How do you wash your hats ?

Soap and water on an as needed basis.

 

With a lot of sweating, my hats get salt stained, so when they need cleaning I'll wear 'em in the shower, clean with a soft bristle nail brush and some bodywash, and hang to dry on the shower spout. I also have one of those cap cages that go in the washing machine or dishwasher, and it works too, but I just haven't used it as often.

 

:laundry: in the washer, gentle cycle, with Woolite, hang to dry.works well

 

Depends on the kind of hat. For ballcaps, I use a frame that holds the shape of the cap, and either put it in the clothes washer, or dish washer. Then I let it dry, in the frame.

For booney hats, I wash by hand and dry inside, and hope that they don't shrink.

Felt hats (cowboy, fedora) I have professionally cleaned and steam-blocked. Getting harder and harder to find people that can do that right.

Straw hats (cowboy, Panama) I wipe with a damp cloth.

 

That's what I do most of the time. Some I just throw in the washing machine.

 

I second the disk washer for cloth hats. I normally take them out before they reach the air dry / plate warmer cycle and let them drip dry.

 

Bucket of hot water with Dawn dishwasher detergent. Leave overnight. Rinse well the next day and air dry.

 

My boonie-type hats (Tilley, Columbia, Mountain Hardwear, and Outdoor Research) all go in the washing machine on gentle cycle or get the bucket-and-plunger treatment. Then I either put them on a towel on a flat surface or put the crown over an empty coffee can to dry. If they shrink, I stretch them by sticking a knee in the crown and pulling on the brim a little at a time until they fit again.

My watch cap goes in the washing machine and dryer. My Jeep cap goes in the washing machine and gets air-dried. I really need a cage for it so I can put it in the dryer.

 

never had any problems with using the dishwasher

 

handwash my OR and custom boonie hat in the sink then air dry on the line.

 

I litterally just throw em in with the rest of the clothes. A well worn and loved hat is a respected item.

 

I tried that with my favorite hat once. When it came out of the washer, it just wasn't a hat anymore. Had to go bareheaded for six months until I could replace it. The new one gets washed by hand.

 

as a 25 year + appliance repairman DON'T WASH YOUR CAP/HAT IN THE DISHWASHER!

wash it inside a pillowcase held closed with a rubber band if you don't have a stainless steel tub in your washer.
a porcelin or plastic tub will act like sandpaper & wear you cap out prematurely.

I have a massive head and can't afford to let my caps shrink any. so to dry I take it out of the washer, put an XXL bandana over my head
then put the cap on and wear it until dry. that way it will not shrink and it will keep it's shape.

 

God takes care of it for me. It's called rain.

 

This. The only caps that I wash are the winter ones (beanies and the like).

 

I wait for rain also

 

The dishwasher works most of the time for me.

 

Ok, the first couple of times when people said "dishwasher" I thought they actually just meant "washing machine" (the kind that washes laundry), but it has been mentioned so many times now that I've got to ask... Do some of you really put clothing items in the dishwasher instead of a washing machine? Why?

 

It doesn't have an agitator (just a guess) and all the problems they can cause.