Ball Pit Cleaning | How do you clean all those balls? Great 6 step process!

Ball Pit Cleaning - what is it?

Ball pit cleaning can be considered a rather niche area, but can be a nightmare when it comes to even thinking about where to start!

Whether your ball pit is a smaller one at a nursery or a gigantic one at a childrens play centre, both will have hundreds, if not thousands of balls.

Ball pits, a popular form of play for children, are sometimes used by physiotherapists working with children, especially those with autism. But commercial ball pits in shopping centres and restaurants have previously been found to be contaminated with dirt, urine and faeces.

The NHS published findings from a study around germs on plastic balls in ball pits.

How often should you clean a ball pit?

If you are running a large ball pit that experiences heavy usage on a daily basis, it is recommended that you thoroughly undertake ball pit cleaning every 3-6 months and clean the ball pit balls daily. If you have a smaller scale ball pit at your home you can clean the ball pit balls after 2 or 3 uses and then thoroughly clean the entire ball pit every 3 to 6 months.

How to clean ball pit balls correctly

Manual ball pit cleaning process

There are six steps to follow if you plan to clean your ball pit balls manually. They are as follows:

1. Start the process by removing all the ball pit balls and place on an old sheet or similar.
2. Spray all the balls thoroughly with a suitable disinfectant solution. At Green Fox Cleaning we would not recommend bleach, and are able to suggest less toxic and what we consider more suitable, sustainable disinfection options that we would use.
3. Wait for the ball pit balls to dry fully and shuffle them on the blanket to help this happen quicker.
4. Spray the balls for a second time to ensure thorough cleaning. Leave the balls to dry in a wash net for complete drying.
5. Whilst the balls are drying, clean the interior of the ball pit by spraying the surfaces of the ball pit and wiping them down thoroughly with a cloth.
6. Ensure the ball pit is completely dry before returning all balls into the pit.

Avoid the temptation to tip all balls into a large bucket of pool of solution, as any with small splits or cracks will fill and not dry properly and you may have to start the process again.

Ball pit ball cleaning using machine

Another way to clean ball pit balls is through the use of specialist machinery, which can speed the process up massively, but of course has separate costs associated with it. The balance between manual cleaning and the use of a machine is one that you must weigh up, and would generally only be a consideration in larger setups.

More regular ball pit cleaning between deeper cleans

It is not a surprise that ball pits get dirty very quickly from young children playing in them. It would be good practice to have the member of staff responsible for watching the ball pit whilst in use to have possession of a suitable disinfectant spray and cloth, so they can respond quickly to any obviously dirty ball pit balls, or if a user has an "accident" of any sort.

This process will provide reassurance to users that you are taking daily sanitisation of your premises seriously and keeping users as safe as possible.

The easiest way to keep your ball pit and the rest of your premises safe, hygienic and looking great is to employ the services of a good commercial cleaning company to take care of your ball pit cleaning.

To contact your local Green Fox Cleaning office and request a free, no obligation cleaning quote, simply click here.