Properly daft question, but how do folk get all the dirt and grime out of waterproof kit?
I've rubbed a bar of soap over my trousers - got some sort of spots on the thigh, I'm assuming I've spilt something whilst eating. The trousers also seem to have a permanent look of being impregnated with dirt.
Endura trousers of some.deacription - the bright blue but mine have a definitely brown hue to them.
My jacket seems to come up cleaner but it doesn't smell fresh.
Washed with nikwax stuff - wash and reproof...
What should I be doing to get more of the engrained grime shifted and also remove the spots?
I had a read through the smelly kit thread but didn't see anything standing out to get this stuff fully cleaned.
I hose it down in the garden then it goes in with some Granger's wash and proof stuff.... Invariably I end up filthy so I'm not fussed if it's perfect.
It's a dilemma at the moment. I have several pairs of muddy waterproofs that I don't want to wash because washing speeds up the deterioration and they will be muddy again within moments of riding. Hosing them down just leaves the ingrained mud interfering with performance. I'm hosing/wiping with a cloth as I wash my bike but it's less than ideal
I feel your pain. I managed to spatter my best (Singletrack) hoodie with spray oil last week. ****ed it.
Although when I was recounting this story to one of my colleagues at work, he did say he'd managed the same on his dinner jacket whilst doing a quick motorbike job whilst waiting for his missis to get ready for a posh night out.
I just hose down in the shower when I get in. Powerful enough to get the dirt off but not too powerful to get it ingrained
I one put a waterproof jacket in the washing machine and it ruined it. Now, I just hose it down and let it drip dry.
Leave it to dry and brush/shake the dirt off
Or if it's really bad, hose down and leave to drip dry
Never properly washed any waterproof kit
Stops working eventually and I'll buy some new stuff
Just don't wear waterproofs unless absolutely necessary. I prefer breathability over waterproofing. I'm not sure any waterproof is up to mountain biking.
rarely wash my waterproof kit - its pointless - just muddy again 2 days later.
I might wash it before summer as it'll be sat a while. but only a quick rinse no detergents.
As above no waterproof lasts that long really if you ride alot. I see it as a 'keeping the worst off' and staying relatively warm outer layer.
I rarely wear waterproofs, even this incredibly wet winter I think I’ve only worn my waterproof jacket twice, and that’s commuting off-road five days a week and one proper MTB ride at the weekend (and I’m not a fair weather rider, the only thing I don’t like about the rain is it tends to turn my group rides into solo rides…)
As I literally put the waterproofs away for weeks/months at a time I wash them if they’ve got properly muddy, dissolving soap flakes in a jug of warm water, instead of normal detergent or expensive tech wash stuff, and then running an outdoor gear cycle at 30 deg.
What is an outdoor gear cycle? The 30 degree temp is already done and it seems to run for about 90 minutes...
I would assume it has less violent agitation.
I just hose stuff down outside on the washing line.
Jacket drys indoors, trousers washing machine
The jacket only gets washed when’s zips stop working when they get clogged with fine mud
My gear couldn’t go anywhere near a washing machine with being washed down outside it will kill the washing machine
Hardshell waterproofs I don't wash, just hose and brush off mud. Softshell waterproof jackets I'll wear several times whether they're muddy or not before washing and accept they'll just gradually degrade (even with reproofing), I don't buy softshells for their waterproofness anymore as a result.
As others have said... Waterproof jackets get hosed down on the washing line and left to drip dry. Everything else goes in the washing machine using ordinary soap.
Hosed down outside, then on a rinse cycle in the washing machine with other muddy kit.
Waterproofs get removed and dried, rest gets washed with anything else that needs doing. I tend to wear softshells / windproofs rather than waterproofs though.
Get home, hose bike, hose waterproofs, wipe bike with soapy cloth, wipe waterproofs with soapy cloth, rinse bike, rinse waterproofs, drip dry both, sometimes give the bike a towel
Quick hose down if really bad. Then on the rinse and spin cycle on there own with no detergent.
I hose stuff down immediately whilst everything is still wet and muddy. If it’s been particularly muddy I turn the hose on myself whilst still wearing everything.
What is an outdoor gear cycle? The 30 degree temp is already done and it seems to run for about 90 minutes...
Running time doesn’t matter, it just doesn’t rattle the drum back and forth so violently, and doesn’t finish off 1400 rpm spin at the end. I don’t imagine many machines have an outdoor gear cycle, I just use the synthetic cycle. (And not the fast wash as that’s not got the underscore that denotes gentle)
I probably wash my waterproof coat twi;ce a year, and that’s when I feel it is wetting out and needs a clean and reproof, rather than anything to do with how clean it looks.
(and as always with tech kit and waterproofs, banish the killer fabric softener from the house permanently, and run an empty boil cycle and/or cleaner through the machine before trusting it with your waterproofs. Otherwise you are just using Nikwax ‘with a hint of everything else’ that you wouldn’t dream of using.