products
• Neu L, et al. Ugly ducklings: the dark side of plastic materials in contact with potable water. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes, 2018.
• Eawag, The ugly ducklings: biofilms in bath toys
• Cincinnati Children’s, Moldy Bath Toys: How Dangerous Are They?
• Northwell Health, Moldy bath toys
• WTKR, Mold found inside kids’ bath toys: what parents should know
• Infantino, Bath Toy Care and Cleaning
• Yookidoo, Flow ‘N’ Fill Spout
• Munchkin, Bath Bobbers
• Boon, Fleet
• Ubbi, Interchangeable Bath Toys
• Green Toys, Tugboat
• Lovevery, How is The Bath Set mold resistant?
• Whirlpool, Warping/Distortion of Plastics

Drain, squeeze, dry, and if you see mold, toss it.