Classic sports or street shoes, which are used in everyday life as well as for sporting (outdoor) activities, become more and more dirty over time and start to stink – shoe deodorant will no longer help. Here it would make sense to simply clean the treads in the washing machine, but are they even suitable for this? In fact, all shoes made of synthetic materials can be washed, such as vegan sneakers, ballerinas, sneakers, canvas and canvas shoes. This article explains what you need to consider and how you can wash your shoes by hand.
Before you put the shoes in the washing machine, you should remove coarse dirt with a firm shoe brush – alternatively, you can use a damp cloth.
Remove the laces and any insoles from the shoes so that they are not washed.
So that the shoes do not accidentally damage the laundry drum, you should only wash them with other robust textiles such as towels or bed sheets.
It is even safer for the shoes in the machine if you use a special laundry net or a padded laundry bag to protect them.
Wash the shoes at 30 degrees, preferably on a gentle cycle (easy-care or wool) – and avoid the spin cycle to protect the materials.
Put only a little (full) detergent in the machine and no fabric softener. If you only wash the shoes, there are also special detergents for sneakers.
Whether boots, high heels or sandals: If the shoes are made of leather, they must never be put in the washing machine. But what if the fine shoes are so dirty that you no longer want to show them in public? Quite simply, there are a variety of suitable care products that you can use to clean leather – the same also applies to shoes made of synthetic materials, which you also use because of glued or sewn-on applications (e.g. metal, rhinestones or sequins). cannot be machine washed.
And even with sensitive shoes, it makes sense to treat the material with an impregnation spray after manual cleaning and care.
This article contains so-called affiliate links. Further information are available here.
