Gear Talk: Cleaning a Racing Suit

[arig]

i have an x light. i dry cleaned it after the last time i used it. now, the left leg is starting to pill(spelling??). how do you guys clean your suit's?

[MJAmok]

The most important thing to do is make sure it is zipped closed and the velcro is fastened... the zipper and velcro eat up nomex causing the pilling!

I have resorted to washing in woolite as dry cleaning was no match for the oh dear (odor)...

[badgersid]

mike: what are your window cleaning tip's?

[MJAmok]

Sid... Christine does my windows too....

[macdod]

I didn't know Woolite was good for diaper stains but if Michael says so I'd go with him on this one.

[WatertownNewbie]

There have been snippets scattered in several threads on this topic, but having just returned from my 2-Day at Laguna Seca, I'm now a bit more interested and thought that others might benefit from a consolidated thread. I'll start with a quotation from another thread.

Originally Posted by jp56

I wash all my suits in the washing machine. [snip] Depending on how dirty it is( for some reason it gets a lot of dirt on it? hmmm), I use Oxiclean

Which of the many Oxiclean substances do you use?

[arig]

i have only taken my suit to the dry cleaner's because there is a tag in my suit that says "dry clean only". i'm too afraid i'll fook up my suit by washing it myself. its worth too much to ruin it by not spending 12 bucks to clean it. it might save my life one day, it deserves the best cleaning possible.

[MJAmok]

Based on that tag, I always sent mine to the dry cleaner. They came back still smelling nasty.

I've switched to washing in Woolite in the washer. Now I don't mind hanging around with myself!

I think the liklihood of dying in flames is less than the liklihood of dying from the fumes of a smelly suit!

Maybe we should do an experiment at a track next year. If anyone has an old suit they want to donate.... we could start a bonfire with a dry cleaned only suit, a washed suit and a Skippy suit. Then for fun, we could throw in Murray's Frog Tog rain suit and watch it melt!

[macdod]

My god almighty I hope the likes of David Hobbs doesn't read this thread...

Announcer: Gee Mr. Hobbs, what kind of air freshener did you use inside the race car? Did you use a different one in the BRM than you did in the McLaren?

Be men damnit!

Put on the f******* suit, go outside, hose yourself down, throw the suit over the fence, and tell your wife to hang it up when it dries.

You guys might want to get ahold of one another before tomorrow's race to make sure someone brings the moist toliets to dry the perspiration from your sorry foreheads.

In gym class in High School the coaches used to inspect for jock straps in gym class. If you guys keep on like this I'm gonna have an "attachments" inspection before anybody leaves the drivers meeting tomorrow.

Note to Self: I guess I'm gonna have to go out now and buy paper doilyes to go with the cakes plates for tomorrow.

[MJAmok]

Here we go... another excuse by MacDod to attempt an "attachments search". Sorry Donald, it still isn't going to work!

[angelos49]

What would be the best way to clean Sparco Nomex accesories (Head sock, underwear, t shirt, socks) to preserve their fire resistance? Is regular Tide and cold water mode in the washing machine ok? Would drying them in the dryer affect the fire resistance?

[Gerardo]

I could tell you what I do (washing machine, cold, Tide, normal cycle for the nomex underwear, gentle cycle for the suit), but I'm thinking asking the folks at Sparco would be a good idea. I've got a phone number for one of the guys at SparcoUSA, I'll let you know what I find out.

Oh, and I use the dryer for the underwear, but I hang dry the suit. Again, my answer is not an engineer's answer. I'll ask Sparco. You guys could ask your respective manufacturers. But I'll bet even the pro teams use washing machines for simple logistical needs.

[AZRCD]

Machince wash cold (for suit and others) keeps it looking new and shiny. Use whatever mild detergent it is that you use to get you jollies (MJA apparently knows his fav. already) The trick to perserving the fire retardant(ness?) DO NOT PUT IT IN THE DRYER.
Oh, and for those who dry clean if you really read the tag it will say only use this specific methond without cemical something or other. I don't have a suit to refer to at the moment and I don't rember since I quickly stopped drycleaning as I never liked the way it came back.

[AZRCD]

P.S. I'm gald I could provide some defenitive advice here.

[dalyduo]

Cold water and tide for the nomex on regular cycle. For the Sparco X-Light suit I use Woolite and cold water on the gentle cycle and only hang dry it.

[OLDMAN]

The tag on mine says machine wash do not use bleach. I then air dry it.

OLDMAN

[angelos49]

Thanks guys for all the advice. I will make sure to avoid the dryer.