My two sons play football. The team got new pants this year with built in pads. In the past, I have had the best luck getting out the grass and mud by pre-soaking them. With the new pants, the pads float, so the dirtiest parts (the knees) aren't in the water. Any suggestions on how to keep the pants submerged?
Get some big lead fishing weights, tie string or monofilament through their metal loops, and use clothespins to fasten to the front of the pants. The weights will cause the pants to float front down.
If you want to keep the pants submerged, you could put something heavy on top of them while they're soaking. I've got some 'floating' hand washables, and I put a full container of liquid laundry detergent on them. If you don't have that, you could fill a 2 liter soda bottle with water and use that.
Come to think of it, if you wanted to make sure the pants legs got really good and soaked, you could put a smaller soda or juice bottle (also filled with water) down inside the leg of the pants and that should weight them down while they're soaking.
Don't the pads come out of football pants? When I bought them for our son, the pads came out. It was a pain taking them in and out, but at least the pants got clean.
If your boys pants are white pretreat the pants with rug carpet cleaner like Resovle. Then even if the instructioins are not to bleach use one cup bleach, one cup dry dishwahing detergent to one gallon of very hot water and one cup of regular detergent. I usually doubled the recipe. Warning fumes are a bit strong. Let soak overnight or at least for four hours. Then wash as usual regular detergent. I they are colored used the dry detergent and spray and wash and rug cleaner then regular deterent. I have never gone wrong. I had been washing football pants for ten years and my recipe gave them the whitest pants on the fied. It didn't ruin the pads either. It's great for whitening sox as well. I used to get all the family's white sox and did a whole load. I would soak overnight then the next afternoon everyone had the whitest sox in town. Fyi My Mom used this recipe of bleach and dishwashing detergent with hot water way back in the seventies. She use to do the entire teams pants and sox. It does not yellow the pant at all. Since textures have changed over the years. Good Luck Maryann ps. tuck the pads inside the pants or inside some white sox. I know they float but if you put a towel or two in with everything they will be washed.
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