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How do I clean my child's soft plush toys?

I have a 2 year old girl and a baby on the way. I want to wash my daughter's soft toys so that they are clean for the baby. Most of them say on label "surface washable only". Do you think I could still put them in the washing machine on gentle cycle? A friend thinks this will be ok if I put them in pillowcases first. Has anyone else done this? Do you have any other suggestions for cleaning them?

Public Comments

1. go ahead just use mild soap
2. I try to stay away from soft toys because they are so hard to clean - and think about where they go between washings! The stuffed animals that my children have been particularly attached to I washed fairly regularly - use a gentle cycle but warm water. It probably wouldn't hurt to put them in pillowcases first, but I don't think it will make a big difference. Also, be aware that some parts of the toy may not fare so well - my son had a stuffed lion whose mane started out straight but came out of the washing machine looking like its mane had been permed into very tight little curls! At least it was clean, though. One more thing - you should probably dry the toys in the dryer, or they will take forever to dry, and maybe start to mildew. Just don't use a very hot setting, because some parts of them may soften or melt.
3. I have run stuffed toys through the washer with no problem. Make sure that they are not squeeky toys, since the water would damage them. Keep them in a pillowcase, run on gentle cycle and run through a medium temp dryer setting. I sometimes put a tennis ball in the dryer to make sure that they remain in their original shape
4. My gf has some vermont teddy bears and it says you can wash them in a pillowcase and dry them on low with a couple of tennis balls.
5. You can put them in the washer and dryer, but the essential point is that you dry them all the way through. Not too hot, it can melt any plastic bits that may be on them. But if they are all cloth, go for it with hot water and temp. If they get damaged in the wash, they probably weren't in good enough shape to give to the baby anyway... I used to do this after having 3 children just to be able to throw some out!
6. Definitely just put them through the wash - I have a friend who is allergic to dustmites so she regularly washes her soft toys that way and I work at a school where we put all the soft toys in a washing machine too - I wouldn't tumble dry them if possible though as they might melt!
7. I do put them in the washer and once washed, I put them into a pillow case for the dryer on low to prevent the poly fiber from melting.
8. NMass has the best answer.... very logical!
9. I have washed them before...just make sure you extract the water out really well (put it on a regular spin cycle rather than the 'gentle' spin cycle)... then I hang them up to dry. Good luck!