Cleaning your gear

[fishnfed]

Not a normal rules type question, but how do you guys normally clean your mask, cp, shins, cup, etc.?  I came off the field today after three behind the plate and I was a sweaty mess.  What products do you use to ensure there are no nasty things living in your gear?

Thanks for any help.

[BuckeyeMike]

First off, immediately upon taking off my CP and shins, after every game, I spray them down with Lysol.  

As for the once every week or 2 weeks thorough cleaning, I use scrubbing bubbles.   Spray it, brush everything vigorously and hose it all down.

For my mask pads, I just throw those in the wash every other week.  

[ElkOil]

I wipe everything down with a damp cloth, clean any dust, dirt or mud off, and hang it all to thoroughly dry.  I throw the washables (ball bags, helmet bag) in the washing machine along with my uniform and under duds.  Fresh and clean as a daisy.

I'm sure there are as many methods as there are umpires.  Whatever works, works, so long as your stuff gets clean.

[maineump]

I use Clorox wipes. They come in a little bucket like thing, and fit in the bag. Wipe all non-cloth stuff down, including shoes. I am still looking for a spray disinfectant I like the smell of for the mask pads and shin guards

[JaxRolo]

Fabreeze

[Thunderheads]

Moved to "equipment forum" ......... 

I hope the search function gets rectified soon.   LOTS and LOTS of info on this subject within this site already.

For me, sweaty things get "Fabreeze Sport" and hang dry ........   Once during the season (depending on heat, etc) I'll take apart my CP's and soap and water and hose down my padding (leg guards too) .... and also throw my mask pads in the washer and air-dry .....

[alan2703]

Lysol, some and water, beer (cleaning gear is hard work and need to keep hydrated) and I lay it all out in the sun

[BillKen]

Lemon Lysol on all cloth...including the hat and the inside of the shoes.  Then don't stuff it back in your bag...let it air out and dry.  Bacteria love the dark. warm, damp environment of a zipped up bag.  Febreze is just a cover up scent...Lysol kills the germs that cause the odors.

[fishnfed]

thanks. 

[ShotKaller]

I often do not have time to get to my gear out of the trunk and clean it up right after my game(s). I also didn't always have time to let my gear air dry between games. You get home from a game do some laundry, clean up the gear and then load the car again before bed, and off to the day job in the morning, then to the next game. Now I don't even worry about it. Water is extracted from the gear automatically with these:

 

damprid.docx

It works really good. Just hang it in the trunk. I think I bought a box of the at Home Depot for $6.00. I have to change it out about every 3-4 weeks. It's great because you know it needs to be changed when the bottom of the bag is full. 

[jkumpire]

A few alternatives, not tested thoroughly yet....

1. Walk your gear though an automatic car wash, but make sure you do not get the spray on Rain-X/Water repellant spray at the end. If your clothes are damp from the game, stop in front of the air dryer for an extra long time. 

2. Go the the local public pool, or better yet, a friend's pool, and dive in with a cup of laundry soap and all your gear on. Best time to do it is just after the pool is cleaned. If you do it with other people there you might get on youtube, or even in the local newspaper. 

3. Set up one of those 'slip and slides' in your front yard, and hire the neighborhood kids to wear your gear as they slide down the plastic chute. If you are sneaky about it, run the water in the hose through a sprayer with a bottle of bleach in it. As long as the first two kids don't get 98% bleach to slide in the first time they go down, nobody will notice or care.

4. If the stuff is really messed up and dirty, have a community hotdog/marshmallow roast in the back yard, charge $5 per person to eat, and use your gear to start the fire. After the party is over deposit the $$$ in your paypal account and buy all the gear you need on the Umpire-Empire gear for sale section, or buy it new from Ump-Attire!

5. If you have several days between games, sponsor a 'slave day'. Get your favorite local travel team whose coach hates your zone on the phone, and tell him that if his 11-12 year old team will clean your gear and polish your shoes they can have one game where you will ask them if that close pitch was a strike when they are on offense or defense. Better yet, tell the coach that if the team's parents clean your gear they can call the game from behind the backstop at home plate however they want, and you will listen to them!

6. Go to a tournament where the umpires do five or six games a day in the middle of summer. Tell them your gear is magic; if they clean up your gear magic pixie dust will cover their fields and the teams that play on them. Every game will end up being one hour long, the score will be 1-0 home team, and everyone will tell them they are the best umpires they ever saw. they are done in half the time they expected to be done, and your gear is spotless for your next game. 

I hope this helps!   

Edited June 23, 2015 by jkumpire

[mbkcoach]

There is stuff we used to spray on shoulder pads called whizzer and Matt clean. Same stuff they sanitize wrestling matts with. Stuff is great. Kills everything including the funk!

[Big_Mac14]

There is stuff we used to spray on shoulder pads called whizzer 

I would not recommend whizzing on your gear to keep it clean. 

[mbkcoach]

Lol

[Replacematt]

There is stuff we used to spray on shoulder pads called whizzer and Matt clean. Same stuff they sanitize wrestling matts with. Stuff is great. Kills everything including the funk!​

Uh...that's for keeping my junk clean.