How to Clean Athletic Equipment
Playing sports causes people to sweat and sweat contains odors, bacteria and germs. It is important to clean up athletic equipment after every few uses to keep it smelling fresh and disinfected. The way athletic equipment is cleaned depends on what type of equipment a person has.
Items needed:
- Hot water
- Dish soap
- Wash cloth
- Bucket or sink
- Disinfectant spray
- Washing machine
- Laundry detergent
- Clothesline
- Clothes pins
- Leather cleaning kit
- Create a bucket or sink full of hot soapy water and get plenty of the suds on a wet wash cloth to clean any plastic athletic equipment. This method works great for nearly any type of helmet. It also works great for plastic pieces on knee, shoulder and elbow pads. Simply scrub with the solution and wash cloth until the dirt is removed. Understand that some marks may not come off. Once the items are cleansed, spray them with disinfectant, and allow them to dry before the next use.
- Throw any cloth materials into the washer with the recommended amount of laundry detergent. Cloth sporting goods are usually head bands, wrist bands and jerseys. Always dry cloth items by pinning them up on a clothesline in the sun to avoid shrinking them.
- Do not clean some sporting equipment. Items like hockey sticks, baseball bats and golf clubs can be damaged by water and cleaners. These items are not worn so it is not that important to cleanse them anyway.
- Use leather cleaning kits with leather conditioner on leather batting gloves, baseball gloves or footballs. Simply washing leather in water will damage it.