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Gear Funk?

3K views 36 replies 26 participants last post by  CrazyIvan 
#1 ·
What’s the best way to get gear CLEAN? I wash my gear after every ride, but in the GA summers when sweating a LOT a simple wash doesn’t seem to be enough to get it smelling nice. All the dirt is gone. Just not the funk. :skep:

Any tricks? Baking soda? Oxiclean? Help a smelly brotha out! :madman:
 
#3 ·
Interesting. I sweat like a sonofa b and wear the same shirt and shorts Monday to Friday commuting. I must be anosmic. Or have a clean diet. Or not give a ****. Or some combo of those things.

That said, I have to add some Dr. Scholl’s foot powder to my shoes every now and then because they truly do reek. Especially when I get caught in the rain with them. Disgusting.

Best solution - embrace the disgrace. Seek the reek. Launch the raunch. Wear it proud brother.
 
#7 ·
Best solution - embrace the disgrace. Seek the reek. Launch the raunch. Wear it proud brother.
Nice...you're one of those guys that would really push me to stay ahead of you!

During summer I put my gloves and helmet in a bucket with whatever cleaning detergent my wife is using for the washer. Let them soak overnight, rinse and dry. That seems to 'debunk the funk'. I don't do it very often but every 10 rides or so I notice the bugs are hanging around me more on the uphill grinds.
 
#12 ·
Ya all are a bunch of stinky bastards. I’m glad a simple normal run through the washing machine with normal detergent and hang dry works fine for me. Of course I’ve been told my skin is as tasty as brown sugar after a ride.
 
#25 ·
Something that has helped me along with using Biz, I stopped using 100% Polyester riding shirts. I've switched to Tri-Blend (50 poly, 25 cotton, 25 rayon) or even better wool. My clothes stink far less during and esp after a ride. I also wash everything immediately when I get home and hang dry.

Diet helps too, but changing material of shirts and better washing is easier.

Good luck.

Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk
 
#27 ·
It’s a good thing this thread was moved from the General Discussion forum over to the Apparrel and Protection forum 2 days ago. It was getting way too much enjoyable feedback over there. Here it’s gotten ZERO responses in 2 days. Why? Because this forum is a worthless forum. It falls under General Discussion topics.
 
#28 ·
It's a good thing this thread was moved from the General Discussion forum over to the Apparrel and Protection forum 2 days ago. It was getting way too much enjoyable feedback over there. Here it's gotten ZERO responses in 2 days. Why? Because this forum is a worthless forum. It falls under General Discussion topics.
Agreed. I always try to post things in the General Sub-Forum, hoping I get at least a few responses before the thread gets sentenced to death in some other tomb of a sub-forum.
 
#29 ·
This time of year is the worst! My gear has the added funk of bug spray to my sweat.

I soak my gear (elbow pads, knee/shin guards, helmet pads) for 30 minutes in a bucket with a gallon of mildly hot water, 1 cup of white vinegar and a couple tablespoons of baking soda. I then will set it out to air dry.

Vinegar smell dissipates completely and all funk does too.
 
#31 ·
Oxiclean works great as a soak or in the pre-wash of your machine.
Just started using gain detergent pods w oxiclean in b/c they were on sale. Prob never going back. My stuff actually smells good, instead of being non-stinky now.
I'll still use oxiclean powder in the precast after those ultra sweaty rides but the gain pods work well for all other situations.
I'm probably going to get cancer from whatever is in those things that makes clothes smell good, but it's nice to not be smelling my ferocious pit stank on long climbs (at least in rides less than 3 hours).
 
#33 ·
I wash jerseys after each ride and shorts every two rides. They never get funky. I don't wear a pack anymore so that's not an issue. My shoes never get funky. I wear fresh socks each ride and dry them out.

The only gear i have that gets stinky is my knee and elbow pads, which I wear every ride. I air dry them when I get home. Then just go by smell. In the winter I might wash them once a month. In the summer probably once every two weeks. I run one cycle with oxiclean and one cycle with a big splash of fabric softener. They smell great afterwards. No lingering odour.

I think letting everything air dry after each ride is pretty important. I'd be afraid to throw all that gear in a bag and forget about it for a week! :(
 
#34 ·
I have enough kit to go about 2 weeks before I need to wash everything. After a ride, I usually let things air out a bit and then it get's tossed in the hamper. When I run out of clothes, I do laundry. I wash everything with Tide on the delicate cycle, hang to dry. Never have an issue with funk.
 
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