Washing bike clothing on the road
 

So, my jacket and trousers have started to take on a bit of smell after prolonged use.

I've some days waiting for visas and can wash them. Its an RST adventure suit. Just the main part. Waterproof liner is fine as not really used

I was thinking to soak it it mildly soapy cold and water after a light scrub on the dirty areas. Then soak/rinse it in cold water.

What have others done on the road?

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Wash with what you can find. Mild soap is better but I have used solid (laundry) soaps which contain detergents on them (easy to find in south America, central Asia etc..) .


We usually use the bath or shower in a hotel room or guesthouse, to wash our suits.


I always carry a small brush so I can brush the stains, as my travel jackets often have light grey/sand sections.


Then rinse and hang to dry.


We made the mistake, many years ago to give our suits to be "hand washed" in Bolivia and the lady used some product that melted the inside mesh (supporting the armour) on one trousers. Never made that mistake again. We wash our stuff ourselves unless it is no big deal if they get damaged or lost!

If you can remove the waterproof membrane and the protectors, there shouldn't be any problems with a regular laundry (30 Celsius). At least I never had issues doing it myself or with the laundry service

If you can find it I use orange hand cleaner with the pumice in it with a brush an cold water takes grease an bugs an dirt rite out


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Washing machine. Cold wash, armour/liners out and dry in the sun.

Where there is no washing machine .. wait for one to come along. If pushed then shower with it on .. then off - rinse with it on and then out to dry.

I have a nail brush for washing hands - gets into the pores and cleans quickly. Would also work with cordura etc.

basically did what Maria said. I have a laundry soap bar and used that and the bath in my airbnb. when a washing machine presents itself and i can use it (so i can cold wash) i'll do this with all the armour removed, but for now, the edge has appeared to disapear in smell terms!

Exactly. I just take a plastic hanger from the hotel closet, hold up the jacket & pants (one at a time), and flood them inside and out using the shower head.

If I'm in a warm climate area, they will be dry in 12 hours. Otherwise, I wait until I am staying 2 nights or more in one place to wash them.

Michael

Be very careful using soap products, because you REALLY need to make sure all the soap is rinsed out of the material or else it may inhibit any water resistant properties it may have. This is especially true for Gore-tex. Soap allows water to flow through the material, so it needs to be rinsed many times.
It is difficult to find a suitable product whilst on the road, but if you can find NIK wax or something similar it's worth getting some and using a machine. Gore-tex leaks when it gets dirty so gore-tex liners ( if removable) should perhaps be washed more regularly than a jacket/pants, thorougly rinsed and perhaps re proofed.

I've not been in a situation where i've needed to wash my jacket whilst on the road, but waiting until you can use a machine seems very sensible in order to be able to rinse it properly.

Don't use a fabric conditioner if there is a goretex-type material. It will bock the pores making it useless.