You can spend thousands of dollars on the best tactical gear in the world. But their longevity depends on how you maintain them! The thing is, people are usually lazy when it comes to cleaning anything. But until you take care of your equipment, it will be unusable at some point, no matter how good it is.
This means that you will eventually have to buy yourself new products and these will cost you money. So for today we will try to help you keep your bank account green by giving you a guide on how to maintain your tactical gear and clothing for longevity. Let's move on to our first tip. Now let's see why it is important to maintain your equipment.
Why maintain your equipment?
You've probably heard the saying "take care of your gear and your gear will take care of you." But somehow, people rather neglect their equipment. In fact, most people just throw their gear somewhere until they need it again next time.
Exposure to the elements
But exposing your gear to sand, mud, rain, and dust isn't so good, as these elements create structural weaknesses that will become tears over time.
Salt exposure
Exposure to salt water is also something that happens and is even worse because salt water is extremely corrosive. By the way, you might not realize it, but salt exposure happens more than you think because your sweat already contains salt. On top of that, sweat will also start rotting at some point, due to all the organic matter your body loses through sweating. This will give your gear a pretty nasty smell.
1: Regular maintenance of tactical equipment and clothing
Burn the wires
First of all, using products made from fabric, some threads always come off over time. To solve this problem, it is better to burn them. Burning a wire will shorten it and create a molten part to prevent it from loosening further.
Clean Velcro Pads
On top of that, making sure your Velcro pads are clean is also essential for them to work properly, as we don't want our patches to get lost of course.
Remove mud and stains
If your equipment has dirt and dried mud on it, you can just use a soft brush to remove it. To remove dirt and stains, you can wash them with a cloth soaked in a mixture of water and a little technical fiber soap. If the stain is removed, it is better to remove the excess soap with a cloth soaked in clean water. Now, once your gear is really dirty or starting to smell, we'll move on to washing.
2: Wash tactical clothing
Pay attention to the temperature! When it comes to washing your shirts, pants, jackets, gloves, socks, etc., you want to wash them cold or hot from your washing machine, usually around 30°C. Never wash them hot, otherwise the colors and patterns will fade!
Left: Washed at 30 degrees Celsius (2 years of use) Right: Washed too hot (1 year of use)
What products to use?
In addition, for the washing of technical fibers, it is recommended to use only washing products specially designed for technical fibers to maintain the functionality and longevity of its products. But no matter what product you use, never use harsh chemicals, household products or fabric softeners because you will destroy the fibers.
Watch the cycle rate! (washing machine)
What can also destroy fibers over time is using programs with a high cycle rate. So you better avoid them and stick to low cycle programs.
After washing the clothes
After washing, be sure to spin your clothes more to get rid of all the excess moisture, because after that you will be letting your clothes dry the old fashioned way by hanging them on a rack. Do this out of direct sunlight, as UV light causes colors to fade. Never use a dryer, as this is also bad for the fibres. Ironing is also not recommended.
Waterproof your clothes
If we are talking about products that have a waterproof function, you will have to reapply this waterproof layer, just like with boots.
For this, 2 options exist: Either you wash the waterproof layer using your washing machine, or you use a spray that you apply after drying your clothes.
Always check the labels
Besides these tips, we always suggest that you keep your tags in a pocket of the garment.
3: Washing equipment
Now that we've learned the washing part of your clothes, let's take a look at the process of washing your plate carrier, belt, strap, backpack, etc. These types of products may not be machine washable. They must therefore be cleaned by hand. But before you start cleaning, you better make sure you double check that every piece of equipment is out and that for example your plates have been removed.
Steps for washing tactical gear:
1: Make a small bath mix with water and detergent. Be sure to remove dirt and stains with a cloth first, as previously explained, to avoid getting colored stains on your equipment.
2: After that, you can soak your equipment in this mixture.
3: Next you will soak it in clean water until all the soap has been removed.
4: Once done, just hang it up and let it dry somewhere out of direct sunlight. Again, UV light cannot break down color. Now, let's talk a bit about storage.
4: Storage of tactical gear and clothing
Storing your tactical gear is also important and no, that doesn't mean leaving it in the trunk of your car. Let it dry first. This means that after using your equipment, it is first necessary to let it dry after the game. For that, you want to hang it somewhere in a well-ventilated space out of direct sunlight.
Remove weight if possible
You also want to minimize the weight of your gear, so be sure to remove heavy gear like a radio and chargers. It is also recommended to take the plates out of your plate carrier as long as this is practical of course.
Proper storage
When your gear is dry, you can hang it somewhere in a closet until the next game or on a dedicated hanger.