Washing a football kit

bikeit

My wife has been elected to wash the local soccer kit for the season, so after several disasters the method below is the one that gives the best results.
So here is her method, is this ok?
Soak the Jerseys and shorts for 48 hours in a large black bin which contains 6 very small scoops of soda crystals and 2 very small scoops of washing powder in cold water.
Soak the socks for 48 hours in a large bucket with 2 very small scoops of soda crystals and 1 very small scoop of washing powder.
Remove after 48 hours and wash in the washing machine at 40 degrees.
The kit it very clean but will using soda crystals do the kit any harm over the length of the season?

flea72

bikeit wrote: »

My wife has been elected to wash the local soccer kit for the season, so after several disasters the method below is the one that gives the best results.
So here is her method, is this ok?
Soak the Jerseys and shorts for 48 hours in a large black bin which contains 6 very small scoops of soda crystals and 2 very small scoops of washing powder in cold water.
Soak the socks for 48 hours in a large bucket with 2 very small scoops of soda crystals and 1 very small scoop of washing powder.
Remove after 48 hours and wash in the washing machine at 40 degrees.
The kit it very clean but will using soda crystals do the kit any harm over the length of the season?

soda crystals wont harm the fabric if it is polyester, but they will eventually kill elastic and lycra

however, im more worried about the length of time you are soaking for. even soaking in plain water for 48hrs will degrade the fabric

F

bikeit

Would it be better to reduce the soaking time to 24 hours?

YORKSHIRELASS

I am also in charge of washing football kits. Our kits are sent away for numbers adding to the back of the shirts. These are basically transfers that are added by applying heat like the iron on type you can buy yourself. The amount of soaking you are suggesting would bring them off in no time.

To be honest I dont understand why you need to soak them? I have washed a kit every week this season (14 adult shirts - they sort out their own socks and shorts thankfully) and I have never soaked any of them. They are lovely and clean.

We do have an away kit which has white shorts which are a bit of a nightmare but coloured shirts can just go straight in the wash at 40 degrees with a good scoop of bio powder then out on the line to dry. I try and get them in the wash as soon as I can so any mud doesnt get dried on.

Drying them can be fun - especially if the weather is bad and they actually take longer to dry than you might imagine.

My son is a goalkeeper for a junior team and I use the same method on his kit, have only once or twice had to soak it before washing.

bikeit

The wife tried washing the kit before soaking and the results were poor, so she read on here that some people recommended the soaking in soda crystals method, it does brings the kit up a lot cleaner.
This week when she gets the kit she it going to soak it overnight wash it in the machine and see what the kit looks like, i will report back to let you all know.

sb88_2

My Grandfather managed the local football team, for 10/15 years or so my Grandmother washed their football strips, White shirts, they would be FILTHY with dirt and she only ever put them in the washing machine.