Preventing Mold on Bath Toys

My son has a bag full of bath toys that squirt water. I often forget to squeeze all the water out of the toys. When I remember the next day there is sometimes a grayish substance that squirts out that is probably mold. Here is a plan to prevent that from happening.

1. Preferably don't buy toys without a hole in them that squirt water. If your bath toys have holes, make sure to drain all water out of them after bath time.

2. Frequently rinse toys in a bucket of white or apple cider vinegar. Scrub toys with a cloth to remove any film. If your toys have holes, suck up the vinegar and let it sit inside the toys for 10 minutes. Squirt out the vinegar and then fill with clean water and squirt the water out. This should rinse out the vinegar.

3. Hang toys in a mesh bag to dry. Don't allow them to sit in a bucket where water can accumulate.

I suggest purchasing or making a bath toy net to allow toys to properly dry. Below are instructions on how to make your own bath toy net. I've listed the supplies below and how much they cost at my local Wal-Mart.

Supplies needed:
Netting - 1/4 yard (20 cents)
Bias tape ($1.44)
Two suction cups ($1.76)
White thread (had on hand)
Sewing machine or serger


First you will need to cut the netting to the desired size of your bath toy holder. The netting is found in the fabric section and you take it to the counter and have it cut. I bought a half a yard of fabric which was way too much, so I suggest 1/4 yard. As you can see above, it is extremely inexpensive.

You are not able to sew netting together without fabric on both sides--this is why I bought bias tape. If you have a serger, however, you won't need bias tape. You'll be able to surge the netting together. I don't have a serger, so I used my machine. I folded the mesh in half so I didn't have to put binding on the bottom of my bath net. I then pinned the bias tape on the other sides and sewed it on. I was lazy on the sides of my bath net and rather than folding the bias tape over I just used put a piece of the bias tape on both sides and didn't even fold--time saver! I didn't have enough to do that on the top pieces, so I did fold those over. That is why the side tape is thicker than the top.


I found that you need to sew quickly or the stitches get uneven and you get some skipped stitches. This is why pinning is so important. I had a little bias tape left over in which I sewed them on as loops to attach to the suction cups. See the finished product below.


If you would prefer to purchase a bath net, below are links where you can do so.

Amazon
Amazon Toy Hammock