How to Sterilize Everyday Items in 90 Seconds!

My friend Renee is a genius. Well let me back up… My friend Renee recently had her 3rd baby and discovered the microwavable sterilizer bags. While I was visiting her last month she pulled one out and was so excited about her new discovery but then she ended up being mad at me that I’d known about them for all these years and never told her. (Oops!)

I thought everyone knew about the microwavable sterilizer bags! They are so handy and make a new moms life so much easier! If you don’t know about them, I’m sorry, I should have told you sooner. And if you didn’t know about them then you’re probably wondering why they are so great, well let me tell you, it’s a quick and easy way to sterilize bottles, nipples, pacifiers and breast pump accessories. No more boiling a huge pot of water on the stove to sterilize all your baby stuff, just toss them in the bag, put it in the microwave and BAM, 90 seconds later they’re all clean!

But here’s why my friend Renee is a genius. We were sitting there talking about how great the bags are when she said, “I bet you could use them for other stuff too.” Yep, mind blown. Why had I never thought about that before! I stopped buying them when Malea grew out of bottles but I should have kept buying them for myself!

Have you ever thought about how gross toe nail clippers are? You use them, your husband uses them, your kids use them but no one ever washes them… ew.

Have you thought about how gross your cell phone case is?

Your toothbrush after being sick?

Have you ever thought about cleaning your bobby pins? You stick them in your mouth to open them, wear them in your hair all day long and repeat the process over and over again without ever washing them… gross!

These are all things that are extremely gross and should be cleaned but honestly who even knows how to clean toe nail clipper or bobby pins!? That’s where the microwavable sterilizer bags come in, and that my friends, is why Renee is a genius.

Get out the microwavable sterilizer bags and fill it with no less than 2 ounces of water.

Next add your items to the bag and seal it up.

Place it in the microwave for 90 seconds.

When it’s finished remove it from the microwave and pour the hot water into the sink. Be careful so you don’t get burned by the steam.

Once all the hot water is out open the bag and lay the contents out on a towel to dry.

And just like that now all those super duper gross items are clean and sanitized! Seriously why did I not think of this before!?

Here’s a whole list of everyday items we came up with that you could use the microwavable sterilizer bags for on a regular basis –

• Pacifiers
• Sippy cup lids
• Water bottle lids and straws (for grown ups and/or kids)
• Cell phone cases
• Toothbrushes after being sick (I recommend just buying a new one but if you can’t afford that this is a great alternative)
• Contact lens cases
• Sponges
• Dishes scrub brush
• Tweezers
• Nail clippers
• Bobby pins
• Eye lash curler

And I’m sure there’s 100 other things you could use it for!

Okay, be honest, has your mind been blown, like mine was? I seriously can’t believe I’d never thought of this before! Leave me your ideas in the comments below I would really love to hear your ideas because I’m sure I’m missing some pretty obvious stuff and I’d love to get it clean. 🙂

Note – I know it’s not good to put certain types of metal in the microwave but all of the items pictured below were just fine when I ran them through in the bag. Make sure you stay close to the microwave until you know your items are okay too. If you are not comfortable putting some items in the microwave then use this alternative method – Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Place items in the microwavable sterilizer bag then pour the boiling water in over them. Seal the bag and set a timer for 90 seconds.

 

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