ASK HERE How to clean your LEGO sets/parts?

[Albereth]

My son has a bag that he uses for his socks at school. Rather than the laundry trying to track invidual socks they use a bag and just wash that and its contents. Perhaps tracking one of those down might provide an alternative to the pillow case.

I guess that it goes without saying that the spin cycle should be avoided. So should a umble drier and ironing the pieces is right out.

[Rook]

Place cat in washing machine. Load Lego bricks on top. Use one cup of…

Oh wait you just want to “clean” the Lego right?

[sharky]

I'll be looking to wash some old bricks soon. Thanks for the washing machine tip. I assume gentle cycle.

Kind of a related question with regard to cleaning Lego. Is it possible to polish scratches out to improve the surface finish? Just like any plastic I assume it's possible to polish out scratches, but I'm not sure what product works best. I have some polish designed for headlights, and I thought I would give it a try. I suppose it would be a very tedious task, but I was thinking about only doing it on larger more unique pieces that are harder to replace.

[Phoxtane]

A buddy of mine sold me some Lego recently. It came in multiple zip-top bags, and it's all quite dusty. There's also some Megablocks [gasp!] and some random bits of trash mixed in. How should I go about cleaning them? I know I want to wash them at some point in the process to sanitize them for integration into my collection. They're from a non-smoker's house, so I don't have to worry about that.

And yes, I did know what I was getting - he was very honest and up-front about what all I might find in these bags, so I'm not terribly concerned over this purchase.

[gazumpty]

Well I am currently working on restoring some nasty yellowed bricks that I acquired in a vintage set (346-1 House with Car). Its a Xmas pressie for my mum as it was one of her first sets she ever got back in the 60s, so Im making it all nice again . Im going to use the 'Oxy-clean' + Hydrogen Peroxide + good old fashioned sunlight' to reverse the yellowing chemical reaction, I'll post some pics of the before and afters for the EB crowds .

As far as general cleaning, I find hot soapy water and a old softened toothbrush gets the job done with most marks n dirt. Watch out for those stickers though ... tbh I clean them off if I really don't need them...as I am a 'Printed brick' man myself

Hope this helps a wee bit....Im sure the EB veterans will give you more and more likely better advice than me as I'm a bit of a newbie

[LEGO Guy Bri]

gazumpty pretty much has the basics down.

You can read through other ideas in this and this thread. This subject pops up a few times a year, but I've cleaned hundreds of second hand sets. For dusty or smelly LEGO, I soak in luke warm to hot water with dawn general purpose soap and a good splash of car wash soap for at least an hour. Like gaz said, for yellowed bricks, soak in hydrogen peroxide and Oxiclean, or similar product, and leave in direct sunlight for a few hours. Then wash off. Never use bleach, it may have "whitening" power, but can make your bricks brittle. Also, don't use very hot water on base plates, they are thin and may warp. Possibly not permanently, but best not risk it.

[moschino]

Well I am currently working on restoring some nasty yellowed bricks that I acquired in a vintage set (346-1 House with Car). Its a Xmas pressie for my mum as it was one of her first sets she ever got back in the 60s, so Im making it all nice again . Im going to use the 'Oxy-clean' + Hydrogen Peroxide + good old fashioned sunlight' to reverse the yellowing chemical reaction, I'll post some pics of the before and afters for the EB crowds .

I heard about this technique of cleaning ABS plastic for any purposes, but as far as I know, this technique is too new to know the reactions of ABS during the time. So far, from pictures the result seemed to be amazing, but is the restored white the same as the original white of Lego bricks?

I intend to use this technique on a 2 x 4 brick and wait a couple of years to see the reaction of ABS.

I don't want to use this on Imperial Armada Hulls, then after few years to search for replacing them.

If you found any info that this method does not affect the structure of the plastic, please leave a link.

They're from a non-smoker's house, so I don't have to worry about that.

Are smokers cursed or what? Surprisingly, 75% of the smoking collectors I know take care of their bricks much more than non-smoking collectors just because they are afraid to not get yellowed, etc. and the result is that they have a very clean and well preserved Lego.

But in the same way, 50% of the non-smoking collectors let their bricks to get dusted up to 2-3mm, and they don't even bother to not keep the bricks under UV rays, and this is just because they think there's nothing that can affect their Lego as long as there's no nicotine to yellow the bricks.

So far this is a disturbing appearance of how Lego is preserved.

A buddy of mine sold me some Lego recently. It came in multiple zip-top bags, and it's all quite dusty. There's also some Megablocks [gasp!] and some random bits of trash mixed in. How should I go about cleaning them? I know I want to wash them at some point in the process to sanitize them for integration into my collection.

And yes, I did know what I was getting - he was very honest and up-front about what all I might find in these bags, so I'm not terribly concerned over this purchase.

Right now I have 2 sets under cleaning process and so far, the most optimal option to wash Lego is to let it in a plastic basin full of water and with some washing powder inside of it. Shake your hands until it makes some bubbles, and let it there for about 12 hours.

Just make sure the water is at a temperature between 30-45 Celsius, at least when you put the washing powder so it can be easily dissolved.

After 8-16 hours, throw the dirty water, add some new clean water and add the washing powder again.

Repeat the process until you consider your bricks cleaned enough in order to satisfy you.

On some particular bricks, it may be needed to use a tooth brush, but this doesn't need to pick up piece by piece as I suppose the Lego wasn't left outside in the garden for 20 years.

This way you can wash any Lego Bricks including Sails, but of course excepting the ones that has stickers on them.

You also can replace the washing powder with liquid soap, shower gel, etc.

The whole process it may require 1-5 days, depends of how dirty they are and depends of your preference of result, but I think this is the best option so far because when you have to wash 2-10kg of Lego, if you mind to wash them piece by piece, you might go crazy after a couple of hours.

[Bearded Castle Guy]

Are smokers cursed or what? Surprisingly, 75% of the smoking collectors I know take care of their bricks much more than non-smoking collectors just because they are afraid to not get yellowed, etc. and the result is that they have a very clean and well preserved Lego.

But in the same way, 50% of the non-smoking collectors let their bricks to get dusted up to 2-3mm, and they don't even bother to not keep the bricks under UV rays, and this is just because they think there's nothing that can affect their Lego as long as there's no nicotine to yellow the bricks.

So far this is a disturbing appearance of how Lego is preserved.

I doubt that it's primarily the Nicotine or any surface discoloration that folks are majorly concerned about when getting LEGO from a smoking home (there's a way to clean that easily enough), it's the SMELL from the smoke that can be released back out of the bricks over time, this is especially important for those allergic to elements of the smoke. Rinsing or even soaking doesn't always do much if anything about the smell, I don't recall offhand where I read it but there was speculation in the past about using a vacum bell in order to remove the ingrained elements of the smell. Some folks are sensitive to it, others are not, for those sensitive it's IMPORTANT information to take into consideration.

[Capt. Stabbin]

I have cleaned lots of dirty Lego in my dishwasher. Top rack, make sure the high temp wash and dry are off. Works fine for me.

[Modulex Guy]

Just as an FYI to those who have LEGO that has smoke smell, OXY Clean does an amazing job at getting rid of the smell. I've cleaned lots of LEGO and Modulex that had smoke smell by soaking it all in water and OXY Clean and the smell is completely gone.

[paul_delahaye]

I experiemented with an ultrasonic bath, it was only a small one from Maplin in the UK, cost about £30, but it was a bit of a disappointment to be honest, whilst it removed some dust, I was expecting better results.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/ultra-7000-ultrasonic-cleaner-223108?c=maplin&utm_source=gcs&utm_medium=gcs_search&utm_campaign=A46HQ&utm_content=Ultrasonic+Cleaners

[Fugazi]

The main topic on brick cleaning can be found here. Plenty of good advice can also be found there. This will be merged in a little while.

[Phoxtane]

The main topic on brick cleaning can be found here. Plenty of good advice can also be found there.

Thanks Fugazi. I read through that thread, and it brought to mind another question of mine:

We have "hard" water here, and as a result, we have to out in a bit of this powdered booster stuff every time we run the dishwasher so our glasses and whatnot don't come out all cloudy-like. Should I throw in a bit of this booster powder when I wash my Lego?

[kdenty]

I use a specially-designed horsehair brush to dust-off my Lego models. In cases where there are hard-to-brush dirt, I use cotton balls dabbed with common isopropyl alcohol to wipe the dirt on non-printed Lego pieces.

Found the brush tip very useful. I found a soft 'blusher makeup' brush similar to horseshoe brush. It's perfect for gently dusting and gets in the bumps and indents really well to keep my Lego modulars dust free.

[whydoris]

This is from a Chinese website.The best way to get rid of dust on lego surface and technic parts is use Cyberclean (google it if you don't know what it is).

I tried it myself, it really works. But I don't know whether it leaves any bad things behind - I hope not as it is safe to use for computer keyboards. The best thing with Cyberclean is that there is no water - so you don't need to worry about blow dry

So my solution for cleaning bricks:

1) for bulk loose pieces, wash them with diluted hand wash water. Use sensitive toothbush for tough marks if there is any. Then rinse twice in water. Finally dry them with towel and leave them in a cool place for a few days

2) for ready made sets with dust on top, use cyberclean

Another solution I saw from the Chinese website is use a jewellery cleaning machine + washing bag. Put bricks in washing bag, then goes into the jewellery cleaning machine.

I never try that as I don't have jewellery cleaning machine - but I do love my lego as much as my jewellery

Edited January 31, 2014 by whydoris

[iamwhoiam]

For my bricks I typically don't need to wash them too often, but when I do I usually put them in warm water with some soap, then rinse them off and set them aside to dry.

For baseplates and sets on display I usually use a compressed air canister to blow some dust off.

Someone once suggested to me is to make sure all the pieces are disassembled and then put them in a washing bag. Ya know, a bag where delicates such as pantyhose, lingere, etc. goes into before being put into a washing machine. Then put them in the washing machine.

This was before stickers were popular of course. I've never tried it for myself. I didn't want to take the risk.

I don't think I will try this, my flash drives have been through the wash enough times. I'm afraid what would happen to my Lego!

Edited February 14, 2014 by iamwhoiam

[mhalmann]

I recently bought used lego 8868 and I discovered that its tires smell really bad. It is not smoke. It feels like some chemical odours are leaking from them.

Is such thing normal for 22 year old 20x30 tires or has previous owner done something with the tires?

[bonox]

in my experience the old foam tyres often have a pretty funky smell to them. I've got nearly a hundred now and they're all in various states of smell, going hard and/or going greasy and many are warped and don't fit the wheels as nicely as they used to. My collection is second hand from all over the world, so I doubt it's anything one owner did if all of them display the same properties.That said, they are porous and will absorb stuff over time.

[Jaeson Lego Pryer]

I use a product called cyber clean here in the uk. It gets into every small space costs £3.99 from a company called dcc supplies. Works a treat.

[BusterHaus]

I got a bunch of used sets last night, nothing older than 2 years. They models were displayed in a small apartment and inevitably picked up all the odours from the food cooked and consumed there. Washing the bricks in warm water and Palmolive did the trick, but I can't get the stink out of the tires and pneumatic hoses.

I already put them through a cycle in the washing machine with some Resolve (oxy-type cleaner) but it did nothing. I tried Palmolive and had a little more success, but the smell is still there. Any suggestions?

Update: 20 hours in a water and Palmolive did nothing. Ditto for a vinegar bath and soaking in Fabreeze (I rinse in between to avoid any chemical reactions).

I'm starting to suspect that the odour is from a furniture cleaning product that would have been sprayed on the shelves on which the models were displayed. I've a couple of ideas to still try out and then I'll simply put the tires aside and see if the smell goes away with time.

Edited January 10, 2015 by BusterHaus

[Kalais]

Dishwashing liquid, bucket of water and 24 hours. After that all smellshould gone. At least it worked for my stinky bricks which I bought.

[JakePley]

I've found that stickers that have been on for a while tend to preform quite well when submerged in water or wiped with something wet (even after repeated washing)

Test it out on some less desireable pieces with sticker

[mpfirnhaber]

Maybe it was mentioned, but toothpaste and a toothbrush works wonderfully to remove marker from bricks.

Any issues using the hydrogen peroxide technique on plates with electrical contacts like 4758?

[aaroncb]

I keep most of my lego away from the sun as not to allow yellowing to take place as much, try not to leave the lights on.

mind you my sets are all shelve surfers and see absolutely no play save for the triumphant "swoosh" on the way to the shelve post-completion.

I use a very, very slightly damp cloth on non-sticker areas. a dry micro-fiber one for stickered pieces, or the canned air for cleaning inside computers (from a distance!) seems to do the trick as well.

[mpfirnhaber]

Any tips for cleaning old white flex hoses (73590c01a) that have gotten all yellow and gross from years of play?

Does the hydrogen peroxide + oxiclean trick work on these, or will that damage the soft plastic?