The cure for stinky road shoes?

[Bigtallfatbloke]

...ok...not nice but I'll ask anyway...Ineed to deal with some pretty lethal odours eminating from my roadshoes since they got a good soaking on tour last week and then got worn in the scorching heat all trip. If they were trainers I'd put them in the washing machine but these have metal cleats and stiff stuff in them...so wot is a chap to do? The wife's solution is to throw them outside when i am not looking...not something I can live with so this is important

 

[domtyler]

Soak for twenty four hours in neat bleach.

 

[Notsoblue]

Slightly OT...

My shoes are fine, but my helmet smells cheesy towards the end of the week! I wash the padding but this will start to perish soon I guess, anyone know if you can get replacement padding for helmets?

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

Soak for twenty four hours in neat bleach

I want to clean them not disolve them!

 

[tdr1nka]

Would it work if you took the cleats off and put the shoes in on a short cool wash?

There are various insoles and sprays to 'eliminate' foot odour but I guess it's a bit late for that?

 

[fossyant]

You can machine wash them - the cleats won't rust to bits you know....

Helmets - shove them in the shower. You can get replacement pads - check out most web retailers !

 

[Baggy]

I need to deal with some pretty lethal odours eminating from my roadshoes...so wot is a chap to do?

If you can take the insoles out and sponge them with water and soap of some sort, that's a start.

One thing that seems to work quite well on Chuffy's whiffy shoes, (not mine I hasten to add) is filling them with cat litter (the clay sort) and leaving them overnight, or longer. This seems to absorb nasty smells...

Just make sure you don't leave them where any cats can get to them, or they'll end up smelling worse

I'd be worried about putting my shoes in the washer - they're the most indulgent bike-related spend I've made apart from the bike...

 

[Dayvo]

I heard that freezing them was a simple solution, but have never tried it!

Read this for more info:

http://www.howtogetridofstuff.com/odor-removal/how-to-get-rid-of-shoe-odor

 

[bobg]

"One thing that seems to work quite well on Chuffy's whiffy shoes, (not mine I hasten to add) is filling them with cat litter (the clay sort) and leaving them overnight, or longer. This seems to absorb nasty smells..."

The mind boggles Baggy, just how did you first discover this phenomenon??

 

[fossyant]

I risked my Sidi Genius 2's once.....only because the mesh etc was grubby..., but wouldn't my Spesh Pro Carbon's....oh no..too expensive !

Bike shoes don't normally get stinky, cos they are well vented - never really had that issue, although if it's not a vented type, then that is going to happen.

 

[Baggy]

The mind boggles Baggy, just how did you first discover this phenomenon??

I *think* I read it on a runners' forum somewhere!

 

[Blonde]

If you don't use custom insoles but just the ones that came with the shoes, you could just replace them with odour eaters carbon insoles ("trainer tamers" are the best for their anti-pong properties). They really do absorb the smell and keep the shoes fresher for months. Taking the insoles out and drying/airing them off after rides should also help. Must admit that since I started using custom footbeds, my cycling shoes don't smell. The insoles I use are really thin and I take them out and air them off after weekend/longer rides (though not after each commute). I use the insoles every day as I only have one pair, but I do take the insoles out and put them into a different pair of cycling shoes for my weekend ride(s) - perhaps giving the other shoes a day off also helps. If you have more than one pair of shoes, you could alternate them each day to allow the others to air off more between rides.

OT a bit, but we recently discovered that you can wash tyres in the washing machine (why, you might ask) - for people with far too shiny a bike (I use Mr Sheen on mine) this is great news - they come up looking new.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

they never used to pong at all...these are vented as well. On the last tour they got wet and they didnt dry at all for severla days as it was so humid. I also had to wear them all the time and it was very hot towards the end of the trip in particualr. I darnt wash them in the machine in case they lose the stiffness.
Odour eaters...I will try them....cat letter...erm...I dont have a cat but my recollection of cat litter is that it smells bad enough in its own right....I sprayed them with something called fabreeze but that didnt work.

I am thinking maybe a diluted solution of detol or something might work...or maybe it's jus ttime for some new shoes.

 

[fossyant]

Just soak them in detol and let drip dry.....

 

[tdr1nka]

Baggy, I now have a mental image of a cat trying to use Chuffy's shoes as a toilet, a la, Fat Freddy's Cat.