EEEWW!! How do i clean my runners

Question

My runners (or "trainers" for you guys in the home of the free & land of the brave) are basically smelling like satan after a night out and i'm wondering what to do with them. Got new insoles but i think the smell is embedded in the fabric of the runners - so frustrating.

I can't put them in the washing machine can I??

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

I suppose you could put them in the washing machine...

BUT:  Hand washing would be gentler and better.

I would take some hot water (but not hotter than your hands can stand) and some liquid detergent, say a shot-glass worth, and maybe a shot-glass or 2 of bleach.  

Fill the sink with the water, add, the detergent, blend it in, then add the bleach.

Finally put the runners in and shake/swish them about.  Let them soak for no more than an hour, and "shake/swish them about" each 10 minutes during that hour.

Next, rinse well.  

Then let them soak in more clean hot water, but without soap or bleach.  Just use a cup of vinegar in the water.  Let them soak this way for 1/2 hour.  Swish them around each 10 minutes, as before.

Rinse again.

Now use plain warm water with nothing in it to let them soak for about 1/2 hour.  Swish around each 10 minutes, as before.

Take them out, and stuff each of them with a nice dry, towel. Put them upside down on another towel.

Give them about an hour to drip dry, and then change the towels inside the shoes for fresh dry ones.  

Change the inside towels each 3 hours, until the towels are no longer damp.

Then let them sit at least overnight, before you wear them again.   They must be perfectly dry before you wear them again.

One good cure for stink, is a paper towel, stapled into the form of a bag, with a good amount of baking soda in it.  Let it sit in the shoes over a weekend.  You'll find they smell much better come monday!  

Answer 2

did u get a lable on them... you might  want to go bac to where u got them and ask if you can wash them... try simply soap and water. it does work!!!!

give them a good scrub and they'll smell as good as new - hopefully!

Answer 3

I have washed runners, and had mixed results.  They will not come out as original, but they will be cleaner.  Have you tried using Fabreeze fabric freshener?  

Answer 4

You can put them in teh washing machine. But put them in with towels or something so they aren't being thrown around. YOU CAN'T PUT THEM IN THE DRYER. Put them outside to dry them or by a heater or something.