Smelly Sippy

Sorry if this seems obvious... when you wash the cup, do you pull the plastic stopper out of the top? Water can get trapped in there.

My parents had a cup at there house that was 'clogged', and when I pulled the plastic piece out of the top, it was 'clogged' with thick black gook! GROSS!!! They had no idea that the plastic piece could come out. They had just kept washing it in dishwasher, top in tact, and then putting it in the cabinet. Oh, it was all I could do to keep my dinner down!!

Personally, if it is smelling, I would throw it out.
M.

Please don't be offended by this question, but are you sure you're washing all the parts? I've had clients in the past who didn't know the rubber regulators were removable and therefore their childrens' cups got stinky and moldy.

throw it away, who knows what's causing the smell. sippy cups need to be replaced every so often anyhow

Try washing it with a very warm soapy water and baking soda mixture. Rinse it well, then put about 1/4 cup of vinegar in it and give it a good shaking to get the vinegar all over the inside. Rinse well, air dry upside down on a rack.

Baking soda absorbs odors and vinegar kills germs.

With the type of rubber inside I wouldn't use bleach for two reasons. One, it will break the rubber down and two the rubber might absorb some of the bleach and be harmful for your son when he goes to drink from it the next time.

Hope this helps!

i agree with both the bleach/water and the baking soda replies. both have worked for me on stinky sippies as well as stinky toys that can't be washed in the washing machine.

Just a side note about the use of bleach...

There is no reason to be afraid to use bleach. If you have ever eaten at a restaurant, you have used plates, utensils and glasses sanitized by bleach. While not environmentally friendly, the use of bleach is critical to sanitation when multiple-use items are involved: it evaporates completely, it is cheap, and it kills most germs. Not only are the plates, utensils and glasses sanitized via bleach, but all the dining surfaces are wiped with a mild bleach solution.

Try the bleach and then run everything through the dishwasher. Good luck with your sippy cups.

Our kids use the same one.

Personally, I wouldn't use bleach on a product my kid is going to drink out of - my own personal fears.

If there is a bacteria that is making it smelly, it would be killed by boiling the parts (but you should make sure they are capable of being boiled before you do it).

If not, I'd just toss it and replace it. They're great, but the inserts are hard to find and often cost as much as the cups themselves. I have a feeling there may be crack in the lining inside that insulates it making liquids get trapped bewteen (and that's causing the smell).

We use ours for milk ALL the time and have had no problems. Our son has one that's easily 2 years old with NO problems.

Good luck.

If after water, soap, boiling it, bleaching it, etc and it still smells, I'd throw it away! I don't use bleach or leave it overnight in soapy water but I've had a few where after I washed and boiled them they smelled so I just threw them out and got new ones!

After using milk with a sippy or bottles, I would soak everything in a mild bleach solution, and then wash everything. Never had an issue with smell.

Bleach. Soak for a few hours and then rinse thoroughly. Bleach is chlorine and chlorine is used for pools and spas. Completely safe and harmless.

try hot hot water and baking soda.. let sit over night.. also you can add some lemon juice to it... and see if that works..

Soak it in soapy water overnight and put it in the dishwasher .

2 things. First, soak all of the parts in a bleach solution-- look on the bleach bottle for the ratio of bleach to water for disinfecting baby bottles. That should solve the problem. If it doesn't, Babies R' Us sells replacement valves. They should be replaced every couple of months anyway. If none of that works, throw it away.

It is problably the plastic insert---they can be hard to clean. You can try soaking it in a bleach/water mixture, make sure to push open the ends to let the mixture insid. If that doesnt work they do sell the inserts seperate from the cups.
Good Luck!