We got a free playset from a neighbor, one of those multi-colored hard plastic sets with two sliding boards and little tunnels to crawl through, etc. Its been outside for years and parts of it are quite visibly dirty. Any suggestions on the best way to clean it? I've been thinking a mixture of bleach and water and a good scrub brush?
I would aviod bleach because it might cause the color to fade and the results might look worse than the dirt!
Or, at least, test the solution on a part of the equipment that is not visible when in use.
Personally, I've only used water with a spray nozzle with good results on our playset. A good jet of water will do more that you might think.
Bleach can damage the plastic, causing it to lose strength. For our kids outdoor sets, I use a pressure washer. Get's it very clean. If you are worried about germs, you can use a very small amount of bleach, but remember, if you are doing this outside, the bleach can go into your ground water. I use a cap full for bleach for every 3 gallons of water used.
As an alternative, if you can find a pressure washer that heats the water, and use that for the germs.
Go light on the bleach. Most any other detergent will do but a little bleach will help if mold or mildew exists on it.
If the set is in good shape, they now make a paint for plastics. I think it is Krylon brand. It may be worth trying on one or two of the panels to dress it up. Ed
You're quite baselessly paranoid about hypochlorite bleach.
It comes in plastic bottles, you know.
And it is far too reactive to ever persist in groundwater. Quite a job just to keep a slight concentration in a nice clean swimming pool.
Yes to the bleach and water, add a little detergent too. I wash my plastic deck chairs with bleach, detergent, and water every year to get the sap stains off, works great. Greg
I havn't tried it on playsets, but I have had good results with "Simple Green" which is in auto parts stores. Does a nice job on auto trim, bath tub deposits, etc. Also makes a good laundry pretreater for the grease stains that repair men like me bring home.
Most hardware stores sell "aluminum siding cleaner". Works great at getting crud off painted surfaces
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