Since I'm going to start taking care of my niece soon, I was going to need a car seat. My sister had an extra one after buying a new seat for her van so she gave it to me.
It's hard to see here, but the seat was VERY thoroughly stained |
I've never cleaned a carseat before and had absolutely no clue how to go about it. After a little googling I found this post by Jessica Fisher(aka FishMama) and followed it.
1. Remove the cover and straps. Have the carseat manual handy or take a picture of how the straps are configured so that you can reattach them properly.
Baby Duck's response, "You're taking my seat apart?!" |
You can really see how bad the staining was here |
I washed the cover one the delicate cycle with warm/warm water and ran it through twice with plenty of Shout sprayed on the stained bits. I let my niece decide if it was cleaned enough before running it through the dryer since she's the one who'll be sitting on it. I set the dryer to delicate and air dry for 30 minutes.2. Wash the cover according to the manufacturer’s directions. Usually, this requires line drying. (Make arrangements not to transport your child anywhere or borrow a carseat in the interim, about 1/2 a day, less if it’s warm outside.)
3. Soak the plastic clips and snaps in hot, soapy water. Scrub well, rinse, and air dry. Sponge clean or wash the straps. (PLEASE NOTE: Read your manufacturer’s manual first. Some manufacturers advise against soaking the straps. If this is the case, sponge clean your straps. Thanks to the readers who pointed this out to me. I apologize for the confusion.)
Baby Duck took so many pictures of this bucket with my camera. My sister was worried she'd drop it in. |
This is where the worst of the mess was. I used a package of disinfectant wipes, figuring I would just need a couple to wipe down the body. I ended up using the entire package. There were these deep gaps where the seat and back connect that were FILLED with gunk, that's where most of the wipes were used. I think it took about 20-25 minutes to get it all cleaned up.4. Hose or wipe down the plastic form of the carseat, if necessary. Spray with disinfectant spray if cooties were involved. Air dry.
5. Reattach cover and straps properly. Law enforcement agencies report that an overwhelming number of carseats are misused. Please make sure yours is not one of them. Consult the carseat manual if you are unsure of the proper orientation of the straps.
After getting everything all clean and dry I put the cover back onto the seat. Now it's all ready to go into my car for Baby Duck to ride in. She was very proud of her job cleaning her seat. When she grows out of the seat it can be all put back together to be given away, sold, or held onto for a new baby(should there be one.)
I can't wait for our first trip to the library:)