Dealing with your dirty hunting clothes after coming back from a long hunt can leave you clueless. Most hunters are not even aware that how much it matters to properly clean and store their clothes.
However, we will be happy to guide you learn the best way to wash and store hunting clothes. It’s quite important as you don’t want the wild animal to be aware of your existence.
So, let’s make you undetectable today-
Best Way to Wash and Store Hunting Clothes- One Step at a Time
Several wild animals have special smelling abilities that help them to identify another being.
This god gifted ability has helped a lot of animals to defend themselves. Also, it helps the wild animals to find their food from a distance.
A proper wash and store will help you to stay undetectable from the wild animals. Even it can save you from becoming the prey of the predators.
Washing the Hunting Clothes
The hunting clothes need a completely different kind of treatment than your everyday cloth. Most of the hunters who are just getting started are not often aware of it at all.
Let’s find out what you’re supposed to keep in mind when you need to wash hunting clothes-
Getting the Right Detergent
Detergents that contain UV brighteners and a distinct scent are a NO GO for the hunters as most of the wild animals are UV sensitive.
UV brighteners make you look sharp which might help your prey to detect you and make a run. Perfumes on your cloth might also help preys with sharp smelling ability to run away.
Detergents labeled as “eco-friendly” or “natural” usually don’t contain brighteners. It’s wise to always check the labels before you choose one.
However, there are detergents in the market that are meant and formulated for military uniforms.
Militaries use them because enemy night vision equipment can not detect them. These detergents do not radiate UV brighteners from the fabric.
No wild animal will be able to detect and no predators will get your trace.
Laundry Techniques
Grabbing the right laundry detergent for the hunting clothes is just the first step. We have a few other tips for you while you’re doing the laundry:
- Ensure that the dryer and washer both are thoroughly cleaned. We don’t want any fabric softener or scented detergent leftover while cleaning the hunting clothes with the right detergent.
- If you’re hand washing your hunting clothes, ensure that you’re doing it in a large tub or sink. Handwashing is a great way to clean the hunting clothes because family washers can contain residues or fumes of the wrong detergent for your hunting clothes.
- A cup of baking soda is enough to take care of any odors. When you’re about to do the final rinse, add a cup of baking soda with the water.
- Consider air-drying on outdoor clothesline. You can store it right in a plastic sealed bag right after drying if you wish to keep it away from the odors of your house.
- If your fabricated gears need a wash, we would recommend you to use the same type of detergent that you use on the hunting clothes.
- Regular wash can help you stop bad odor from setting on the fabric fibers.
- Stay a mile away from applying fabric softener on your hunting gears.
- When you’re handling the garments, wear gloves. This won’t allow the scent to transfer to the outer layers.
Storing the Clothes
You can’t just wrap your dried up hunting clothes and throw them inside the closet. Storing them is as important as cleaning them.
Be Ready for the Next Hunting Season
Being ready for the future won’t do you any harm, would it? Well, you can keep your game up by sorting your clothes for the next season.
This will keep you one step ahead so that next season, you can start your hunt without wasting your time choosing the outfit.
If you can store them according to the seasons in marked bags, you can just easily grab them and hit the road when the hunting season starts.
Repair or Replace (If Needed)
It’s very normal if your hunting clothes or gears get torn on the hunt. But hunters often forget to check and repair them. This can lead you to trouble in the rough weather.
Moreover, the clothes might often need replacing. Shrinked in size, faded camo, tough tear, and whatsoever. Observe the damage and then decide if you’re going to fix it or replace it.
If you need replacing, it’s ideal to purchase any hunting material in the first few months of your off-season. You’ll get all the deal-breaker offers on hunting gears at that time.
Store in the Right Receptacles
You need to keep the hunting clothes totally separated from your regular clothes. Because the regular clothes might make it all scented that we are supposed to avoid in the first place.
You can store them using plastic containers or a bag to keep them scent-free. Keep the container or bag separated from your regular clothes. Store them in a closet that you won’t have to open frequently.
Keeping them in your shed or garage might not the be best decision. These places have their own distinct smell that can be absorbed by any fabric.
However, if you wish to always stay one step ahead, you can use a simple trick. Place pine needles, cedar chips, or naturally scented wafers inside your hunting gears and clothes.
This simple hack will allow your gears and clothes to smell like the fresh nature when you will wear them in the next hunting season.
Conclusion
Your hunting clothes help you deal with the environment in the wild. It’s important that you take it in your account seriously.
Our duty was to show you the best way to wash and store hunting clothes. Whether you’ll follow our guidance or not, is totally on you. You won’t be disappointed, that’s the least that we can assure you.
FAQ
How often should you wash your hunting clothes?
You should wash your undergarments or the first layer of your clothing after each hunt. In case of outer layers – your jacket or camouflage clothes – clean them when they are needed.
How do you get the smell out of hunting clothes?
Washing your hunting clothes with appropriate scent-free detergent will draw your body scent out of your clothes. But, after cleaning them, you should be careful so that they don’t absorb additional scent. You should dry then carefully using electric dryer or use scent-killing dryer-strips for that. In addition, storing your clean hunting clothes is also crucial which I’ve already mentioned earlier.
What type of laundry detergent is best to avoid when washing hunting clothes?
Obviously, you should use scent-free detergent for washing your hunting clothes. Also, you should avoid UV detergents, as most animals will easily identify you for your unusually bright presence.