It’s safe to dust baskets with a treated cloth or to vacuum them using a brush attachment. However, getting after any dust or dirt that remains after a simple dusting is where the experts part company.

 

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Obviously, a plastic basket was not what he had in mind when Don Aslett, author of The Cleaning Encyclopedia: Your A to Z Illustrated Guide to Cleaning Like the Pros, advised, “A tisket, a tasket. . . never soak your basket.” On the other hand, Clean it Fast, Clean it Right (Jeff Bredenberg, editor) advises readers that, among other methods, they may “take it out back and spray it down with [a] ... garden hose.”

Rinsing off loosened soil with a hose is not really the same as soaking by immersion, but care must always be used when dealing with porous, natural materials.

Spot cleaning with a damp cloth is the safest approach, at least at first. Once you’re certain that the resulting moisture won’t warp or ruin a basket or make any colors run, you can probably head for the kitchen sink, tub or, yes, even the garden hose, since a water spray will get rid of that nook-and-cranny dust quickly and easily.

Whatever the water method, allow baskets to air dry completely before using again or storing. Be wary of drying them in the sun, since this can warp some materials used in making baskets.