How to Clean a Baseball Cap

Baseball caps get daily wear and end up really grungy over a period of time. Here are tips to clean off those sweat stains and restore your cap to wearable condition.

Things You'll Need

• plastic cap washer cage
• washing machine or dishwasher
• a sunny place

Instructions

1. Some people like their baseball caps with a vintage look. In that case, just wear it until it falls apart. Don't worry about cleaning it.

2. If your cap is an older, collectible cap, take a look at the link below for special treatment for those. Wearing an irreplaceable cap only on special occasions will prevent it from getting scruffy enough to require washing.

3. 

   To wash the average, grubby ball cap, get one of those plastic cages that cost about $5. They are available online or at discount stores like Wal-Mart. Search the words "cap washer."
   It will help the cap keep its shape when you run it through the washing machine or dishwasher.

4. 

   The washing machine has drawback with the agitation sometimes breaking the plastic cap cage. Without the cage, your cap gets quite a workout and can lose its shape.
   In the top rack of the dishwasher, the cap stays motionless with the detergent and water cascading over it. Don't put it in with excessively greasy or tomato coated dishes. An average load of dishes won't hurt the cap.

5. Remove the cap from the dishwasher before the drying cycle starts. The heat might shrink the cap. Don't put a cap in the clothes dryer for the same reason.

6. Put the cap (still in the plastic frame) out in the sun if it's a white cap. The sun provides bleaching for the cap, making it even whiter. For dark or brightly colored caps, dry it in the frame, but away from sunlight to prevent fading.

7. Alternate ideas for cleaning a cap:
   *Use Woolite and a brush to wash it in the sink.
   *Soak it in a bucket with detergent for several days, up to a week.
   *Wear it into the shower and soap it up with hand soap.
   *Spray the dirty spots with a spot cleaner.
   *Take it to a dry cleaners.

8. If you have umpteen caps and this one just won't clean up, you may have to retire it. Toss it in the trash can or hold a ceremonial burning for a really favorite cap. The next time you have a campfire, add the cap to it and then tell some stories of the great times you had wearing it. (I found this idea online)

Tips & Warnings

• You can spray the cap before the first wearing with a product like Scotchgard.

Resources

• Site with Tips for Cleaning Older Caps
• Source for baseball cap cage and related products