Washing shorts?

[Bikechic]

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.

[Veronica]

I ignore the directions - machine wash, line dry.

V.

[wingsonwheels]

Cold water, no dryer. Wash the bike clothes all together as soon as you can after the ride.

[DeniseGoldberg]

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

[Bikechic]

what about gloves? with the padding in them? can i put those in too?

[Grog]

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).

[Technotart]

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

[DeniseGoldberg]

what about gloves? with the padding in them? can i put those in too?

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.

--- Denise

[Irulan]

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

[SimpleCycle]

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.

[caligurl]

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!

[SadieKate]

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!

Ditto plus cold water only.

[Tess851]

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.

[RoadRaven]

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!

[betagirl]

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.