How do you guys wash your shorts? My hand or washing machine? Mine say to do it by hand but I never feel that they are clean enough when I do that. :confused:
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How do you guys wash your shorts? My hand or washing machine? Mine say to do it by hand but I never feel that they are clean enough when I do that. :confused:
I ignore the directions - machine wash, line dry.
V.
Cold water, no dryer. Wash the bike clothes all together as soon as you can after the ride.
I machine wash both my shorts and jerseys in cold water - and I throw them in the dryer on a low setting. Of course this is following the manufacturer's instructions of "machine wash cold tumble dry low".
Personally, I would not purchase bike clothing that needs to be hand washed.
--- Denise
what about gloves? with the padding in them? can i put those in too?
Machine wash cold water with a small amount of Tide/Purex (not delicate fabric stuff, which I keep for the more delicate apparel) depending on the size of the load (which is usually 2-3 shorts + 2-3 jerseys + a few pairs of socks + my gloves in a mesh bag so their velcro doesn't stick to the lycras + other sports clothes like jogging shorts/tshirts).
Hang to dry - everything is dry overnight even when hanged on a rack indoors.
Repeat everytime the bike clothes drawer is empty, or about bi-weekly (I ride 4-5 times a week).
I spray a little enzyme spot treat on the chamois to break down sweat and oil. I put mine in the dryer, but just until damp rather than wet.
Also - I have heard that fabric coftener will reduce the sweat wicking properties so don't use that
I throw my gloves in the washing machine too - same cycle / load as my shorts and jerseys, and in a mesh bag to keep the velcro away from everything else. But I have no idea what the dryer would do to the gloves, so I line dry them.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bikechic
--- Denise
skip the dryer, the heat will break down any lycra and or synthetic components faster.
Regular detergent/soap is fine, if you must use "delicates" skip the expensive specialized laundry product and use baby shampoo. I don't bother... med temp, line dry is how I do everything bike related.
irulan
We have coin-op laundry, so I only machine wash my cycling clothes when I'm washing everything else. Gloves go on the mesh bag with the velcro closed, alone with my sports bra. I line dry it all on hangers hung on a curtain rod over my tub that I put there so they could drip into the tub.
But I only own 2 jerseys, 2 pairs of shorts, and one sports bra, so in between machine washes I wash by hand. I use color free, fragrence free dish soap and scrub out any grease spots or yuck in the chamois with a crest spinbrush that I have repurposed as a laundry tool. I fill up the sink with warm soapy water, wash the bra first, then the jerseys, then the shorts. Rinse with cold running water. I think they get very clean this way, they smell fresh and I get to spot treat stuff that doesn't come out if I just throw them in the washer. If I need them dry by the next morning, I make sure I wring them out really well. It's not great for the fabric, but I figure this stuff was made to stand up to use and abuse.
i machine wash, line dry all my cycling stuff... no fabric softener..
gloves go in a lingerie bag cuz the velcro has been known to come apart and snag our shorts or shirt! :mad:
Ditto plus cold water only.Quote:
Originally Posted by caligurl
I must be slack. Manufacturers directions, usually read them once and forget / ignore them after that. Besides, I'm really not particularly domestic, so if I can avoid or make something easier I will.
I put pretty much everything through the washing machine - gloves, shorts, jerseys, vests, jackets, ear warmers etc - usually cold or warm, occassionally hot (to blast any germs that may be lingering), and usually with an antibacterial / antifungal solution in the rinse cycle. Keeps everything clean & fresh. I have only one decent undershirt, so that gets washed by hand as soon as I jump int the shower after a ride (only takes a few seconds).
No dryer, well, only once for the race gear as it wasn't going to dry in between events otherwise, but I usually have enough gear to last a number of rides and give everything time to dry in between doing laundry.
Um... warm wash with a soak cycle, then hang in sunshine or brisk breeze to dry (no dryer in this house)
Sometimes when I have my period I might need to soak shorts in a nappy sanitiser first, before putting through normal wash cycle.
Never hand wash ANYTHING... me too damned lazeeeeeeeee!
machine wash all together using Woolite versus Tide or other detergent. Line dry jerseys, shorts and gloves. I do throw the socks, sports bras and socks in the dryer on low. Never had a problem doing it that way.
Machine wash cold, delicate, "heavy soil," with baby shampoo as Irulan suggested. No softener! A lot of performance gear says not to use softener. I have an overly expensive front-loader, though, so I trust its ability to get things clean on delicate better than I would another washer (but then I may just be succumbing to marketing hype).Quote:
Originally Posted by Bikechic
Then dry on a rack. This works great in my dry climate, but I can imagine it wouldn't be all that effective in more humid areas.
I wash jerseys, socks, basically any other athletic equipment in the same load, but not my gloves ... My gloves just kinda get nasty. I washed my old pair, and they never seemed quite the same after that.
OH! I will stop using it then! Thanks for the tip!Quote:
Originally Posted by Technotart
that is correct about fabric softener.
I don't use fabric softener ever... for anything... it mucks up my machine...
Gloves should be washed too? What a good idea! I'll do right away.
Well... "should" I'm not sure, but in my case "can" and "are" for sure!!!
Hey get quite... disgusting after a short while. I can't remember who on this board was saying that she uses them to wipe her... hmm, face often. So do I. Plus, my palms sweat A LOT.
I wash them just about every week, and they still smell funny all the time now. They're getting a bit torn too. I guess I'll get a new pair as soon as I find one that fits (I have very long skinny hands so women's gloves are often too small and men's too wide)...
Yes, wash the gloves.
Last summer I put my winter gloves away for the summer w/o washing, and almost couldn't make it through the first ride with them come fall. They reeked!
'Course, I use them for wiping sweat, etc. off my face, so I shouldn't have been surprised...
So far, washing hasn't done my gloves any visible harm. I line dry them, for what that's worth.
my gloves say I can machine dry them - but I'm with Mom, cept I just hang them on the brake levers! I wash my gloves everytime I do a load of bikie clothes just to be sure they stay clean.