How To Clean High Chair Straps?

We all can admit that babies are not the cleanest people in the world. They don’t have the same “table manners” as we do.

Therefore, their eating area can get a bit messy. You’ll find baby food almost in all corners, no matter how inaccessible. It’s like they have an exceptional talent for getting food in all sorts of odd places.

Now, all jokes apart, you need to keep your baby’s high chair as clean as possible. No matter how messy it gets. So here’s how to clean high chair straps most efficiently and easily.

If you’re in a rush but you want your baby’s high chair in good hygiene, just keep on reading.

What You Will Need

If you work with the proper techniques, you won’t need that many ingredients to keep the straps clean. Here’s a list of all the necessary items:

Detergent
White Vinegar
Bleach
Baking Soda
Sterilizing Liquid or Spray
A Soft-Bristled Brush

Steps to Clean the High Chair Straps

Here are all the steps, set in order, that you need to follow o keep your baby’s high chair as clean as possible. Don’t worry. There are just a couple of them here. You’ll need about half an hour to get through with the process.

Step 1: Remove the Straps

This step can vary from chair to chair. Some high chairs come with straps that you can remove. This will make the cleaning process much more manageable.

So if your high chair comes with removable straps, remove them gently.

However, with some high chairs, you can’t get the straps off. Although they can be cleaned with the same process, these can be a bit harder to handle.

Step 2: Make the Soaking Liquid

Prepare a soaking liquid that you will dunk the straps in. For the liquid, take an appropriate amount of detergent and mix it with lukewarm water.

In addition to the detergent, you can add vinegar and baking soda to the mix as well. Vinegar will get rid of any of the nasty smells that might have clung on to the strap. Baking soda helps loosen up stains that are older and harder to get rid of.

If you have white straps, you can also add bleach to the mixture. This will take care of any yellowness or food stains. There is no need to add baking soda if you’re adding bleach to the liquid.

Step 3: Soak the Straps

Now you need to soak the straps in the cleaning liquid that you have created. For the best results, we would suggest you soak them overnight. But if you do not have that much time, you can also soak them for a few hours.

The longer you soak them for, the better. Spending more time in the cleaning liquid will help break down the grime and stains to be removed easily.

Step 4: Clean Them with a Brush

After you’ve let them soak in the liquid for a while, it’s time to take them out and clean them. For this, we suggest you use a soft-bristled brush. This is so that you do not put any scratches on the surface of the straps.

Use the brush to clean any of the gunk and grime that is still stuck on the straps. You can go in small circular motions to get the most amount of dirt out of the straps.

Step 5: Apply Bleach

If you still see some stains that refuse to leave the strap, you can use bleach. Do this only if you have white straps. If you have straps made of cloth and are of a different color, you might ruin the strap. The color will become patchy, and you’ll get white spots all over the thing.

Also, check if the manufacturer allows you to apply bleach to the straps.

Then add bleach to the straps and let it sit for a while. Any remaining stains should come right off.

Step 6: Give It a Good Rinse

After all the washing, you need to clean off any remaining detergent from the straps. Especially if you have used bleach, you will need to wash off the straps quite well.

Babies tend to lick and such on these straps when eating. To ensure their safety, you need to wash the straps with time and care. Make sure no drop of detergent is left on the straps after you’re done cleaning them.

Step 7: Disinfect the Straps

In this step, you will get rid of any bacteria or fungus that the soap or detergent might not have taken off. To do this, you can use any kind of disinfectant spray or liquid. If you don’t have that at hand, rubbing alcohol could also work. But a better option is using white vinegar.

Soap a cotton pad or a cloth in white vinegar and rub the straps. Let it dry, and the straps should be free of germs.

Step 8: Dry the Straps

Lastly, use a towel or tissue to dry off the straps. Rub the straps good so that there is no water left on the surface. This final step also helps take off any remaining detergent, vinegar, or bleach that might have stayed on the straps.

How to Clean High Chair Straps That Cannot Be Removed

Almost all of the steps you need to follow are the same as cleaning straps that can be removed. There are just extra precautions that you need to take for straps that you cannot remove.

Step 1: Soaking the Straps

For this, you will need to take the high chair outside of your house. Soak a cloth in the cleaning detergent and wrap it around the straps. You need to do this outside because the straps might drip and get all over the floor.

The cleaning liquid is the same as the one for the removable strap. You can use any kind of detergent and baking soda or white vinegar to remove the odor and hard-to-remove stains.

If it is possible to leave the high chair outside, we suggest you keep it soaking overnight. This will make the scrubbing process much more comfortable.

Step 3: Scrubbing the Straps

Use a soft-bristled brush to get rid of any of the stains and dirt on the straps. Remember not to brush too hard if you will scratch the surface of the strap and ruin it.

Step 3: Rinsing the Straps

Rinse the straps using a garden hose. This can get a bit messy. While your straps were soaking, there is a high possibility that a few other parts of the chair also got detergent water on it. So, just to be safe, wash the while chair with water thoroughly.

Using a garden hose at high speed might help get rid of some dirt as well. Water pressure is used in a lot of cleaning factories to remove hardened stains and dirt.

If you don’t have a garden hose, you can just pour water over the entire chair using a bucker or a large-sized bottle.

Step 4: Letting the Straps Dry

This is where things get easier for you. Because the high chair is outside, you can leave it under the sun to dry off.

Do check if the high chair is UV ray proof. There may be some parts of the high chair that are sensitive so that they might melt.

After leaving it under the sun for a while, you can add your disinfectant strap or liquid to the chair. Do this step after bringing in the high chair to get rid of any germs that might have leached on when the chair was outside.

Using a Washing Machine to Clean Your High Chair

If you’re feeling lazy or if your baby is not that messy, you can certainly use a washing machine to clean the straps of the high chair.

For this, the straps need to be removable. So just take off the straps and put them into a washing machine.

Put them in a separate bag to not get harmed in the dryer and the washer.

This method is more comfortable and much faster than washing the straps by hand.

Remember to disinfect the straps after you are done washing them to get rid of any germs.

Final Words

Keeping your baby’s high chair clean and free of germs is very important. You need to clean the high chair at least every other day to ensure your baby’s safety.

Just follow these easy steps on how to clean high chair straps, and you should be good to go. There is no need to worry. These steps will surely take care of all the grime and germs for you. The whole process takes just about an hour as well unless you let the straps soak overnight.

We hope this helps you clean both removable and non-removable high chair straps safely.