Washing shorts?

[Bikechic]

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

[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.