Sterilization 101

[torontokids]

I have never really had to deal with much illness at my daycare. I clean weekly but never really do a major sterilization. I think germs are good for kids and like I said, except for the odd cold, we are a healthy bunch.

Well, I had 3 kids stay home today due to throwing up. According to their parents they all seem fine today but they will let me know if they are well enough to return tomorrow.

So I only had my daughter and one DCB so we spent 1.5 hours this morning cleaning all the toys. I washed them in hot soapy water with some bleach added, rinsed and they are air drying in a huge pile in my bath tub.

1) How do you all dry these toys properly so they actually dry? They still all have water stuck in them/dripping everywhere.

2) How do you wash the toys you can't submerge? I just wiped them down with cloth dipped in the bleach solution then wiped with a clean wet cloth.

3) Do you do anything with the books?

I washed the barbies and dolls in my washing machine with the doll clothes etc.

I figured it can't hurt to do this, even if it is over kill it is probably good to do this at least once a year!

[3rdtimesacharm]

Sounds lik you done a good job! Probably nothing but air dry to get the toys completely dry. Beware of any toys that may keep water inside of it. Such a a squeeze toy/rubber ducky type toy. The water will turn stale and attract bacteria. Maybe toss them in the dryer if this is possible?
Any stuffies can be sterilized by throwing in the dryer, or wrapping in a garbage bag then into the freezer for a couple days.
The books, wipe down if hard cover, but paper books, I'm not too sure. What about putting outside in the sun for the afternoon in a bin maybe?

[5 Little Monkeys]

I agree with you, germs in moderation are good to help build up our immunity. However, I clean and sterilize my toys on a fairly regular basis just because I don't want illnesses to spread too much. I also have a group right now that mouth everything!! The toys are disgusting by the end of the day but there is no way I'm washing them all daily. If I see something that has been mouthed a lot, they are to put it in the sink and I'll wash those before the day is over.

I have cut back on my cleaning (partly due to reading this site and seeing I was doing it too much and partly because I'm lazy LOL) I now clean the toys every 1-2 weeks and disinfect them about 1-2 times a month. If a bad cold or flu is going around though, I do it more often. I wipe down the big stuff (play kitchen, doll cribs, library shelf, shopping carts, shelving cubes etc) almost weekly though just because our house is so dusty so I figure if I'm going to dust them, I may as well wipe them down. I also wipe down the light switches and doorknobs weekly. Playpens get wiped down on Fridays and the bedding is done on Friday afternoons.

My books that are accessible to the kids are all board books so they get a wipe down about once a month. Toys that I can't submerge just get wiped down. I sometimes use a damp cloth with a bit of dish soap if they are dirty.

When I need to wash a bunch of toys at once, I throw them in the tub on a Friday and let them air dry all weekend. This usually works fairly well.

[kindertime]

I too use the bathtub for the submersibles. And as for the drying, well that's what the weekend is for! lol. I don't do this every week, as a result. For disinfecting, mostly, I use diluted rubbing alcohol. Bleach and other chemicals are toxic and leave residue that you have to rinse off. Alcohol kills all and then evaporates away. Board books are wipe able. Paper books usually have plasticized covers you can wipe too. You washed barbies in the machine? Aren't they submersible too? Ok. Stuffed animals and soft dolls, sure, actually, it is soon time for that for me because I like to hang these out to dry on the line in warm weather.

[AmandaKDT]

I have a spray bottle with bleach solution - 1 cup water to 1 tsp bleach. Then I can spray down things that can't be submerged in water. The solution needs to sit for at least 1 minute, preferably let it air dry if you want it fully sanitized Then you can wipe with a wet cloth to remove any residue.

But any stuff I wash in the bathtub I just lay it out on bathtowels until everything is dry.

[Suzie_Homemaker]

I use diluted rubbing alcohol. Bleach and other chemicals are toxic and leave residue that you have to rinse off. Alcohol kills all and then evaporates away.

This very interesting. I never considered this option.

[Lee-Bee]

Yes, the sterilizer is just a dishwaher looking machine that super steams everything. I suppose I can how a dishwasher isn't as good as a sterilizer. I don't run the toys with any dishes...just toys not sure if that would make a difference.

But, as far as I'm concerned if we lick the dishes that come out of the dishwasher then the toys are lick-able too! They come out clean but not sterilized.

Pretty sure bleaching toys in a bath doesn't result in completely sterilized toys either. There would be many points of contamination while taking them out and drying them. I just like to get the snot off the toys!

I don't believe we NEED to sterilize toys. The kids are in contact all day if they have something that contagious, odds are the kids are exposed before we have a chance to completely sterilize the toys.

But hey, I'm the parent that lets my kid eat food that fell on the floor, roll in mud and just get plain old filthy while exploring. We've never sterilized anything for her and she's only really been sick once.

[5 Little Monkeys]

Yes, the sterilizer is just a dishwaher looking machine that super steams everything. I suppose I can how a dishwasher isn't as good as a sterilizer. I don't run the toys with any dishes...just toys not sure if that would make a difference.

But, as far as I'm concerned if we lick the dishes that come out of the dishwasher then the toys are lick-able too! They come out clean but not sterilized.

Pretty sure bleaching toys in a bath doesn't result in completely sterilized toys either. There would be many points of contamination while taking them out and drying them. I just like to get the snot off the toys!

I don't believe we NEED to sterilize toys. The kids are in contact all day if they have something that contagious, odds are the kids are exposed before we have a chance to completely sterilize the toys.

But hey, I'm the parent that lets my kid eat food that fell on the floor, roll in mud and just get plain old filthy while exploring. We've never sterilized anything for her and she's only really been sick once.

I agree with you. All of us staff members didn't see an issue with it so we did it (toys separately at the end of the day but I don't think it made a difference) However, the health and safety inspector didn't approve of it.

A tub is probably even less sanitary haha. The health and safety person would probably die knowing that's how some of us clean LOL

Yes, most things are spread before the symptoms even appear unfortunately

I'm like that too!! When we eat our snacks and lunch outside...it ain't the cleanest food that makes it to their mouth sometimes! haha

[mickyc]

Lysol is my friend!! Lol. I have way too many toys to clean them all. If there is something going around then I just spray what I can with Lysol at the end of the day. Other than that nothing. I always thought that viruses and bacteria cannot live on certain surfaces for long lengths of time. Who knows I could be wrong.

[Fun&care]

I have totally given up disinfecting almost altogether. The only things that get disinfected these days are the bathroom sink and toilet and the change pad and it's done daily. I haven't cleaned toys in a long, long time and coincidentally, we have had the best winter so far in my career. Only one cold so far! I clean for "cleanliness" not sterilization if that makes sense. There was one winter when I reopened where I would spend every naptime spraying all the major surfaces down with bleach and I don't know if it's just coincidence but we were so, so sick that winter, I mean it was NONSTOP.

I'm also almost a little embarrassed to admit that ive totally cut back on handwashing too. I mostly wash after meals, no longer before. I just find it such a waste of time. They are constantly mouthing everything (even the older ones sometimes) and doing things that totally negate the handwashing anyways so I just don't bother anymore. Like I said though - we actually seem better off.

I have also never actually been able to keep the stomach bug from spreading through the whole daycare despite cleaning and disinfecting like a maniac so don't stress out too much! It sounds like what you are doing is fine...whatever can't be submerged should be sprayed down with bleach and let air dry (it's diluted bleach, I can't remember the ratio but you can find it online). I find letting them air dry on a towel works best than in the tub.

I have no idea what should be done with books, and I often wonder about crayons too!