Editor’s Note: We continue our recent series of QTs from the RBR Crew this this week’s submission from Sheri Rosenbaum. Sheri offers some time-honored advice on laundering your cycling clothes, both to get out the stink and to make sure your clothes are best-positioned to clean them adequately. I add a couple of comments to Sheri’s, including a recommendation for a workout clothing detergent I recently started using. —John Marsh
Here’s what Sheri writes:
1) If you have smelly gloves, wash them as normal but add a cup of vinegar to the wash to make them smell better.
2) To get your chamois clean, always wash your shorts/bibs inside out. This allows the detergent and water more surface area to clean. Always wash in cold and never dry.
To which, I would add:
Re: 1) For years, I used vinegar not just to wash gloves, but to wash the entirety of my cycling apparel (along with my wife’s running gear). Vinegar works just the same on all stinky stuff; the shortcoming is that, if you use too much, your apparel takes on that distinct aroma of vinegar.
Re: 2) I agree that turning bibs and shorts inside out is a must. I also turn my jerseys (and anything with a zipper, including vests and jackets) inside out when washing. The reason is two-fold: It prevents the zipper from getting snagged on something and potentially bent or torn off. And, it helps such applications as reflective elements and logos/decals that are often “stuck” on stay in place longer.
However, unlike Sheri and others I’ve talked to over the years who never dry their cycling apparel in a clothes dryer, I always have. I wash the gear on the active wear setting and dry it on the delicate setting. (I’ve been told by apparel companies not to use dryer sheets, which can affect the breatheability of garments – but truth be told, I do that, too, and have never noticed the difference.)
I feel even more comfortable drying my gear since I upgraded to a modern dryer a couple years ago (which features moisture-sensing and other technology) to more gently dry garments.
New Workout Gear Detergent
Finally, I have actually stopped using vinegar to wash my gear – because I no longer need it. (I used to use it, along with my normal detergent, to ensure that the stink was removed from my cycling gear.) Now, I use Defunkify Active Wash, a detergent made specifically to remove the stink and stains from active wear.
The product uses “green chemistry,” and contains “only non-toxic, sustainable, plant-based ingredients and enzymes, minerals and biodegradable synthetic ingredients listed on the EPA Safer Choice Chemical Ingredient List.” You can see more details at www.defunkify.com (they’ve got a couple of other “defunkifying” products, as well.)
Whether or not you’re eco-conscious about your detergent, here’s the most important thing to know: This stuff works.
I started with a few of the individual wash packets as a test, then bought a jar of the product, which I’ve now been using for a couple of months. No more need to mix in the vinegar; Defunkify active wash knocks out the odor and gets my gear clean and ready to go the next time out. —J.M.
If you have an idea for a QT, fire away. We’re always looking for good info we can share with fellow roadies. We would love to hear from you with any suggestions you have. Contact us by clicking Quick Tips Ideas.
—John Marsh & The RBR Team
I also dry all my “everyday” shorts in the dryer. When using cloth diapers, machine drying is recommended to kill germs and prevent diaper rash. I’ve always felt that it helps keep the chamois germ free as well and helps prevent saddle sores.
Also be careful with vinegar and when it is added because it can actually cause the detergent to not do it’s job if added with the detergent.
So when should you add the vinegar Dave? Through the fabric softener compartment so it gets included only partway through the wash or directly in the rinse cycle?
I use “clear” detergent, cold water wash and rinse, and air dry (no heat) in the dryer. I don’t take the time to turn things inside out though they often end up inside out when I take them off. I wash everything after a single ride and have not experienced any “odor build up” over many decades of riding.
Odor is bacteria. If you don’t kill it, it just reactivates when you start sweating again. I have used Pine-Sol for years with good results. Just like vinegar if you get too much you will smell piney. If you can find the Pine-Sol in different fragrances, I recommend them.
I put [u]white[/u] vinegar (not the regular darker version) in the “bleach” cup of our HE washing machine. I place my cycling clothes in the dryer for just 20 minutes at the lowest heat setting. Anything that is still damp gets hung up in front of a fan.
Also, if I can’t wash sweaty clothes right away, I put them on hangers in front of a fan to at least dry them out and prevent mold, etc.
There is also a liquid detergent product called Sweat X that is great, Takes odors out and keeps them out and you do not need to use a large quantity. They also have a product that you can spray into or on cycling shoes, running shoes, and athletic gear such as shoulder pads, helmets etdc.
I always dry my kit on the line outside. Sunshine is excellent at killing any residual bacteria. But then we usually have dry climate down under.
I add 1/4 cup of baking soda to the washer. Be sure to re-run the final rinse before drying your clothes..
Finish ride, Strip off and put clothes in a bucket of cold water, have a shower, come back and hand rinse clothes, spin dry and hang on line. Never had a problem.
If I’ve done a 200k or more brevet then I wash the clothes in cold water with a eucalyptus based detergent.
Use a detergent that is made using one of a number of nonionic surfactants, such as Tween 80 or linear alkyl benzene ethoxylate. Examples are Charlie’s Soap and Kirkland unscented high efficiency detergent. The nonionic surfactants rinse clean and don’t leave residues to feed bacteria, which leads to odors. Ionic surfactants used in most commercial laundry detergents such as Tide and Cheer stick to polyester fibers, and residual detergent is thus present on the fabric even after a second rinse.
We use detergent and vinegar. I throw them in together – no special compartments or timing – and I just add the extra rinse cycle to eliminate any remaining vinegar smell. It seems to work just fine. And I also use the dryer. And the dryer sheets – I actually like the effect they have. Have you noticed that you can’t use them with towels? They keep towels from absorbing water easily. So it seemed to me that they might make my cycling gear more water-resistant, and they do. I like that since I live in an area with frequent fog. Keeps me a bit warmer.
20-Mule Team Borax, added with the detergent, does the trick for me. I have also found that wool somehow does not stink.
J.M., thanks for supporting Defunkify! I’m part of the company, and an avid cyclist. Here’s a code for everyone to shop 25% off defunkify.com: RoadBikeRiderJan19
The code is good for any product besides out bundled kits.
Enjoy!