Can you wash gardening gloves in washing machine?
The method used for washing gardening gloves depends on the material they are made with. For example, the way a latex glove would be washed differs from the way a cotton glove will be washed. In this outline, we will look at all the details that you need to know about gardening gloves, how they are cleaned and how you can wash them using washing machine. First, let’s look at the reasons you should use a gardening glove in the first place.
Why should you wear gloves when gardening
- Gloves help to protect your hands from germs and dirt particles lodged in the soil. Gardens are sites of various bacterial strains and one can be seen in the poop of cats.
Working with gloves will prevent these things from hiding beneath the fingernails.
Also, in scenarios where there are injuries or bruises on one’s hands, they are protected from the invading bacteria or germs.
- The soil can contain any kind of item, from a glass shard to rocks to splinters—anything! It is recommended that one wears gloves when working his hands through the soil.
That way, one can protect one’s hands from bruises or cuts. Asides these sharp-mouthed items, the soil could also contain chemicals that are very toxic to the human health if ingested.
- Gardening for a long time without wearing gloves could leave the hands looking very rough and lacerated at multiple places.
Note that bruises or cuts across the skin are signs that the skin’s defense has been broken. That way, bacterial strains can easily get access into the person’s body.
- Sometimes, pollen or some other plant from the garden could cause rashes, allergies or some other skin issue if one comes in contact with them. That’s where gloves come to play.
They will prevent a scenario where the person’s skin is in direct contact with the allergy-inducing material.
- Wearing gloves while gardening will reduce the amount of cleaning that you have to do after gardening. You don’t have to bother about getting rid of sand particles from the lower crest of your fingernails.
You also don’t have to bother about treating some laceration or infection on your hands.
Garden gloves are made with different kinds of materials and they include latex, rubber, cotton, and nitrile gloves. Each material has a scenario where it can be used.
For example, when working your hands through the soil, it’d be wrong to wear gloves made out of cotton. Sharp objects could easily pierce through them.
Let’s see the cases where each of these materials are suitable;
Cotton gloves
Cotton is a very soft material that doesn’t offer any resistance to sharp objects. It only offers as much protection as a regular shirt wrapped around your hands.
You should only work with this kind of glove when you are doing simple chores in your garden. For example, when trimming branches, thinning from a seedling pot, carrying manure, etc.
For cotton gloves, work with the procedures listed below;
- Start by dumping them in a bucket of soapy water. That way, the sand particles lodged within the material can be removed first.
- As a result of the stubborn nature of the stains, you may have to run a scrub brush against the gardening gloves before tossing it into your washing machine to wash them.
If the stains are too stubborn, you can immerse them in a solution of vinegar or bleach for about 20 minutes.
- You should also ensure that you wash these gloves as soon as you are done gardening. That way, you can prevent the stains from taking on a more permanent form or from leaving marks.
- When you are done washing, hang the gloves somewhere with plenty of air and sunlight so that they can easily dry.
Nitrile gloves
These are gloves whose interiors—the parts that face your hands—are smeared with a chemical that makes them stand the test of time. The inner coating is also responsible for the elasticity noticed in the gloves.
You should only use gloves made out of nitrile when you’d only be working with your gardening tools and machinery.
For nitrile gloves, follow the procedures below when cleaning;
- Create lather with your regular dish washing liquid. The use of detergents is not recommended here, and that is because of the chemical coating of the gloves.
- Wash the gloves with the soapy water.
- Rinse them with under a stream of clean water.
- Set the gloves in a place with plenty air and moderate sunlight.
Leather gloves
These gloves are resistant to water or moisture and so, your hands are kept safe and dry throughout your gardening procedure.
You should wear gloves made from leather when dealing with plants or flowers that have splintered ends. You don’t have to worry about seeing cuts or wounds on your hands.
You also don’t have to worry about bacterial infections.
There are different kinds of leather gloves available. Some of them cover just the hands while some go way up to the elbow. The ones that cover just the hands are great for operations that go on at the surface.
But then, when you have to work your hands through a bed of prickly plants, you’d need to work with the longer gloves.
Rubber gloves
These gloves offer the same level of protection as leather gloves. They are resistant to water and will easily protect your hands from sharp-mouthed items.
You can wear rubber gloves when you need to work your hands through the soil. They prevent the incidence(s) of lacerations and cuts across the hand.
These gloves protect your skin from lacerations and germs but then, if they aren’t cleaned, the very issue you’re trying to avoid could just occur.
For example, imagine you trying to wear a leather glove whose outer surface is coated with dirt and germs.
While trying to put on such gloves, your fingers come in contact with those germs and thereby cause some other issue.
When washing your rubber or leather gloves, follow the procedures listed below;
- Start by using a scrub brush to scrape off the dirt particles that have adhered to the surface of the gloves. If you do not want the brush marks to show, you could also use your hand or a piece of foam.
- Leather or rubber gloves are best cleaned with saddle soaps. You’d find them in stores near you. To work with it, get a moist towel and then, use it to work the soap unto the glove’s outer surface.
- Go through with the cleaning until you cannot see any signs of dirt on the surface.
- Use another moistened towel to clean off the soapy feel from the outer surfaces of the gloves. Ensure that you never immerse the gloves fully in water or set them under a stream of running water.
- Hang the gloves in a place with plenty of air and moderate sunlight. Note that plenty of sunlight could cause an expansion of rubber gloves.
- When the gloves are dried, use oils to polish their surfaces. Oils that are good for this purpose include linseed oil, mink oil, etc. They make the gloves look radiant again.
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