Most football players sweat profusely during practice or a nightly game. These bodily juices can then make their way inside the player’s padding and develop into an sweaty stench.
Though the padding often may seem beyond rescue, there exist a number of household remedies for neutralizing the bodily odor to leave the gear smelling like new. By following the below solutions, your football pads will be odor-free and smelling at their best.
Smell Removal Solutions for Football Pads
1 Remove From Bag & Separate
As soon as you get home, you will need to remove all of your football pads from you bag as soon as possible. This will help to ensure that the sweat moisture within the bag does not become a breeding ground for odorous bacteria. Proceed to separate the shoulder pads from the jersey and proceed to make a pile for items that can be treated within the washing machine.
2 Non-Washable Treatment
A different cleaning and deodorizing process will be required for the items like shoulder pads that are unable to be treated within the washing machine. Proceed to hang these items outside within direct sunlight and spray them down with a heavy coat of athletic gear disinfectant. The spray will help to kill all the bacteria and other potentially harmful biological matter within your pads. Meanwhile, the direct UV rays, fresh air and open space will help to dry the pads and diffuse much of the odors. After 12-24 hours the pads can be brought inside and hung in a dry location.
3 Sprinkle Baking Soda on Non-Washables
As an optional final step, baking soda can be sprinkled over the football shoulder pads and other non-washables after they have been brought indoors. This will help to further dry the padding and work to absorb any remaining odor that may continue to lurk within them.
4 Washable Items
The washable items like the jersey and pants should be treated quickly. The faster these items can be treated the better chance that they can be deodorized with a normal washing machine cycle. To give your detergent wash an added boost, you can place a half cup of baking soda or a full cup of white vinegar within the mix.
5 Clothesline or Fabric Softeners
Once your clothes have been washed, make sure that you either hang them outside in the sun on a clothes line, or use a fabric softener within the dry. Hanging the clothes within the sun provides the best results, but the use of dryer can be performed when drying time does not permit.
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