ASK HERE How to clean your LEGO sets/parts?

[stuey h]

This is probably not the right solution for you, but I once bought a box of filthy Lego from a car boot sale, I put it all in a pillow case tied very tightly with some strong elastic bands, then put it in the washing machine on a gentle wash, it came out like new!!

[pdxbricks]

I saw someone selling on ebay a 'lego cleaning kit' which consisted of a dremel-type rotaty tool and some soft brushes. He has a video of it and it seems to work great. I thought about doing this myself, but haven't tried it yet.

[tazzy007]

Hey all, i had aloooot of complete Star Wars sets in storage and recently took a few out. They were dusty and grimy to say the least. Can i place the pieces say in a bathtub with soapy water and then let it airdry?

Would this be a good method of cleaning the ships without having to disassemble them and clean each piece individually?

Thoughts and help would be greatly appreciated, the sets above are some of the ones i need to clean.

Makr up brushes work very well on the fiddly hard to get to bits ive found.

[Steverd]

I need some advice as a new Lego collector.

I have a chance for 20lbs of Legos at $5 a pound.

One lot is from a smoker and another from a person that

said that they only smoke outside, But has a number of cats

and that there is probably cat hair mixed in with the Legos.

Both of these lots sound like SMELLY LEGOs.

I don't want smoke smelling Legos, and I'm allergic to Cats.

What do you think? Would they be easy to clean?

Soak in Fabreeze or dilute bleach?

Thanks,

steve

[Legoman of War]

I would pass as you will never get rid of the smoke smell. I buy lots of lego lots and I wash them in the sink or tub with hot water and dish soap. Let them soak for a bit and air dry. You never know where these lots come from and I let my kids have some of these.

LMW

Edited December 15, 2011 by Legoman of War

[wokajablocka]

WOW at that price I would not let these lots go. I have alot of bulk lego and I have never thought about them smelling but im am a smoker (only outside) so I wouldnt be able to smell it anyway. I would at least quickly clean the lots especally is your going to let your kids paly with them. I can resit holding onto elements with my lips when trying to find parts. Its a no briner that the Lego will com in contact with kids mouths, how eles do they prise those pesky single studs apart when they bite all their nails off.

[LEGO Guy Bri]

A buddy of mine gave me all his old Lego that was in a had been in a closet at his dads home. I'm not sure if he smoked in it but, it did have a very strong odor of pet and who knows what else. That smell came with the Lego, I thought they may never lose that smell. So what I tried was getting a large tub and filled it with the hottest water from tap and Dawn soap and Cherry Car wash soap. I let them sit overnight, agitated them every so often. They came out very well, very shiny most likely from the car soap (shines up ABS bumpers and trim) with a light scent of cherries. The cherry eventually fades but, they no longer smelled like that house and that was almost two years ago. I say go for it it's a good deal and definitely worth a try.

P.S. Bleach is not recommended, your parts can get brittle. If you have yellowed parts from UV damage, soak in sealed tupperware with Hydrogen Peroxide 3% or greater and Oxiclean (catalyst) or generic brand equivalent. Let sit in sun (weird that you use what originally damages them to repair them) for a day or so

Edit: I'm for having a guide to effectively cleaning and/or repairing Lego should be a sticky, as this is a common topic for new collectors or those who want to revive old parts

Edited December 15, 2011 by Leg Godt Gud

[pinioncorp]

I wouldn't wash them in hot water though, the bricks lose their grip. Cold water is just as effective: it's the chemicals that do the cleaning.

[LEGO Guy Bri]

I wouldn't wash them in hot water though, the bricks lose their grip. Cold water is just as effective: it's the chemicals that do the cleaning.

On the contrary, I noticed mixed with Dawn soap gave my pieces a tighter grip. I've always used hot, aiding the soap in dissolving grime. Just never on baseplates

[AndyC]

On the contrary, I noticed mixed with Dawn soap gave my pieces a tighter grip. I've always used hot, aiding the soap in dissolving grime. Just never on baseplates

Luke warm is probably the best way to go, as Lego isn't really supposed to be exposed to above about 40C. I've cleaned plenty of dirty or smoky Lego from bulk purchases (and the occasional Bricklink where I forgot to check) and the smell soon disappears. Definitely not worth avoiding a bargain if you prepared to put in the effort to do a bit of cleaning.

[vexorian]

I wouldn't wash them in hot water though, the bricks lose their grip. Cold water is just as effective: it's the chemicals that do the cleaning.

Water at 40 degrees celsius should be just fine without harming your bricks and is better than cold water.

I have bought a lot of brick bulks this year, and I really think they are not worth it. Whatever the price. Washing them becomes work and at the end, they will be used bricks, that means scratches and the such. I noticed that after buying a kilogram of bricks in bulk, it is usually some three or 5 rare pieces that since they are small are not very scratched that are completely worth it, and the rest is probably not very useful unless you need filler for the non-visible part of your MoC. It later becomes a space issue, I am starting to think that money and space are much better used buying new sets.

[Sid Sidious]

I bought 10 lbs of bulk bricks on eBay once. When they came, there was a very distinctive smell of cigarette smoke in them. I dumped them in a pile on the floor to sort them, and they stayed in a kind of spread out pile for a few days. At the end of the few days, they had aired out enough that they didn't smell like smoke at all. I have a cat, and some hair gets in the bricks, but it isn't really noticeable.

[legotrader]

At the end of the few days, they had aired out enough that they didn't smell like smoke at all.

This is true, I have bought hundreds of pounds on eBay, some you could tell instantly that they were from damp or homes with smokers. By the end of the first day it went down quite a bit. In a week, i don't I could smell anything.

[Dannylonglegs]

I have been preparing to move for about a year now, and will probably this summer, so my lego collection is kindof in a state of limbo. Many half built creations and random bricks covered the floor of my designated 'lego room.' Having had a dificult school year in the begining of the year, I avoided the mess like a plague. However, it turns out, In my absence, another denizen of my abode made use of my prized room: my cat. He made it his personal litter box (even though he had one that I cleaned very frequently) and when I returned to my kingdom a month ago, I bore witness to a disgusting site! Cat pee crystalized on my flawless lego bricks, dry poop on my boxes, I was revulted by the noxious smell of amonia.

Now I have piled my lego pieces that were affected into a large plastic bin, and intend to clean them, but I'm not sure where to start. Do any of you know a safe method of removing cat pee from legos? I heard amonia actually helps remove cat pee from things, but I don't know if it would stain my prized collection. If any of you have experience with this kind of atrocity, and are willing to share advice, I'd love to hear it. Thank you all!

~Insectoid Aristocrat

[roamingstop]

Give them a good wash in a washing machine; low heat; plenty of water. Sometimes an oxy-clean based product can help... but it can also help to remove stickers and old style embossed paints / decorations.

if you are not confident with the machine; soak the bricks in a big bucket of warm water. If you have decent sunshine, and the bricks are discoloured slightly, then leave them in the water with a good oxy-clean based product & plenty of direct sunshine -I used Vanish with Oxy... and this brings up old white bricks looking pretty new.

[rriggs]

That's pets for you! :-)

Stick all the affected pieces in a pillow case and bung in the washing machine for a nice wash. As you are only talking about dissovable bio waste that will probably do all you need.

Cheers

Rog

[LEGOman273]

I am sorry that you have to endure this!

I'd start by making sure that the bricks are as clean as possible (removing all solid waste), and all stickered or printed pieces are seperate before using the washing machine.

Then wash all printed and stickered pieces by hand.

[Dannylonglegs]

Brilliant! Thanks for your advice! So, with the dishwasher, will the bricks rub up against eachother and get scratched up? Many of my older lego pices have lost their luster due to scratches (which is sad). Also, I should take minifigures and printed peices and stickered pieces and clean them seperately?

~Insectoid Aristocrat

[LegoMavrick]

...is the cat still alive?

[roamingstop]

Stickered pieces should be soaked seperately to minimise the risk of removal. The rest - low speed machine wash is fine; if you worry about the lastre then hand wash it will be...

[rriggs]

So, with the dishwasher

Washing machine - not dishwasher...

Cheers

Rog

[Yucca Patrol]

I had a very expensive nearly new North Face rain jacket that I discovered had been peed on repeatedly in the bottom of a closet. i was certain it was ruined forever. I did a little research and found that the problem with cat urine is that the uric acid crystals are not readily soluble in water, but are soluble in acid.

I put it in the washing machine on a pre-wash/soak cycle and poured half a gallon of white vinegar in the machine. I let it sit in there overnight and washed it like normal. Every trace of the pee was gone. I'm certain this would work with your LEGO too, but I'd hand wash any printed bricks in case the long term exposure to acid might affect the ink. But you can probably wipe them with a vinegar solution without any problem.

Edited March 19, 2012 by Yucca Patrol

[LEGOman273]

Brilliant! Thanks for your advice! So, with the dishwasher, will the bricks rub up against eachother and get scratched up? Many of my older lego pices have lost their luster due to scratches (which is sad). Also, I should take minifigures and printed peices and stickered pieces and clean them seperately?

~Insectoid Aristocrat

Yes. Seperate the special pieces; bulk wash the rest.

...is the cat still alive?

Likely not.

[Dannylonglegs]

Likely not.

Ha, don't worry, I didn't punish my idiot cat.

Interesting tip with the vinegar. Does vinegar effect legos?

Oh, and I meant to say cloths-washer, thanks for catching me.

~Insectoid Aristocrat

Edited March 20, 2012 by Dannylonglegs

[Cara]

I wash a lot of garage sale legos - some of them are pretty disgusting. I do what everyone here has said put them in the washing machine after separating out the stickered pieces. I also separate out any large transparent windows so they aren't scratched.

I use the zippable laundry bags from walmart/bed bath & beyond to keep them contained.

Good luck trying a general wash or the vinegar tip. Let us know how it goes.