When you initially purchased your wetsuit you probably never imagined how hard it would be to clean. Or how bad it could smell. You can not just throw it in the washing machine and dryer (no matter how tempting that may be sometimes). They do make wetsuit cleaners and soap products but, those are expensive. Those products are also harsh on the environment. Luckily, Vinegar works great for cleaning wetsuits, is cheap, and is safe for the environment.
Why Is Cleaning A Wetsuit Important?
If you do not clean your wetsuit it will smell fast. Whether you use your wetsuit in freshwater or saltwater your wetsuit will be a breeding ground for bacteria and mold to grow. The bacteria and mold will make the wetsuit smell fast plus you do not want to wear a molding smelly wetsuit.
A clean wetsuit does not mean you have to spend hours cleaning it and use expensive products either. You can just use water and Vinegar which will take the smell out of the wetsuit and prevent mold and bacteria from growing.
For the best results, it is best to clean the wetsuit as soon as possible. Do not let it sit in a cold dark garage for a few days before cleaning it. That will just help mold and bacteria grow and when you do clean it then it will smell even worse.
If you follow these three easy steps it should not take you long to have a clean wetsuit that will be ready for you for the next time that you need to use it.
Step One: Rinse The Wetsuit With Water
If you are using your wetsuit when swimming in the ocean you especially will want to rinse off all of the saltwater. The salt build-up is not good for the wetsuit and over time can damage the suit and it may not last as long as you would like.
If you are using your wetsuit in fresh water it is still just as important to rinse off your wetsuit as soon as possible when you are done using it since there may have been algae growing in the water you were swimming in.
The easiest way to rinse off a wetsuit is to just grab a hose and spray it off, but if that is not an option then fill up a bathtub and soak the wetsuit in the bathtub for a few minutes then drain the water.
This should rinse off the wetsuit enough so you can move on to step two.
Step Two: Soak The Wetsuit in Distilled Water
If you have a bathtub available, then fill up the bathtub with warm water. Use enough water so that the wetsuit will be completely submerged in the water. Once it is submerged in water then get a couple of cups of Vinegar and add that to the bathtub water.
Mix the water and Vinegar around thoroughly. If the harsh smell of the Vinegar bothers you then you can try to add some essential oils to help with the smell.
Let the wetsuit soak for a few minutes to hours depending on how dirty or smelly your wetsuit is. If you did not clean your wetsuit right away and it smells bad then use more Vinegar and, let it sit in the warm bathtub mixture longer. The Vinegar will kill the bacteria and prevent the mold from growing which should take out the smell.
If you do not have a bathtub that is okay. Get a large bucket or buy a small kiddy pool and follow the same steps. If using a bucket still try your best to submerge the wetsuit as best as possible and you can use less Vinegar since it is a smaller amount of water you will be using.
Depending on the condition and smell of the wetsuit try to just use one cup to start with when using a bucket. You can always add more if you feel like you need more if the wetsuit still smells.
Can You Wash a Wetsuit in a Washing Machine?
Step Three: Fold In Half And Hang Up To Dry
Once you are done soaking the wetsuit then you can take it out of the bathtub, kiddy pool, bucket, or whatever you found to soak your wetsuit in. Once you take it out then you can fold the wetsuit in half by the waist of the wetsuit and hang it up to dry. A closet line would work best for this but, anyway that you can fold it in half and hang it up will work well.
You can also flip your wetsuit inside out to help it dry from the inside faster as well. Once the outside is clean then flip the wetsuit inside out and fold it in half again and hang until dry from the inside.
Be careful that you do not leave your wetsuit in the sun for too long. The harsh UV rays can damage the wetsuit over time if exposed to the UV rays for too long. Keep an eye on it and once it is dry make sure that you bring it inside or out of the sunlight.
The outside air and sunshine would be the easiest way to do this but, if the weather does not allow you to do this then you can hang it inside as well. Your house may smell like Vinegar if you have to hang it up inside but, that is much better than the smell of a molding wetsuit.
If the smell of the Vinegar does bother you then you can try essential oils again at this step. Get a cotton ball and put a few drops of your favorite essential oil on a cotton ball. Then spread the cotton ball with the essential oil on it over the wetsuit. This should help alleviate some of the smell from the Vinegar.
Easy To Clean
Unfortunately cleaning a wetsuit is not as easy as throwing it in the washing machine, but it does not require too much work either. You will not be stuck cleaning your wetsuit all day so try to do it as soon as possible so that you do not have a lot of mold and bacteria growing on the wetsuit.
Wetsuits can smell fast! So cleaning your wetsuit shortly after you are done will help prevent you from being stuck in a really smelly situation.
You could go buy expensive wetsuit cleaners that are bad for the environment. But why do that when you can just run to the grocery store and pick up some Vinegar?
Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal or medical advice. Please consult a legal expert or medical professional to address your specific needs.