wool clothing. how do you clean it?

F

frontiersman

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Dec 20, 2006
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I have a wool hunting shirt made by columbia. I got it freakin nasty.:( Lake mud all over it (buddy got stuck). The tag says dryclean only. I've been wearing it almost everyday since I got it as a jacket. Im half tempted to throw it in the washer on delicate cycle on cold water but dont want to ruin it. Any sugestions?
 
Please look into it before doing this and don't blame me if your shirt is ruined....OK that said, just use woolite and hand wash it in luke warm water, rinse and air dry. You can look at the woolite website for ideas on the best product and way to do this. It's called Woolite for a reason....
 
I use woolite and hand wash it. DO NOT PUT WOOL IN THE DRYER or it will shrink dramatically.

.
 
Washing machine, cold water, wash it like anything else, hang to dry. No dryer, no heat or hot water. I wash my wool clothing all the time like this and never had a problem.
 
woolite in the washing machine. cold water on the gentlest cycle. To dry, carefully lay your wet shirt onto a towel. Roll the towel up with the shirt. Wring the hell out of it. The water will transfer to the towel, and rolling it in the towel also prevents it from stretching. Now hang and air dry overnight. The next day, your shirt is clean.

woolite in the sink by hand. I've washed many, many wool clothing items in sinks around the world while backpacking. Fill sink with cold water (if it's cold outside, coldish/lukewarmish water is okay, but not hot). Gently use your hands to get the dirt off. the water will turn dark. Drain sink and repeat. Now fill sink with water again and put the woolite in (doesn't take much. for a typical bathroom sink, about a tablespoon or two). Wash thoroughly with your hands, grab parts of the shirt and rub together all over. The water will turn dark again. Drain sink. Fill again, wash again without woolite. The water will turn dark again. Repeat until the water runs clear. Your shirt is now clean. To dry, see above.

The good thing about wool is that it resists bad odors and bacteria naturally. So, you can actually keep wearing a good wool shit without cleaning it often. Even while backpacking in the desert and mountains, I only cleaned my wool shirts ever 4 days or so.
 
I take mine down to the dry cleaners for a good ol' perchloroethylene bath every few months.
I have Filsons & Woolrichs from each of the last 6 decades still going strong, thanks in part to treating them
to the dry cleaners and keeping them out of washers and sinks.
 
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Thanks for all the help. I decided to put it in the washer on delicate cold with woollite. Hope it's going to be ok. Will give an update after its over
 
Magnaminous_G said:
woolite in the washing machine. cold water on the gentlest cycle. To dry, carefully lay your wet shirt onto a towel. Roll the towel up with the shirt. Wring the hell out of it. The water will transfer to the towel, and rolling it in the towel also prevents it from stretching. Now hang and air dry overnight. The next day, your shirt is clean.

woolite in the sink by hand. I've washed many, many wool clothing items in sinks around the world while backpacking. Fill sink with cold water (if it's cold outside, coldish/lukewarmish water is okay, but not hot). Gently use your hands to get the dirt off. the water will turn dark. Drain sink and repeat. Now fill sink with water again and put the woolite in (doesn't take much. for a typical bathroom sink, about a tablespoon or two). Wash thoroughly with your hands, grab parts of the shirt and rub together all over. The water will turn dark again. Drain sink. Fill again, wash again without woolite. The water will turn dark again. Repeat until the water runs clear. Your shirt is now clean. To dry, see above.

The good thing about wool is that it resists bad odors and bacteria naturally. So, you can actually keep wearing a good wool shit without cleaning it often. Even while backpacking in the desert and mountains, I only cleaned my wool shirts ever 4 days or so.
Click to expand...

As above


But??
I only cleaned my wool shirts ever 4 days or so
Do you mean months?
 
neeman said:
As above


But??
I only cleaned my wool shirts ever 4 days or so
Do you mean months?
Click to expand...

Days, if it's a wool t-shirt base layer. I wear Minus33 wool t-shirts, which are fantastic. If it's a thicker outer layer like a plaid shirt to be worn over a base layer, then yeah, maybe months. :D :D
 
Magnaminous_G that is one chunky looking dog in your profile pic lol.
 
Now that it has dryied, I did as Magnaminous_G suggested and it turned out great. Thanks guys for all the help. I know that it seems like i was being anal about this but it is my favorite. This wool stuff is quite spendy. Anyway, thanks.
 
Wool should be washed in cold water only. Read the garment care instructions... Not all manufacturers are created equal. This being said, I've never had a problem washing my Icebreaker, LLBean, or Lamberti Moreno wool long sleeves in cold water using a normal cycle with cold-water tide or non scented detergent.

A few additional points... Never wash wool with metal, like zippers. Never wash with abrasiveISH fabrics, like jeans. Too much friction against the wool. Never put wool in the dryer; hang it up and air dry it.
 
I would dry clean it :D. But if I were cheap and I am, I'd use Woolite (dark) in cold water (gentle cycle) by itself and air dry or hand wash and air dry. Let the mud dry first and de-dust the shirt before putting into the washer.

A while back I hand washed in the bath tub two queen sized wool blankets that were pretty nasty with dog hair and odor. I had refused to use them for about 10-15 years until finally I asked myself WHY I was even keeping those two blankets if I was unwilling to use them. I hand washed them in the bath tub, hung out to dry and started removing the hair by beating on them (with a fan to blow the hair away from the blanket) and kept doing it over an over again. Tried tape. That was slow. It worked however with no damage.
 
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Wool is best cleaned by washing thoroughly with whiskey, rinsing with a light lager, and left to air dry near a campfire.
 
I would recommend drying wool garments flat rather than hanging them. The weight can stretch them out. Probably a bigger deal for sweaters than for a shirt.
 
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