How Clean is YOUR Pack-N-Play?

A friend on Facebook posted this pin with the following caption. 

(I can't find the original source)

"How to clean your pack n play.. i saw this on Facebook and decided to make it a pin :-) You fill your bath tub up with the hottest water possible. Mix in a cap of baby laundry detergent (I used Dreft) a splash of vinegar and about a quarter cup of baking soda. Mix and submerge your Pack N Play and the mat. After about 30 minutes, flip them. My water was disgusting at this point! I could not believe how dirty it was! But honestly, how often do you think to deep clean your Pack N Play? After about an hour, I took it outside and hosed it down to remove any of the extra nasty water from the soak. Then left it outside to dry! My Pack N Play seriously looks brand new and any stain that was on it before is gone! I highly recommend this soak! I removed the mat before taking the picture but this is my water! I know, it's absolutely disgusting! But like I said, this soak is the bomb and took care of anything my "daily wipe down" routine was missing."

 

 

I saw that and was disgusted. The pack-n-play we own is a hand-me-down from my Mother-In-Law. She only used it with 1 child, 4 years ago, so I thought, "no way mine could be that bad." But the thought of all that disgusting filth laying in the bed with my baby was enough for me to try my hand at washing it.

 

 Hard to tell in the photo but there was some browning around the rails, where apparently my Bother-In-Law chewed on the edges of the Pack-N-Play. Also the mat had a few stains.

 The top photo is the water before I put in the Pack-N-Play. I added a cup full of Tide Free and Clear (the detergent I use for Little Man), about 1-2 oz of vinegar, and 1/4 cup of baking soda. Turned on the water the hottest it would go and filled it up. 

The photo below is the water after I left the Pack-N-Play soaking for an hour, turning it over half way. The water was NASTY!!!! After I drained as much as I could of the dirty water out, we took it outside and hosed it off and left it to air dry. The frame dried quickly but the mat I left out for 24 hours just to be safe. 

Also these photos are proof of how much better the Samsung Galaxy phone's cameras are, that is why they look like different tubs. I promise they are not. The top was taken by my iPhone 4s and the bottom by Hubby's Galaxy S III and his phone picked up all the yucky stuff that I need to scrub off of my tub. (I edited that out so you could be spared from seeing it)

I highly suggest you trying this out with your Pack-N-Play. I feel so much better letting my baby sleep in a freshly cleaned bed. I think this will have to be done again before we have any other babies. 

**Update: I have said this in the comment section many times, but please check the materials your mat is made with. Mine was made with plastic and I had no issues with mold or soggy cardboard after cleaning. Some apparently are made with thick cardboard and will not work once soaked in the tub. If yours is made of cardboard I suggest hand scrubbing with the solution without getting the mat too wet.