Clean Your Shoes In The Dryer With This Genuis Hack (And No Damage)

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Sometimes getting off on the right foot means making sure your shoes look good. But when it comes to footwear, the laundering process isn't so cut and dry. Of course, you want to use the only solution you need to eliminate funky shoe odors. Simply tossing your kicks into the dryer means they'll tumble about, getting the laces all tangled up and potentially damaging more delicate parts. Similarly, once it gets a bit hot in there, your shoes' insoles could shrink or otherwise warp. That's why it's smart to remove both the laces and the insoles before tossing them in.

And the most crucial rule of heating things up is to thoughtfully scan the care label. While footwear made from synthetic materials such as nylon or polyester is more likely to tolerate low heat, leather can crack under heat, and suede can stiffen up or warp. And when it comes to running shoes, performance features like gel inserts, air pockets, and memory foam can become damaged as they tumble, while the adhesive used to construct them isn't always designed to handle high heat exposure, meaning a run through the dryer could cause them to come unglued.

So before you take that first step, inspect the label. You're specifically looking for the dryer symbol — a square with a circle inside. One dot inside the circle means the piece can tolerate low heat, two dots is for medium, and three dots is for high. If the circle is filled in, you can still tumble dry, but without any heat at all. But if the circle is crossed out, definitely do not toss your shoes in the dryer. But if you're clear to give it a dry run, follow these tricks.

While some like it hot, your shoes definitely do not. High heat is a solution for drying shoes you want to avoid at all costs, instead relying on a delicate or air dry cycle or setting it to use no heat or low heat. 

Once you've removed the laces and insoles, they can be washed separately and then air-dried. Because insoles can tend to trap moisture and prolong the drying process, use a towel to soak up any water before setting them aside in a warm environment.

The last step is to toss them in a mesh laundry bag. Since shoes can get damaged as they scrape against the side of your dryer's drum (or, alternatively, damage the dryer itself), the bag serves as a layer of protection. It reduces the friction inside the dryer while still allowing the air to do its thing. An option like Muchfun's Durable Honeycomb Mesh Laundry Bags will work, but you can also use a pillowcase in a pinch.

Another genius way to machine dry your sneakers with zero damage is to knot the laces so that you can hang them inside the drum. Shut the knotted part on the outside of the dryer so that the door holds them in place, preventing them from moving around and shaking things up.