How to Clean Baseball Caps and Fitted Hats
28 AUG 2022
LIFE
- Cloth
- Soap
- Mild laundry or dishwashing detergent
- Towel
1 Why Should We Hand Was Baseball Caps?
If your clothes are an extension of yourself, a sweaty hat doesn't send the right message. Giving your baseball cap a proper cleaning while maintaining its structure can be a challenge.
Popular advice suggests tossing it in the dishwasher or washing machine, but the end result can be a shrunken hat that will make you feel like you dropped the ball. However, a good scrub or hand washing under running water can be all it takes to remove the stains left behind by a long day.
2 Hand Washing Tutorial:
- Start by running warm water in the sink.
- Gently rub the hat's sweat stains with a soapy cloth or with your hands for a hand washing.
- Rinse off the cap with cool water to remove all the soap.
- Air dry the hat where it can get plenty of air flow.
3 Soak in the Sink Tutorial:
- Start by running cool water in the sink.
- Place or adjust the stopper in the sink to fill it with cool water, a couple of inches deep.
- Fill up the sink with a mixture of cool water and mild laundry or dish washing detergent.
- Submerge your hat in the sink for 10 seconds.
- Rinse off your cap with cool water, making sure all soap bubbles wash away.
- Use a towel to absorb the excess water by rolling the hat slowly up and down the towel.
- Dry it off as much as possible, and then wear your hat until it is completely dry so it keeps the correct form.
4 Bonus: Clean Baseball Hat Spot Stains Using a Toothbrush
Bleach alternative cleaning solutions, like The Laundress, suggest using a toothbrush to apply their mixed spot stain remover. You mix your solution, then scrub the stained spots using a circular motion with a toothbrush.
So, if you have a collection of fitted hats with sweat stains like I do. Use a cold to neutral temperature clean water soak to release the dirty areas. Some suggest dish soap, if you need an alternative cleaning method.
After twenty minutes, I hang the hats in the shower and come back a few hours later for those hard to get spot stains along the sweatband. The extra care to release the grime will keep your headband and hat collection looking new.
- Check the cleaning instructions on your hat's tag before washing it.
- Submerging your hat in water can alter the its shape and size, so try hand washing first.
- Do not use bleach or products that contain bleach alternative, because these can stain your hat.
- Do not wash your hat in the dishwasher or washing machine -- the hot water can shrink the size of your cap.
- Drying your hat in the dryer under high heat can also shrink your hat.
- You can use a wool detergent if your fitted cap is made of wool.