Washing Your Kit
Malcolm Marchant
Barry Burn wrote:
>
> I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a scrubbing
> brush or two and a lot of elbow grease. But, is there an easier way? For
> example, stuffing the lot in the washing machine. will it get all the mud
> and grit out of the ropes, sit harness etc, will it damage the gear, will
> it damage the machine? I'm currently trying a small experiment with my
> oversuit. Carrying a lot of mud (I mean LOTS), I've hung it up on the
> washing line to see if the rain we are currently having will have any
> effect. Results after about an hour seem to indicate a stubbornm refusal
> on the part of the mud to move.
>
> Which leads me to a slight diversion. Why is it, that if cave mud is so
> easily picked up from a cave to plaster everything you wear and carry,
> that it is so damned difficult to get rid of it again? Have we a
> corollary to Murphy's Law perhaps? Maybe, "The mud collected on a cavers
> equipment can never be wholly removed".
>
> Thoughts on this appreciated
>
> Barry BurnHi Barry,
I take my cave suit and cavebags to the local car wash (no I don't go running through) the coin operated
type with the high pressure hoses. the owners don't seem to mind - they get their money and my wifes happy
that our washing machine is not coated in mud.
Malcolm
Barry Burn
Bonnie Crystal
In <320A7C...@interlog.com> Malcolm Marchant
<malc...@interlog.com> writes:
>Barry Burn wrote:
>>
>> I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a
scrubbing
>> brush or two and a lot of elbow grease. But, is there an easier
way?
>
running through) the coin operated
>type with the high pressure hoses.
What a great idea, Malcolm.
I've got a few caving items that never seem to get clean.
Bonnie
Bonnie Crystal
Virtual Caver
Global Grotto
John P Norman
: I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a scrubbing
: brush or two and a lot of elbow grease. But, is there an easier way? For
: and grit out of the ropes, sit harness etc, will it damage the gear, will
: it damage the machine? I'm currently trying a small experiment with my
: oversuit. Carrying a lot of mud (I mean LOTS), I've hung it up on the
: washing line to see if the rain we are currently having will have any
: effect. Results after about an hour seem to indicate a stubbornm refusal
: on the part of the mud to move.
I usually give the really grimy stuff (i.e. overalls) a pre-wash with
the hose and then put the clothes in the washing machine with a
normal/heavy load setting. You may need to repeat the rinse cycle to get
the water to come clean.
For ropes, I usually braid them into loose coils, dunk them in the
laundry tub to get off the loose mud, and lay them in the washer. Several
rinse cycles usually does the trick. The sit harnesses can go the same
way. Be sure your water is not too hot, (i.e. too hot to stick hands in)
or you could damage some materials. Hope this helps!
John
Mike Cowley
In article <4udoi7$8...@snow.btinternet.com>,
Barry...@btinternet.com (Barry Burn) wrote:
>I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a scrubbing
>brush or two and a lot of elbow grease. But, is there an easier way? For
>example, stuffing the lot in the washing machine. will it get all the mud
>and grit out of the ropes, sit harness etc, will it damage the gear, will
>it damage the machine? I'm currently trying a small experiment with my
>oversuit. Carrying a lot of mud (I mean LOTS), I've hung it up on the
>washing line to see if the rain we are currently having will have any
>effect. Results after about an hour seem to indicate a stubbornm refusal
>on the part of the mud to move.
>
>Which leads me to a slight diversion. Why is it, that if cave mud is so
>easily picked up from a cave to plaster everything you wear and carry,
>that it is so damned difficult to get rid of it again? Have we a
>corollary to Murphy's Law perhaps? Maybe, "The mud collected on a cavers
>equipment can never be wholly removed".
>
>Thoughts on this appreciated
>
>Barry Burn
>
Put absolutely everything in your bath, filled with warm water.
Go and do something more interesting for an hour or so.
Drain, scrub/rinse with a shower, and repeat until you can see the bottom
of the bath.
Don't let your SO see the bath until you've cleaned it.
Mike.
Kym ap Rhys
Barry Burn wrote:
>
> I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a scrubbing
> brush or two and a lot of elbow grease. But, is there an easier way? For
> example, stuffing the lot in the washing machine. will it get all the mud
> and grit out of the ropes, sit harness etc, will it damage the gear, will
> it damage the machine? I'm currently trying a small experiment with my
> oversuit. Carrying a lot of mud (I mean LOTS), I've hung it up on the
> washing line to see if the rain we are currently having will have any
> effect. Results after about an hour seem to indicate a stubbornm refusal
> on the part of the mud to move.
>
> Which leads me to a slight diversion. Why is it, that if cave mud is so
> easily picked up from a cave to plaster everything you wear and carry,
> that it is so damned difficult to get rid of it again? Have we a
> corollary to Murphy's Law perhaps? Maybe, "The mud collected on a cavers
> equipment can never be wholly removed".
>
> Thoughts on this appreciated
>
> Barry Burn
Hi,
I wash most caving gear (oversuits, ropes, tackle bags - anything with
no metal 'clank' attached by sokaing it overnight, then putting in the
washing machine (front loading) on a cool wash - but I don't use
detergent - I read somewhere it can effect rope - just mild soap based
washing powder. I always use a fabric conditioner (really).
If you get most of the mud off in the bath and keep the washing machine
filter cleaned regularly, it doesn't seem to have a detrimental effect
on either gear or machine. Don't overload the machine, leave the ropes
to dry in the sun, or forget to wash out the bath afterwards.
You get good 'mud formations' on the bottom of the bath after the water
has drained away!
Regards
Kym ap Rhys
Scott Askey
I've had good luck detoxing my kit (wellies, frog, polypro and
oversuit) in less than 30 minutes just sloshing it through a warm soapy
1/2 full 8 gal (32 l)trash can followed by two rinse sloshings. I
prefer the method to a garden hosing and it also uses much less water.
The best method is without a doubt stream crawl at the cave's exit.
Marty
>>I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a
>>scrubbing brush or two and a lot of elbow [...]
>Put absolutely everything in your bath, filled with warm water.
>Go and do something more interesting for an hour or so.
>Drain, scrub/rinse with a shower, and repeat until you can see the bottom
>of the bath.
>Don't let your SO see the bath until you've cleaned it.
Er, are you two talking about actually *cleaning* your cave clothes
and equipment??!
To each h[is|er] own, I guess. What a wierd world I live in!
You could get extra mileage out of your washer, plumbing,
significant other, and maybe septic tank if you just dried
it all out and slammed it around against a willing tree until
it's flexible again, then repack it.__**NEWS FLASH**__Don't take
kids w/no fear of heights into caves w/exposure!_________Marty
Mike Cowley
In article <4ufrbb$6...@ra.nrl.navy.mil>,
ca...@radef.nrl.navy.mil (Marty) wrote:
My *life* is hanging from this gear, there is no way I'd let all the mud
dry out and turn into an abrasive collection of grit, causing sheath
failure on an SRT rope, jammed krabs or cams, and unseen wear on a harness.
Call me paranoid, or Mr Fussy, you only get one life but you can always get
another washer ;-)
Mike.
Barry Burn
In article <320BA7...@dhios.demon.co.uk>, k...@dhios.demon.co.uk
says...
Well I like the car wash suggestion the best. Suppose it could be a bit
pricy for just your oversuit but a quick call at the local car wash with
everyone chucking their oversuits into the spray before heading for the
pub could be very cost effective.
What I do at the moment is the 'get rid of most of the mud and chuck it in
the washing machine whilst she's asleep in bed' method (except for
oversuit). Did this last Wednesday, put it on for a wash then for another
rinse and went to bed (Iget up before the wife and have it out and drying
before she's even up). Unfortunately, I also put my belay belt in there.
Lying in bed, I could hear a loud clink...clink..clink. Lay there for the
entire rinse cycle thinking "she'll kill me if I knacker her washing
machine". All okay though.
For anyone who's interested in the mud-removing properties of a good
downpour, it don't work. I left my oversuit in the tipping down rain all
night and the puddle underneath wasn't even muddy in the morning. Oh,
well, I'm off to the car wash.
Barry Burn.
Simon Muir
In article <AE323A7A...@biglog.demon.co.uk>, Mike Cowley
<mi...@biglog.demon.co.uk> said this sort of thing:
>
>My *life* is hanging from this gear, there is no way I'd let all the mud
>dry out and turn into an abrasive collection of grit, causing sheath
>failure on an SRT rope, jammed krabs or cams, and unseen wear on a harness.
>
>Call me paranoid, or Mr Fussy, you only get one life but you can always get
>another washer ;-)
>
>Mike.
>
of it's cheap. When my kit is fairly clean I use the scrub-in-the-bath
method, when it's very dirty, hose down outside, then washing machine.
BTW, I'm rather nervous of using too much detergent or too hot a wash -
mine goes onto the coolest required to get things clean, with less than
half the normal quota of powder. I'm especially concerned about
shortening the life of neoprene items (such as my socks) and the
waterproof coating inside my Warmbac. I'm waiting for the day I sit
down in the entrance to Swillie's and discover the seat of my Warmbac
isn't a warm-back (bottom) any more! I do get ribbed by the rest of the
club about posing in new gear (it looks it, but certainly isn't), but
I'm convinced it isn't wearing as fast as it might otherwise.
--
Simon Muir, Bristol, UK "Regional Shopping Centres" are
sim...@muircom.demon.co.uk the retail equivalent of
slash-and-burn agriculture.
Wookey
>In article <AE323A7A...@biglog.demon.co.uk>, Mike Cowley
><mi...@biglog.demon.co.uk> said this sort of thing:
>>Call me paranoid, or Mr Fussy,
OK then, Mr Pananoid Fussy :-)
Simon Muir <sim...@muircom.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>It strikes me as rather wasteful not to clean the gear - after all, none
>of it's cheap.
I used to wash my gear when I was a student and went caving ridiculous
amounts, and it was easy to take it all into the shower with you. But once
the facility was removed I just didn't bother any more. My gear gets a
wash approx once a year at the end of our Expo in austria, cos there is a
handy river. I haven't noticed any change in how long the stuff lasts
according to how much you wash it. It's the caving that wears it out.
The only important thing (once you are an old cunty like me) is to wash
your fleecy every time so it is all yummy when you put it on (and to have
a spare one for sunday.
Bonnie Crystal
Wookey <woo...@ant.co.uk> writes:
>Simon Muir <sim...@muircom.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>>It strikes me as rather wasteful not to clean the gear - after all,
none
>>of it's cheap.
>
>I used to wash my gear when I was a student and went caving ridiculous
>amounts, and it was easy to take it all into the shower with you...
[snip]
*********
Here's another interesting twist the Gear Washing thread...
This is especially important when visiting virgin caves and caves which
do not receive a lot of visitation, but is true for most caves in
general, except for the sacrificial sport caves or UK caving-club type
high-visitation caves:
Washing and disinfecting your gear (especially coveralls) between
caving trips helps to prevent bio-contamination of the speleological
micro-environment. Studies have been done on this, and more is in
progress, but the core factor is: Uniquely local bacteria and other
microbial life in the cave environment is greatly changed when a caver
merely breathes near a speleothem, not to mention bringing outside
contaminants or another cave's different microbes into the cave. One
should especially keep this in mind when visiting caves in different
regions.
We have even used disposable "paper" HAZ-MAT (hazardous materials)
suits for some pristine environments, which were donned over our
coveralls at the point of entry into unique and sensitive speleothem
areas to prevent dirt and contaminants from other points in the cave
from infecting the site.
How about this for the extreme other end of the spectrum of the
"Washing Your Kit" thread? I guess it doesn't quite fit into the macho
"bop the pit - do the cave" modus operandi.
Charles Pflanze
In a previous article, ca...@radef.nrl.navy.mil (Marty) says:
>mi...@biglog.demon.co.uk (Mike Cowley) writes:
>>In article <4udoi7$8...@snow.btinternet.com>,
>>Go and do something more interesting for an hour or so.
>>Drain, scrub/rinse with a shower, and repeat until you can see the bottom
>>of the bath.
>>Don't let your SO see the bath until you've cleaned it.
>Er, are you two talking about actually *cleaning* your cave clothes
>and equipment??!
>To each h[is|er] own, I guess. What a wierd world I live in!
>You could get extra mileage out of your washer, plumbing,
>significant other, and maybe septic tank if you just dried
>it all out and slammed it around against a willing tree until
>it's flexible again, then repack it.
washing machine. It will also settle out and lodge in plumbing/drain
pipes. Plumbers charge a lot of money to come to your house with
their roto-rooters. The cheapest and best way to clean cave equipment
is at a self-service car wash. Lay the stuff out and spray it off.
Hang ropes on the wall and spray them with water only.
The other option is to purchase a high-pressure washer, the kind
you use for cleaning houses or cars, and blast the dirt off your gear
at home. Small units like this can be purchased for less money than
it takes to buy a new washing machine and unclog your pipes.
Denzil J. Brown
In article <4up6sd$o...@sjx-ixn2.ix.netcom.com>, bxt...@ix.netcom.com
writes
>
>Washing and disinfecting your gear (especially coveralls) between
>caving trips helps to prevent bio-contamination of the speleological
>micro-environment. Studies have been done on this, and more is in
I must agree that after I have removed all the excess mud, etc in the
equipment washer (ie old bath outside with a hose) at the clubhouse.
I take it home and put all the gear (not metal) through the washing machine
(being single helps) with some disinfectant. followed by a normal wash
for furry suit, webbing and ropes.
While this may help the micro-enviroment it sure helps stop wetsuit rash
and other interesting micro-enviroments forming in the furry suit.
--
Denzil J. Brown
John Pybus
Barry Burn wrote:
>
> I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a scrubbing
> example, stuffing the lot in the washing machine. will it get all the mud
> and grit out of the ropes, sit harness etc, will it damage the gear, will
> it damage the machine?
Well last year I returned from college after a terms worth of caving and
put my fleece undersuit in my Mum's washing machine. The collected mud
and grit blocked the filter and when the door opened the machine hadn't
drained so flooded the floor.
Fortuantly, our washing machine is kept in a tile-floored outhouse, and
is still covered by its manufacturer's guarantee, so apart from a bit of
mopping and the Zanussi man having to come round and replace a couple of
bits, everything was okay and I survived.
I now use one of two methods of gear cleaning. One is to put my
furrysuit and thermal underwear into a college industrial washing
machine. It costs me 70p but the college pays if it damages the machine.
I then wash my oversuit (if I can face it), along with SRT gear and
harness in a college bath, using the shower attachment and standing well
back.
The other is to leave it all in a plastic bag, unwashed and undried,
until the next weekend when I go caving again and wish I didn't have to
put rancid wet gear on again.
John Pybus
Marty
John Pybus <john....@queens.ox.ac.uk> writes:
>Barry Burn wrote:
[...]
>The other is to leave it all in a plastic bag, unwashed and undried,
>until the next weekend when I go caving again and wish I didn't have to
>put rancid wet gear on again.
Yeah. That's the idea!
Seriously, does anyone have any (even pseudo-)data on whether
sticking a muddy rope into a washer and distributing all those
tiny grit particles deep into the core during the agitation
cycle actually *lengthens* the life of the rope?
I wouldn't put money against that being the case, but it seems
the best idea, given the uncertainty, would be to (assuming
you didn't just repell off of Acid Falls or into Petro Grotto,
of course) just let the equipment dry off and store it in bags
(except gloves--I *hate* rock-hard gloves) till the next trip.
_____Remember--Brown_is_Beautiful!______________________Marty
Walt Pirie
In article <4udoi7$8...@snow.btinternet.com>,
Barry...@btinternet.com (Barry Burn) wrote:
:I know the best way of cleaning your kit is the application of a
scrubbing
:brush or two and a lot of elbow grease. But, is there an easier way?
For
:example, stuffing the lot in the washing machine. will it get all
the mud
:and grit out of the ropes, sit harness etc, will it damage the gear,
will
:oversuit. Carrying a lot of mud (I mean LOTS), I've hung it up on
the
:washing line to see if the rain we are currently having will have any
:effect. Results after about an hour seem to indicate a stubbornm
refusal
:on the part of the mud to move.
A minor variation on some of the other posts. Surprised no one else
has suggested it.
I use a high pressure nozzle on my garden hose for any exterior gear,
like my caveralls, pack, wellies, etc. and leave it at that. It
doesn't get it spanking clean, but gets all the sweat out and most of
the mud. And it's still like putting on clean gear, not scuzzy,
smelly stuff. The only times I follow that up with the washing machine
is when I have to pack it with other stuff for a trip.
Polypros, furry suits, socks, etc. I clean in the washer, maybe with a
rinse in the tub first when it's been a really gloppy cave.
My second hand washer has not complained in 5 years so far.
Ropes are a different issue. I know they are controversial, but all I
ever do is run my ropes through a hose-attached PMI rope washer.
Walt
Jared Cuneo
Well I've honestly never heard anyone complain of rope life....seems
to me that our ropes last for around 4-6 years. But then as soon as
I get home, I take the hose to all my stuff then throw the rope
(in a mountaineers coil) into the tub with lukewarm water and 2 or 3
table spoons of Tide (regular Tide that is) and swish vigorously.
After this, drain, repeat, and let it sit on some towels while flipping
it every couple of hours in a dark place.
PS, be sure to rinse very well. It gives the rope a nice feel and
extends the life dramatically but you'll sure the hell wish you'd
put on another bar if you don't, 'specially if ya use steel.
As we all know, a dirty rope is much slower than a clean one...
and a dry, dirty rope is even slower ;)
JC
Underground Technologies
"The tail of the horse never raises without good reason."
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