Drying is just as important as washing. I’m not a dry cleaning expert, but when it comes to goalkeeper gloves, I’ve made the mistake of not drying my gloves properly. The worst thing that can happen to you as a goalkeeper is to spend a pretty penny on gloves, and tell yourself you’re going to take care of them this time. Since you’re in the mood to preserve them, you wash them after your first use. Then, though, you hang them out to dry, and you come back to find you overcooked them! This is something that you never want to have happened to you. That’s why I’ve set up a step-by-step guide on how to dry goalie gloves.
There are a couple of ways to do it. Obviously, the traditional way would be to hang them out to dry. You could use a hairdryer if you want to make the process a lot quicker. Could you put them in the dryer? Yes, and no, it all depends on how you’re getting this done. We are going to go over that a little later in the article. The first thing that I want to point out though is what can happen if you don’t do this properly. The quick story at the beginning of the article is a true story, and it happens to the best of us. This article is made to make sure that many of you are not making the same rookie mistakes.
What Happens If You Don’t Dry Goalie Gloves Accordingly
There are essentially two negative outcomes that you’re looking at if you don’t get through the process the right way. The first one is simple enough, if you don’t give them enough time to dry, they are going to be wet the next time you put them on. The smell of damp gloves, clothes, or whatever you want to call it is not a pleasant one. You could be promoting the very thing that you want to avoid by leaving your gloves too wet. Your hands are going to smell real bad if you put those gloves on. There’s a chance of picking up all kinds of nail infections too! Also, you’re going to feel like the glove is slipping off. Therefore, grip is something that can be affected.
The second issue that you can be facing is leaving them out in direct sunlight for too long. Depending on where you live, this can be something that has to really concern you or maybe not even matter at all. The thing is, with a lot of the traditional latex palms when you leave them exposed to the sun for too long they are going to harden. When this happens you can have a nice clean glove the next time you step on the pitch. It’s going to be hard as a rock, though. The grip on these gloves is going to be virtually non-existent.
How To Dry Goalie Gloves – The Traditional Method
This is the method that is going to work for most people. As I mentioned, though, where you live in the world can make this an option for you or not. Ideally, you’ll be able to hang the gloves out to dry in the shade, and you’ll be fine. If you have a laundry room at home, that can work really well. Just make sure you hang them out to dry or leave them palm face up someplace. The natural heat in the room is going to help dry the gloves out without putting them at risk of drying out too much.
If you want to be very traditional and hang them out with the rest of your clothes, you can. Just make sure that you are regularly monitoring their process. Especially if you live in a place where it’s known to get hot and there’s a lot of sunlight. Make sure that you give them enough time. If you’re going to put them in more direct sunlight, maybe check them every hour to see how they are going. On the other hand, if you’re going to dry them in the shade, make sure you give them a good 12 to 24 hours to dry out. If not, there’s a good chance that when you put them back on they’ll be damp. This traditional method can be a bit of a trial and error process. You run the risk of ruining a pair or two before you get the drying method just right!
How To Dry Goalie Gloves – Put Them In The Dryer
Can you put goalkeeper gloves in the dryer? I have an article about putting your gloves in a washing machine. Some of the same concepts apply to putting your gloves in the dryer. Some gloves that you have maybe perfectly fine when you take them out. Other gloves that you may put in may find that the dryer went on to be their grave. What makes the difference between the two outcomes? It comes down to the type and the condition of the glove that you are putting in. You want to make sure that you’re not putting in gloves that are already too torn up. Also, it would be a good idea to wrap them before you put them in. What I mean by that is that you should fasten the wrist strap before you put them on the washing machine.
Why do you want to make sure you do this? It really comes down to the idea that you don’t want to have anything loose in the dryer. You wouldn’t want some of these straps to catch on something and then cause a mess. I talked about this in another article, if you’re putting in gloves that have some type of mesh or loose strings or whatever, there’s a chance those loose parts could catch something inside the dryer and end up being torn up. This is usually a method I would recommend for gloves that are in decent condition. I don’t want to overstate this, but I have to say, try this at your own risk!
How To Dry Goalie Gloves – Use A Hair Dryer
This is one of the more effective ways to be able to dry goalkeeper gloves. Yes, it’s going to take a little more work than some of the other options. It’s the best way though to be able to really grasp how things are going. If you overcook the drying process here, it’s really because you were trying to do so. If you want to be extra safe though and make sure that the gloves don’t get too dry, make sure that you’re using cool air and not hair from the hair dryer. In a couple of minutes though you can potentially have your gloves game ready. That’s not something that you’ll be able to do with some of the other methods.
If you’re worried that your gloves are going to get ruined in the drying process, this is the way to go. There’s another factor that really gives this option a boost. With a dryer, you are going to be able to dry up the inside of the glove. That’s something that’s going to be a lot harder to do with some other methods. A lot of times the palm is going to be dry, but the inside of the glove may still be damp. That’s an issue that’s going to cause your goalie gloves to stick. There’s really no reason to sugarcoat that. This is when people begin to feel that washing their gloves backfires. With a hair dryer, you’re going to be able to ensure that the inside of the glove is as dry as the outside. You don’t have to worry about the weather or anything like that.
Different Gloves Are Going To Dry At Different Speeds
This is something that sounds super obvious, but no one really tells you this. You notice until you’re actually washing your gloves. If you think about it, though, there are going to be gloves that are better suited for a particular drying method. For example, if you have a latex glove with a very thick palm, it’s going to absorb a lot of water. These are the types of gloves though that if you leave them out in the sun for too long they can begin to crack and lose all of their grip. Therefore, it could be a good idea to be more active with their drying process. As opposed to just letting them dry on their own.
With some of the more modern synthetic materials, you’re not going to have too much of a problem since the palm won’t absorb as much water. Also, those palms won’t crack as easily if you leave them out in the sun. So you can mostly afford to be more passive with these gloves. Even giving them enough time so that the inside of the glove dries out accordingly. Of course, if you have training or a game coming up, you can also choose to go with a more active and quicker method. When you know what type of glove you’re dealing with, you’ll have a better chance of choosing the right drying method.
Are Certain Drying Methods Going To Be Detrimental To Your Gloves?
How many times can you put your goalie gloves in a washing machine and dryer? A lot of people worry that machine washing and drying is going to take a heavier toll on gloves than some of the more manual or natural methods. I would argue that it really depends on the wear that’s already on the glove and how careful you happen to be when placing them into a machine. If you tear up a glove on the field, and then you’re not careful to strap the wrist strap tight when you put them in the machine, you may be in trouble.
Overall, though, it’s more of an issue of how torn up your gloves come in from the field. Also, how careful you happen to be when washing and drying them with a machine. A part that could see more wear and tear from machine washing and drying is the strap. Usually, these straps have velcro on them. These velcro patches are some of the parts of the gloves that could have a rougher time with machine washing. Looking back on that, you could blame the wear on the velcro on these washing techniques. If you have gloves that you can’t trust to stay fastened in the machines, then maybe that won’t be a great way to wash them.
How To Dry Goalie Gloves – Conclusion
Using your drying machine, a hair dryer, or just hanging them out to dry are certainly the most common answers of how to dry goalie gloves. If I had to pick out the best way to get it done, using a hair dryer may just be the one. As was mentioned before, this is the method that gives you the most control of the whole process. It’s also certainly the most active way to get the job done. That’s why a lot of people don’t use it. It’s ok, if you’ve found the perfect spot where you can hang your gloves out to dry at home, and it works for you, then go for it. Using the dryer, if you do it properly, should be a perfectly safe way to dry goalie gloves as well.
There are probably other less conventional methods out there. For example, using those pads that are used to remove makeup could be a way to go. They are effective in removing moisture from the glove. However, you’d be wasting too many pads. If you want an active and quick way to get these gloves dry, use a hair dryer. That’s probably going to be the best way to go. Remember if you really want to make sure that your goalie gloves last as long as they should this is a very important process. Again, pick the method that works best for you. A quick tip, if you’re going to try a new method of how to dry goalie gloves, do so with old gloves! Not the new ones you just bought.
