Saturday, 6 August 2016

Extend The Life Of Your Walking Boots

By Harry Jonston


Just what is the ideal way to clean and protect your walking boots? Washing and caring for your walking footwear is a sure-fire method to extend the life of the hiking footwear. But with lots of different advice and varied products available on the market, just what is the best way to clean and protect your current walking footwear?

Firstly, remove the laces and insole from your boot. A lot of boots feature a removable insole just for this purpose. It helps to thoroughly air the boot, remove odour, and replacing the insoles in your shoes is yet another important factor for extending the life of your walking boots. Removing the boot laces helps you reach corners that are normally folded away in the boot's tongue. This allows a more thorough clean. Also, removing the laces lets you spot any damage and see whether they might need to be replaced.

After removing the laces and the insoles, use a brush and lukewarm running water to remove dirt from the walking boots. If they are very heavily soiled it may be necessary to use special boot cleaning products. These will help lift the dirt and clean the boot more effectively. Once the boots are clean, the leather will be in a state which means it is able to soak up water. Adding a water repellent spray whilst the shoe is still damp will help defend the leather from water. This is sprayed onto the shoe and, after being left to dry thoroughly, water will bead off. It is advised that shoes are left for 24 hours to dry.

Adding a water based cream to the shoe can help the leather maintain its natural softness. Without it, the leather of the walking boot may become brittle and crack. This can cause damage to your hiking boot which cannot be repaired. Cream is better than oils or greases which can clog the pores of the leather and affect the breathability. Leather which has been clogged with oil or grease performs more like rubber wellies.

After this treatment, provide the boots with lots of time to dry out. Leaving them on some sort of radiator or heater, in your car, beside an open fireplace or even on the back step in sunlight should really be avoided. These can all damage the walking boot. Keeping the boots confined or in an area of high humidity, inside the boot of your car or perhaps in your garage, for instance, makes it possible for your boots to go mouldy. Mould and mildew will not help your boots perform. Allow your Walking Boots to breathe and they'll continue to keep performing for you.

There have been many cases where I've heard people moan that their boots are disintegrating or the leather has become stiff and unpleasant to walk in. In each of those cases, this could have been prevented. If they had simply looked after their boots properly it would not have happened. It does not take a lot of effort or time, and the results are always positive. And it is so easy to extend the life of the boots and delay having to but a replacement.




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