With the advantages of having a travel system or stroller comes the hardest part of cleaning it. It is very obvious to find stains of chocolates, food, ink, milk, or saliva. Although being hard to clean, it is an essential part of maintaining your baby’s travel system to make it more durable and safer. A dirty stroller can encourage the growth of harmful bacteria. The baby will directly come in contact with them and affect its physical resistance to illness.
Cleaning the strollers regularly thus becomes important to provide a germ-free environment to your baby. The parents who place their babies in the stroller for long durations must take up washing frequently as the baby spends most of its time in that confined space.
For cleaning a stroller, first of all, you need to check out the user manual or the manufactures website to get the steps defined for the particular stroller for cleaning. There are different types of baby strollers in the market and their ways of cleaning are also different. Check the information given below for more details regarding the cleaning process:
How to clean the fabric area of a stroller
Step 1: Keep the stroller in proper ventilation and try to clean it in an open space. This will ensure proper cleaning. Sometimes there can be the formation of mild dews or moisture which can be removed by ventilation.
Step 2: Use a bristle brush to clean the fabric. Don’t be too harsh. Moulds might form on the fabric ensure to remove them with the use of some lemon juice and salt. Sprinkle this mixture all over the fabric and brush it nicely then clean it with soap and water lately.
Step 3: Now pick up your vacuum cleaner and fit the perfect hose attachment to it and gently clean the fabric. Don’t forget the seams of the fabric where seats match. Pull out all the crumbs and debris sitting on the fabric.
Step 4: Pick the soap which is suitable for your baby and mix it up in lukewarm water. Don’t mix a huge amount of it and make sure it is sufficient for cleaning. Fill it up in a spray bottle and spray it all over the fabric and wash it off with clean water.
Step 5: Slightly soak the fabric in clean water and bring it out to ensure that there is no soapy water left on it. Don’t soak the fabric for a long time.
Step 6: Wipe out the excess water on the fabric and gently clean it with a clean cloth. Make sure that there is no soapy water is left on it.
Step 7: Dry out the fabric in slight sunlight and then use a baby disinfectant spray to protect your baby from any kind of allergy.
How to clean the frame of the baby strollers
Step 1: Make a mixture of dishwashing soap with some water. Don’t let it be too soapy. Dip a clean sponge into the mixture and gently clean the frames of the strollers.
Step 2: Use a brush or a toothbrush to remove the dirt from the corners and the meeting points of two sides of the frame
Step 3: Wipe it over the frame removing the dirt and marks. Don’t forget the handles of the stroller.
Step 4: Get a clean cloth dip it in clean water and run it through the whole frame wiping away all soapy residue.
Step 5: Use the disinfectant spray on the frames. The disinfectants kill the germs which may cause any kind of disease to the infant.
Step 6: Keep the frame in some airy place with a little bit of sunlight. The metal frame dries much faster than the fabric. There is no need of keeping it under direct sunlight as air dying works the best for them and it doesn’t take much time.
How to clean the wheels of the stroller
Step 1: Check the user manual to know whether the wheels are removable or not. Most of the strollers have removable wheels. Just take that out of the chassis which will make it easier to clean.
Step 2: Remove the dirt and sand particles with a small bristles brush. And for the rims use a toothbrush.
Step 3: Now with the mixture of soap and warm water scrub the wheels for removing stubborn marks or dirt. Hot water makes this step easy.
Step 4: Rinse off the soapy water with a water source. A hose would be the best option for this but any water source can work. The flow of water should strong to ensure better cleaning.
Step 5: Wipe it off with a clean cloth and spray some disinfectant on it.
Step 6: Keep it in the light sun to just air dry.
Step 7: Inspect the wheels and reattach them. Inspecting the wheels is important before reattaching them to make sure there is no wear or tear on them. Don’t forget to test the movements of the wheels and the breaks.
Here are some more tricks to keep in mind before and after washing your baby stroller:
- Reassembling the fabric after cleaning can cause a lot of difficulties. So, to avoid such a situation one can dry it on the frame itself while it is slightly wet.
- You might go for some toothbrushes or a wooden skewer to reach out the corners and hard places to clean like the under-cup holders. The toothbrush can be used to scrub the areas which are hard to clean my hands or a normal scrub.
- The parents are advised to check the care labels attached to the fabric which mentions all the details regarding the cleaning of the stroller with all important information keeping the safety factor in consideration.
- The storage spaces or baskets provided are a delicate part to be taken care of. If these spaces are folded when they are in slightly wet condition it can give rise to the growth of moulds. Ensure these are properly dry before storing them.
- The parents should make sure that they don’t place their strollers near high temperatures and also avoid parking them in open areas where they would be subjected to scorching heat. The high temperatures can in turn increase the temperature of the metal and the plastic might start melting down. The extreme heat can also affect the baby badly.
- In case the parents are moving out or putting away their stroller for any reason, for a long duration of time you must have a dust cover to protect your baby transport system. This cover will protect it from any kind of dust, sunlight, moisture and prevent it from any sort of damage.
- Spot testing is an important step before starting to apply soap to your stroller fabric. This step is suggested to check the effect of the soap on the fabric.
- You should avoid the use of any chemicals which can harm both your baby and the travel system. The use of chemicals can also harm the durability of the stroller.
- The parents can also plan out a cleaning schedule according to their convenience. This will ensure the hygiene and maintenance of the stroller. The more frequently it is practised; it will save your time.
I’m Hina Khan, working as a writer at Worldblaze.in blog. I love dancing and listening punjabi music. Here I’m sharing all the interesting stuffs that will definitely entertain you.