Science & Outdoors
Outdoor Edventures: Tip of the week: How to get that funky smell out of your shoes
Science & Outdoors Reporter
Have you experienced the trials and tribulations, the frustration, the loss of friends, the lightheadedness due to the odor emanating from your beloved kicks? Well, I have. When it comes to getting the funk out of any shoe, from sport sandals to hiking boots and climbing shoes, I am here to save the day!
Most often, the smell comes from bacterial growth due to constant moisture soaking into your shoes from weather, water sports or sweaty feet. There are numerous ideas and strategies to rid your shoes of such a smelly debacle. Everything from storing your shoes in the freezer, which could present some issues, especially if the original shoe funk symptom was loss of friends, to deodorizing with dryer sheets and the most obvious, foot spray.
Personally, I have used a mixture of one gallon of water and half to one cup of vinegar to soak the smell out of my water sport sandals and running shoes. Rinse with soap and water after soaking for 12 to 24 hours. The variability of time and concentration depends on the intensity of the funk! If using something that stinks, like vinegar, to cure another stink worries you, I also read a suggestion to use one cup of salt instead of vinegar and some lemon juice. The vinegar solution worked well, but you have to repeat it every month or so if you are wearing the shoes daily.
If you are looking for a more powerful treatment, you could also try an isopropyl alcohol and water or a Lysol and water solution. I’m sure both options would take care of the smell, but make sure you rinse the shoes very well after the soak because these solutions seem less feet-friendly than salt or vinegar. Don’t use any of these solutions on leather!
