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How to Clean Bath Toys (and Stop Mould Growing Inside Squeeze Toys)
If you have ever squeezed a rubber duck and watched black specks come out, you already know the problem. Squeeze toys, the ones that squeak or squirt (in many Indian homes they are just called chu chu toys), suck in bath water through a small hole. That water then sits inside, warm and dark, for days. That is exactly what mould likes.
This isn’t a reason to give up on bath toys. Babies and toddlers learn a lot in the bath, and squirting water is half the fun. It just means squeeze toys need a small routine that most of us were never told about.
The short answer
After every bath, squeeze every toy until no more water comes out, then leave them to dry with the hole facing down. Once a week, soak them in equal parts white vinegar and warm water for an hour, squeezing the mix in and out a few times, then rinse and dry. If you see black or green specks you can’t flush out, throw the toy away.
Why the inside of a bath toy gets dirty
Bath water isn’t clean water. It carries soap, skin cells and whatever else was on a toddler that day. Squeeze toys suck that water in and hold on to it. Researchers in Switzerland (Eawag and ETH Zurich) cut open used bath ducks in 2018 and found slimy films of bacteria and fungi on the inside walls of most of them.
For most healthy children this is more unpleasant than dangerous. But if a child squirts that water at their face or into their mouth, which is the whole point of a squirt toy, it is worth keeping the inside clean.
The 30-second habit that prevents most of it
- Squeeze them out. At the end of the bath, squeeze each toy firmly, release it in the air rather than the water, and repeat until nothing comes out.
- Dry them hole-down. Put them in a mesh bag or a basket with gaps, with the hole facing down so the last drops drain out.
- Keep them out of the water between baths. A bucket of toys sitting in a wet bathroom corner is the fastest way to grow mould.
The weekly clean
- Fill a bowl with equal parts white vinegar and warm (not boiling) water.
- Squeeze each toy under the surface and let it fill up. Shake it, squeeze it out, and repeat three or four times.
- Leave them to soak for about an hour.
- Rinse by filling and squeezing out with clean water several times. This gets the vinegar smell out.
- Squeeze dry and leave hole-down to dry completely, ideally somewhere with air and a bit of sunlight.
Don’t boil plastic or rubber toys. Most soft squeeze toys are made of PVC or vinyl, and boiling water can warp them, crack them or make the squeaker stop working.
Other ways people clean bath toys
| Method | Works? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Vinegar and water soak | Yes | Our default. Cheap, gentle, and safe for babies once rinsed. |
| Dishwasher, top rack | Yes, for hard plastic toys | Not all toys can take the heat. Check the toy first. |
| Diluted bleach | Yes, but use with care | Effective, but needs very thorough rinsing. Not something to do casually with baby toys. |
| Boiling water | No | Warps soft plastic and damages squeakers. |
| Sealing the hole with hot glue | Yes | The toy stops squirting, but nothing can get inside again. Good for toys the baby only chews. |
When to throw a bath toy away
- You can see black, green or brown specks inside that don’t flush out after a vinegar soak.
- The water that comes out is cloudy or smells musty even after cleaning.
- The toy is cracked, sticky or peeling, since your child is likely to be chewing it.
Squeeze toys are cheap and children have a lot of them. Replacing them every few months is normal, not a failure.
Choosing bath toys that are easier to keep clean
Toys without holes, like stacking cups, floating boats and toys with a solid body, can’t get mould inside, and you can wipe them clean in seconds. Squeeze toys are still worth having for younger babies, because squeezing builds grip and hand strength. Just choose a set you are willing to follow the routine with, and include a few toys without holes.
Our 12-piece Chu Chu squeeze and squirt bath set (₹349) and the rubber duck bath toy set (₹279) are both squeeze toys, so the routine above applies. They are made for babies to grab and squeeze, and they float. For more ideas about what helps babies in their first year and a half, read our guide to baby sensory toys.