Sneaker Cleaning 101

We all know sneakers and boots can get really dirty and smelly quickly. With an estimated 95% of footwear ending up in landfill every year, it’s time we start to care about our footwear more.

W’air is a handy cleaning device that is great for cleaning sneakers and breathing new life back into your footwear. It’s a brilliant gadget for a quick refresh, deep cleaning and spot stain removal. Our customers use w’air to offer a sneaker cleaning service in-store or to help clean shopfloor or returned stock. Many use it at home too, to clean their own footwear.

We don’t advise using a washing machine to clean sneakers. This can damage your sneakers and your washing machine and is also damaging to the environment.

Every part of the sneaker requires different cleaning processes to achieve the best results, so it's best to break down your cleaning into different sections; the uppers, laces, insoles and outer soles. You can use your w’air to clean each individual area of the sneaker, and it can be used on a variety of uppers including suede and mesh. Keep scrolling to see how.

Cleaning Sneaker Uppers

Every sneaker upper has its own process to ensure you are using the w’air effectively to get the best results.

It's unparalleled micro-cleaning technology ensures all fabrics are cleaned effectively from Mesh through to suede.

clean sneakers with the wair cleaning device

Canvas Trainers

It’s really easy to keep your canvas sneakers, like Converse or Vans, looking their best by regularly cleaning them.
CLEAN CANVAS
Mesh Sneakers

Mesh sneakers are some of the most popular styles at the moment, but they easily attract and absorb dirt.
CLEAN MESH
Leather Sneakers

Leather trainers can withstand more wear than canvas or mesh, but they should still be cleaned with care.
CLEAN LEATHER

Cleaning Laces and Preparing your Sneakers

The first thing you need to do is remove your laces from the sneakers. It is much more effective to clean your laces and sneakers separately.

Soak your laces in a bowl of water with 4 pumps of w’air detergent. You can get on with cleaning the rest of the trainers while these soak.
Once soaked, rub them together in the palms of your hands until the laces begin to foam up.
Lay your laces on a flat surface and hold the w’air wand 5cm away from the laces to allow the solution to soak into the fabric of the laces.
Replace the water and detergent in the w’air device with just cold water and repeat step 3 to rinse off any excess solution.
Leave the laces to air dry before putting them back in your sneakers.

Cleaning Sneaker Outer Soles

First, use a sneaker cleaning brush to loosen any loose dirt. Then hold the w’air wand as close as needed so that the pressure will remove any stubborn dirt from the outer sole and within the grooves. The w’air is so effective in this process, reaching places that a brush cannot.

You can repeat this step until all the dirt is removed.

Cleaning Insoles

To refresh your insoles, hold the w’air wand around 10cm away from the insole and quickly move the wand in small circular motions across the insole.

To deep clean insoles, use the pre-treatment solution before cleaning. Add 2 pumps to the insoles and leave for at least 30 minutes. Then fill the w’air with water and 2 pumps of detergent and hold the w’air wand against the insole rubbing vigorously in circular motions. Ensure you only do this for 5-6 seconds at a time to prevent pressure build-up.