Price Tag: $35.88/case of 12
Official URL: http://www.dapplebaby.com
Rating:

Despite being a huge fan of disinfectant wipes during flu season, I generally prefer to let my son’s immune system learn to deal with the challenges of the environment on its own. Not to mention the fact that many disinfectant wipes have a very heavy smell that I find somewhat irritating.

On the other hand, sometimes water just doesn’t cut it for getting the gooped on baby gunk off of his toys. Especially after he’s had cheese puffs or a bout of runny nose from allergies. And baby wipes barely get the job done on my son’s behind after most freshly soiled diapers. They don’t stand a chance against dried on stuff.

DO THEY WORK?

These wipes use baking soda and natural cleaners from fruits, tree oils and glucose. They are specifically geared toward breaking down baby-related gunk (specifically milk-related gunk). And it shows. Where I have to use my fingernails to scrape gunk off after using a normal baby wipe, I can just wipe the surface down with these wipes, let sit for a few seconds, and then wipe again. Even more difficult gunk such as dried on banana seems to come off easily.

SCENT

Dapple Toy Cleaner Wipes have a light lavender scent that is subtle enough to be almost neutral but strong enough to remove and mask other odors. My husband hates the smell of lavender, but doesn’t mind these wipes at all. Moms who are concerned about morning sickness nausea or sensitivity to smells can use these wipes without worry.

WHAT THE WIPES CONTAIN

The wipes are made of biodegradable fabric, purified water, baking soda, cleaners derived from fruits, tree oils and glucose, French lavender essential oil, essential oil dispersant, alcohol (less than 2%), preservative derived from natural amino acid. They’re gentle enough to use on my son’s hands or face occasionally without irritating his skin, although I wouldn’t use them in this way on a regular basis.

WHAT’S NOT IN THE WIPES

Dapple Toy Cleaner Wipes are phthalate-free, paraben-free, SLES- & dye-free and are certified to contain no detectable levels of dioxane. This makes them ideal for wiping down the surfaces of your child’s toys without worrying about adding chemicals to the surfaces your child is likely to touch with their hands or mouth.

PACKAGING & WIPES

The packaging is a pretty standard “travel wipes” flexible plastic pack with a large sticker seal. Peel the seal back, pull the wipe out, and re-seal the sticker closure. It works well, and the sticker seems to be a bit more durable than most travel wipe packages. The wipes themselves have the feeling of good quality baby wipes, are not prone to tearing or falling apart, and are a good size for wiping down toys. A single wipe can clean the surface of my son’s “Rody” rocking horse, or the surface of his play table and chair. It does a good job of wiping down high chairs in restaurants (including the green plastic variety that McDonalds uses that has a tray and that is inevitably crusted in dried up ketchup).  They’re moistened enough to be “very moist” without being “drippy”.  Each package has 15 wipes, enough to last a few outings or a weekend away.

VALUE

These toy wipes are a bit on the pricey side, but they work very well.  At $35.88 for a case of 12 that works out to $2.99 for each 15-pack or about 20 cents per wipe. Similar clean-up wipes in travel packs sell for about 13 cents per wipe. Granted, those are mass-produced, chemically laden wipes that don’t do nearly as good a job at cleaning up baby messes.

For me, Dapple Baby Wipes make perfect sense. I don’t wipe down every single surface my son comes in contact with, and I’m more afraid of chemicals than of bacteria or germs. The idea that I’m cleaning off the gunk without sterilizing every surface is tremendously appealing to me. And the idea that I’m not adding chemicals to every item my son touches is priceless.  Since I go through about one pack of wipes per week while out and about, the $2.99-per-pack price is very affordable.

BOTTOM LINE

Dapple Toy Cleaner Wipes do an excellent job of cleaning up baby messes, while being gentle. The chemical-free formula is simply wonderful for parents whose children put everything immediately in their mouths. I keep a travel pack of Dapple Wipes in the diaper bag as one of those essential must-haves right along with the mini first-aid kit that has bandaids, and the “emergency onesie” for diaper blow-outs.