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How to Clean Toy Train Railroad Tracks Using Household Products

Model and motorized train sets are excellent collector items that, if taken care of, will remain in good working condition for years to come. However, these items do require some cleaning and maintenance to continue functioning properly. Cleaning toy train railroad tracks is easy to do and only requires a few household cleaning products.

Things You'll Need

Brillo pads
Rubbing alcohol
Spray bottle
Paper towels
Old newspaper

Instructions

- 1
  
  Use Brillo pads to slough the dirt from the surface of the tracks.
  
  Loosen dirt and grime from the tracks using your Brillo pad. If you haven't cleaned your toy train tracks in a while, there likely is an abundance of built-up dust and dirt on them. Use a dry Brillo pad to gently scrub the surface of the tracks and loosen any grime. The Brillo scrub pads are abrasive enough to slough off the dirt but will not hurt your tracks. Be sure not to use abrasion tools, such as scrub brushes and steel wool, because they will cause deep gashes in your tracks that will easily fill with unremovable dirt.
- 2
  Disinfect your train tracks using rubbing alcohol. On a flat table, lay out your newspaper and place your train tracks on top. Fill your spray bottle with the alcohol and apply it liberally to the entire track.
- 3
  
  Apply slight pressure when drying to remove oil and fingerprints.
  
  Dry your track to wipe away bacteria and any remaining dirt. Using your paper towels, hand-dry the entire length of the track. Apply slight pressure as you dry to pull up any remaining grime. This will also remove oil and fingerprints caused by constant handling.

Model Railroads