Tips on cleaning used Lego

[Darth_Raichu]

maybe they were used in some science experience or independent docu movie.  e.g. buy fast food and film the 'decomposition' in petri dishes made of Lego elements

That experiement would take long time to complete if not abandoned already.  One of my co-worker hid a MacDonalds hamburger inside the cabinet of another co-worker as a practical joke.  TWO years later when we moved floor, he found a hidden dried up patty and buns with no bad smell whatsoever.

[Blackjack]

the suggestions, posts,  and articles are great.  i just wish there was a faster way to wash larger sets (600+ elements).

 

Fire hose. 

[jaisonline]

Fire hose.

Ha ha. Best answer so far! A garden hose should work.

[Anakinisvader]

Best way to clean is gasoline and a match.  You gotta be quick though.  If not, you would really need the fire hose.

[Diabolos80]

For stickered parts, wipe them down with a baby wipe. Baby wipes are also great for cleaning poo or mud out of carpet.

For ink or marker, use sunblock.

Everything else i wash in the sink. Whoever suggested drying in a salad spinner was spot on. Works great.

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

For stickered parts, wipe them down with a baby wipe. Baby wipes are also great for cleaning poo or mud out of carpet.

For ink or marker, use sunblock.

Everything else i wash in the sink. Whoever suggested drying in a salad spinner was spot on. Works great.

 

how much poo is in your carpet?

[jaisonline]

Everything else i wash in the sink. Whoever suggested drying in a salad spinner was spot on. Works great.

Cool. I purchased the Cadillac of Salad Spinners from Target. Who knows, maybe some salad will get tossed

http://www.target.com/p/oxo-salad-spinner/-/A-628331#prodSlot=large_1_1&term=salad+spinner

[Blackjack]

You bought that just for cleaning those sets?

[Diabolos80]

how much poo is in your carpet?

ALL the poo is in ALL the carpet. Potty training is a *****. We shoulda gone with hardwood.

Even ehen they manage to get the poo in the toilet, they don't always wipe. Then they forget to put their pants back on. Then they sit down.

Hershey's kisses.

[TheOrcKing]

the suggestions, posts,  and articles are great.  i just wish there was a faster way to wash larger sets (600+ elements).

Fire hose. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXc5ltzKq3Y

[jaisonline]

You bought that just for cleaning those sets?

Yup. The wife does say I like to waste money

[TheOrcKing]

Cool. I purchased the Cadillac of Salad Spinners from Target. Who knows, maybe some salad will get tossed

You bought that just for cleaning those sets?

Yup. The wife does say I like to waste money

Why not? Lego deserves the best! :queen:

[nolanfan34]

I dried a bunch, probably a few thousand pieces last night, using 5 fine mesh bags from Amazon. Was impressed at how quickly they dried. Washing them on the other hand was a huge pain in the ass.

[jaisonline]

i finally cleaned and built the 10144 sandcrawler last week.  the x-wing is still in a baggie with it's dirt.

 

to clean the sandcrawler, i emptied out my kitchen sink, used a medium sized sturdy plastic pasta strainer, and washed 10-30  elements at a time (depending on size).  the facet sprayer did all the hard work for me by washing away the dust and dirt.  then i quickly padded the elements with a kitchen towel. each batch of wet elements were then put in a clear storage bin (around 12x24x4).   i separated the 5 elements with stickers along with the 270+ wheel threads into their own baggie (they were completely dry).

 

completely air drying the elements took 3 days. i would move around the elements with my hands during the 1st day when remembering to do so.  another task i did was emptying the storage bin of elements into another one and wipe any remaining water.   i did this about 6 times over 3 days and it helped with the drying process..

 

during the build, an old soft toothbrush was used if i noticed dust still on a brick.

 

note: i did clean (spray) the kitchen sink with bleach after the "bath" just to be on the safe side

[lego rules]

I use a strainer in kitchen sink but I do hundreds of pieces at a time.  I let them soak for awhile with mild hand soap, giving them a stir once in awhile.  After an hour or so, wash them under running water and use a salad spinner to get a lot of the excess water out.  Then air dry them for 2 days on paper towels, but they seem dry after 1.

[jaisonline]

I use a strainer in kitchen sink but I do hundreds of pieces at a time.  I let them soak for awhile with mild hand soap, giving them a stir once in awhile.  After an hour or so, wash them under running water and use a salad spinner to get a lot of the excess water out.  Then air dry them for 2 days on paper towels, but they seem dry after 1.

Good ideas.

For me, I didn't let the 10144 elements soak because of the amount of dirt on them and the strainer would have just gotten clogged. Yeah, it was that dirty. Think of Pig-Pen from the peanuts.

I did look at solid spinners but Target's $25+ was a tad much. I also was worried about elements getting dinged. The spinners were made of hard plastic.

Yeah, I'll throw $100s cash into a set without thinking but am very cheap when it comes to a salad spinner. Ha.

[Quacs]

I use a strainer in kitchen sink but I do hundreds of pieces at a time.  I let them soak for awhile with mild hand soap, giving them a stir once in awhile.  After an hour or so, wash them under running water and use a salad spinner to get a lot of the excess water out.  Then air dry them for 2 days on paper towels, but they seem dry after 1.

I use a very similar process, but I use a small, high speed fan on the pieces to dry them off quickly. You have to be careful you use the correct speed setting, though - too fast and you get a shower of bricks all over the floor!

[Fcbarcelona101]

I use the washing machine for all bricks except those with stickers. I put them inside 2 laundry bags, low spin and they come out great !

[jaisonline]

I use the washing machine for all bricks except those with stickers. I put them inside 2 laundry bags, low spin and they come out great !

Have a pic of the laundry bag?

[marcandre]

I use the washing machine for all bricks except those with stickers. I put them inside 2 laundry bags, low spin and they come out great !

 

 

I have ran legos in the washing machine too. Cold water in a mesh bag. Turned out great.

[Guest brickcrazyhouse]

I throw the washable pieces in a sock, tie the end then soak in the sink then rinse.  for quick drying simply lay a towel out  and put a fan in front. usually putting the labeled ziplock bag with the unwashable pieces  in front of the towel.  this lets us wash more then a couple sets at a time. so far so good.

[Anakinisvader]

Just give them Orbitz gum. It works for dirty mouths.

[jaisonline]

I throw the washable pieces in a sock, tie the end then soak in the sink then rinse.

 

when you do this, doesn't the dirt still stay in the sock with the elements?  just wondering. 

[Guest brickcrazyhouse]

mostly i'm just worried about dust but a couple time I've noticed the grime sticking to the sock rather then redistributing back to the bricks.  old socks seems to be porous enough to let most of dirt pass through with out losing elements.  just don't use any socks that have holes in them

[jaisonline]

I recently bought a bulk ;lot that had many licensed minifigs and some incomplete sets.  Upon arrival and inspection, turns out that Sid from Toy Story 1 must've owned these.  1/5s of the minifigs (and a few elements) had permanent marker on them. 

 

for permanent marker (any color), i had success using Goo Gone.  The marker come up w/o hurting the Lego artwork / design under it.  Even a 2006 Batman face (with the white stripe above the eyes) and Indiana Jones torso cleaned nicely.