People love to wear different types of shoes with fluorescent colors. They wear it with socks or without socks. The most important question arises how to get mildew smell out of the shoes? You can’t bear the mildew smell of anyone’s shoe. You need to take care of your shoes so that it does affect your visitors.
Firstly, we need to know how mildew smell occurs in shoes. When moisture is formed due to perspiration of the feet, the fungus grows which gives out this foul smell. It may also get wet due to rain, water sports, etc. It gets embarrassing when you wear such shoes and go out in public places where you have to open your shoes.
It is said that your shoes depicts your character. So, if your shoes give out a bad smell then it gives a bad impression to the other person. Mildew smell can make you feel uncomfortable and you might also lack confidence as you will become conscious about your shoe and its smell. The way you care for your clothes, you should also care for your shoes. It is the shoe that completes your dressing for the day.
Some Steps You Need to Follow to Keep Mildew Smell Away from Your Shoes. They Are:
- Wash the shoes at regular intervals after reading the manufacture’s manual. According to the manual you can wash the shoes either in the washing machine or by soaking it in warm water. Wash out the soap and keep it aside to dry. For leather shoe, mix a part of water with a part rubbing alcohol and with the help of a cloth the shoe using that mixture.
- Put ½ cup baking soda inside shoes and leave it overnight. It is a deodorizer which will absorb the mildew smell. You can use this for any shoes.
- In case of wet shoes, use newspaper to soak the water and remove the odor. After crumbling the newspaper, put it inside the shoes and let it dry completely.
- Charcoal can also be used to eliminate the mildew smell from shoes by filling it in a sock and keeping it inside the shoes.
- Vinegar is also helpful in getting rid of the foul smell from the shoes. You just need to spray some vinegar on the shoes and set them to dry. This can’t be used on leather shoes.
- You can also put a tea bag inside shoes to get rid of the mildew smell.
- Put peels of orange or grape or lemon inside to shoes to remove the bad smell.
You can also follow some points so that mildew can be prevented. You should keep your shoes in a dry and ventilated area, if it gets wet you should let it dry so that the moisture is fully absorbed, clean your shoes frequently to get rid of dirt and germs silica sachets can be used to absorb the moisture in the shoes. At least keep 2 pairs of shoes so that you can switch and use.
For protecting leather shoes the technique used to get out the mildew smell is different. It depends on the durability of the leather.
To protect and prevent mildew smell from leather shoes some instructions should be followed. Check the inhaling pores by putting gloves, long sleeves shirt and a mask inside the shoes. Keep it outside and start brushing the shoes to get rid of all the dust inside the shoes. After cleaning the shoes properly, with a soft cloth wipes a mixture of water and vinegar in equal proportion of the surface of the shoe.
You can also buy/ purchase certain products that absorb the moisture and keep your shoes free from mildew smell. You can also make your own dehumidifier with the help of charcoal bricquettes which helps in the removal of excess moisture from shoes. Rotating the shoes and keep in the sun to let it dry can also help in preventing the foul smell.
You can also remove the foul odor by keeping the shoes in the freezer wrapped in plastic for 24 hours. Mildew smell of suede leather or nubuck leather can be removed with vinegar and water, but as they are high quality leathers they need special treatment. Before trying any of the above tips apply the solution on a small area to know how it will respond. Mildew is dangerous for leathers as it might discolor the leather.
So, we should never try drying the leather by force as heat will result in discoloration. Wet the spot every time you clean the leather as it might leave a spot behind. After the leather gets dried up, to bring the color and softness of the leather back brush with stiff bristle and apply some leather conditioner. It’s not necessary to apply leather water conditioner on every leather shoe, but specifically apply on suede and nu-buck leather. If the odor still persists, then you need to continue the cleaning process until the outdor gets away.
Now I guess it is clear to you how you can get rid of mildew smell from shoes. It is really important to take care of your shoes as it might embarrass you in front of your family, friends, guests or any unknown person. This can ruin your day at the office too. You can try different methods which will help to get the smell out, but with that you should always keep your shoes in the sunlight as it acts as a natural moisture absorber.
You should not have just one pair of shoes as you can’t take care of the shoes properly. Make sure when you wear socks they should be washed daily so that the sweat of the foot doesn’t leave any moisture in the shoes generating foul smell.
So, if this article has helped you in answering your question do like it and for any suggestions feel free to comment below. Happy reading.
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