Cleaning & caring for umpire equipment

[CLBuffalo]

I could not find a thread on this.

Just wondering how other umpires clean and care for their equipment.

What do you do when you have a day or more between games?

What do you do when you are doing a tournament, have done a plate and base and only have a 1 game break before doing another plate and base?

I know there are some who have enough shirts and pants to do several games a day. I think most of us don't have several pairs of shoes (plate and/or base), leg guards, chest protectors, masks, etc.

If you don't umpire all year how do you store your equipment?

[JEL]

Originally Posted by CLBuffalo

I could not find a thread on this.

Just wondering how other umpires clean and care for their equipment.

What do you do when you have a day or more between games?

What do you do when you are doing a tournament, have done a plate and base and only have a 1 game break before doing another plate and base?

I know there are some who have enough shirts and pants to do several games a day. I think most of us don't have several pairs of shoes (plate and/or base), leg guards, chest protectors, masks, etc.

If you don't umpire all year how do you store your equipment?

I clean the gear with laundry detergent and a brush, then hose down.
In tournies, a liberal usage of Fabreze, or something similar helps. If changing facilities are the car, I leave stuff on top of car to dry/air out. Shoes get a brushing if dusty, if muddy use a spray bottle of water and paper towels, then the liquid polish will dry between games.

For storage (only store about a month or so) I just clean everything and hang up in a closet that is dedicated solely to umpire gear.

[Skahtboi]

Originally Posted by JEL

...a closet that is dedicated solely to umpire gear.

I, too, have one of those. The wife made sure of it!!!!

[I Ump 2]

Buff -

I only do weekend tournys & HS (Fall). Some things that I do (and I'm cheap uh frugal)

Hats - I always spray my hats down with water from a spray bottle to wash the salt stains off after the game or during break (3 man rotation)- they don't look nasty & I store them in one of those $4.00 ball cap things you can use in your dishwasher - helps to keep their shape

Shirts - I do the same as above to get rid of salt stains and hang them from my truck or on a fence with a clothes hanger - then I spray Fabreeze on them. The 1.5 hour break the shirt is dry. I do use at least 2 shirts a day if not more (3) - ITS AN INVESTMENT

Pants - I switch out pants during my off game - so the waist airs out & brush off the legs with a dry cloth napkin or towel (we use gray slacks) on break

Chest Protector - I hang it up with a hanger to get good circ. to dry and spray Fabreeze on that also.

Shoes - Good polish every morning & then a spray of water and a good wipe with a rag after that &/or more polish prior to the 'ship. Both plate & base.

Between Tourny's - I always put my equipment back in the same bin prior to leaving the field - this way I know where it is ALL the time. I wash my own uni's and also put in a bin and place in my truck - so I know I have all my stuff. Since I began this ritual - I never worry if I left something home since most of my tourny's are 2 hours away from my house.

Winter Storage - put all stuff in plastic & covered tubs so you don't find out until spring that mice were living in your base shoes - now you know why the plastic bins LOLOLOLOL

I am sure there are other guys with more expirence that can offer better/additional tips.

[wadeintothem]

a couple of times a year I use a water hose and a bucket of dish soap and clean the protector mask guards real good and hang dry them. Other times I do a "wipe down" as needed.

Normal care like the above for the hats shirts etc during tourney weekends.

[IRISHMAFIA]

Last year I ran into umpires who wore hats on which the ASA letters were particularly "dirty". I finally realized that it was the pads from their masks which stained the letters and the only way I could figure out how that happened was the umpire was using some type of polish or oil on the pads.

Anyone else ever run into something like this?

[wadeintothem]

Originally Posted by IRISHMAFIA

Last year I ran into umpires who wore hats on which the ASA letters were particularly "dirty". I finally realized that it was the pads from their masks which stained the letters and the only way I could figure out how that happened was the umpire was using some type of polish or oil on the pads.

Anyone else ever run into something like this?

I have an older hat and I cant get the letters clean. I washed it in a washing machine, scrubbed them and still they stay dirty. I think it just comes from the long weekends of sweat/rinse/dry for tourneys because I dont use polish or oils on my mask, just soap and water occasionally. I dont wear it anymore but I had hoped to salvage the hat and gave it the college try.

[bkbjones]

Originally Posted by wadeintothem

I have an older hat and I cant get the letters clean. I washed it in a washing machine, scrubbed them and still they stay dirty. I think it just comes from the long weekends of sweat/rinse/dry for tourneys because I dont use polish or oils on my mask, just soap and water occasionally. I dont wear it anymore but I had hoped to salvage the hat and gave it the college try.

I have VERY CAREFULLY used a bleach pen on the white letters of one cap that was really bad and it worked. It was risky, I think, because the bleach could have bled. ;Course the loss would have been what, $12. However, they do make laundry pens with concentrated detergent that could get the muck off the letters.