I remember there being a thread about this but I can't seem to find it....

Anyway, my helmet stinks so bad it's got me wondering if I have a pH imbalance. I took it gokarting and sweated about 1/3 of my body weight into it. When I brought it home I forgot to take it out of the bag to air it out and the sweat marinated in there for a couple of days. When I took the helmet out of the bag I nearly passed out from the funk and easily decided I wasn't going to ride that day.

How can I clean the stink out? It's a fairly new helmet otherwise I would just toss it, yeah it stinks that bad. It's an Arai Quantum F, so the lining doesn't come out.

Lysol soak? Frebreeze the hell out of it? Plain ol' soap and water? Throw it in the dryer on a tray with a couple of strategically placed dryer sheets?

Halp please.

Thanks.

 

Motorcyclist are supposed to stink... whats wrong with you younger gens

 

Stinking of gasoline and exhaust fumes I'm OK with.

Having B.O. head is not the best conversation starter with the ladies.

"Younger gens"?!?!?! I'm 34!

 

Have you tried using one of those "odor killers" products? Maybe that will work. And that's the reasons why when I always arrive from a ride, I let the helmet air for some hours or the entire night before packing it up.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by !xobile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">"Younger gens"?!?!?! I'm 34! </TD></TR></TABLE>

To Schu, everyone is young

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by !xobile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Stinking of gasoline and exhaust fumes I'm OK with.

Having B.O. head is not the best conversation starter with the ladies.

"Younger gens"?!?!?! I'm 34! </TD></TR></TABLE>


Hahahaha.... point taken.

And yes... 34 is young

 

"Odor killer"? Like....the kind you spray in shoes? Hmmmm. Hell at this point I'd try anything.

Yeah I totally spaced. Normally I don't sweat when I ride so it's become a habit to just throw it back in the bag and put it on the shelf.

I think I'm traumatized. It's been a full day and I can still catch wiffs of stench. I gotta change my diet or something.

Thanks Starscream....."decepticons retreeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttttttttttttttttttt". Sorry couldn't help it.

Schu: If you know where the girls like the B.O. funk let me know. Maybe France?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by !xobile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">"Odor killer"? Like....the kind you spray in shoes? Hmmmm. Hell at this point I'd try anything.

Yeah I totally spaced. Normally I don't sweat when I ride so it's become a habit to just throw it back in the bag and put it on the shelf.

I think I'm traumatized. It's been a full day and I can still catch wiffs of stench. I gotta change my diet or something.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I once knew a guy that used to put in his helmet after a long ride, those "odor *****" that stuff they sold back in the day where you flipped them and they opened to let out some deodorant and you put them inside your shoes. I never recalled him to mention that his helmet smelled.

Maybe try putting some of those odor killers on the night, leave it for a night and then smell it in the morning, to see if it has improved.

I sweat a lot, but my Scorpion still smells like chocolate

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by !xobile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Thanks Starscream....."decepticons retreeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttttttttttttttttttt". Sorry couldn't help it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Starscream &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I sweat a lot, but my Scorpion still smells like chocolate </TD></TR></TABLE>

HAHAHAHAHA... that's the greatest line ever told

 

this thread is great... I usually make sure to never put a helmet away before airing it out for a day or over night, that in itself helps. when I rode daily, been years, I always make sure to thoroughly "Wash Hair" daily. but at times you may need a ODORLESS odor killer that are available over the counter, or you can carry small amounts of Cologne with you to dab up before laying wood to the foundation

 

http://www.cyclegadgets.com/Pr...FRESH


I remember there was another one that I think is arai branded... not sure if it was a deodorizer though. If you aren't too much interested in shelling out for the bottle, you can actually just let the helmet air out until the bacteria in there run out of junk to feed on. By the sound of it though, you'll be waiting quite a while xD

...and there is no yelling in the casino. sorry, couldn't help it

 

'laying wood to the fountain'???? what the hell kind of euphemism is that?

 

Driving the locomotive through the tunnel of love?

 

I typically just wipe mine out with a damp rag after each ride, then store the helmet with a bar of soap to keep it fresh smelling. But since you're already past that point, this product may do the trick:



Foaming Helmet Care Spray cleans, deodorizes and protects helmet linings with an enzyme formula that eats the bacteria that causes odor and not just mask it with a fragrance.
Protects the helmet outer surfaces and brightens up the colors.
Leaves a pleasant clean, fresh aroma, inside and out.

http://www.cyclegear.com/spgm....2=273

I haven't tried this stuff before so I can't attest to how well it works, but I saw it in my cyclegear mailer yesterday and this thread made me think of it.

 

I turn the bike on and let the fumes from the exhaust fill it.... then close the helmet up and hang it on the rack. Seriously. I'd rather it smell like exhaust then sweaty stankness.

 

or warm chocolate

 

Haha thanks for all the advice guys. I think I'm going to stop by the local CycleGear and try some of that foaming stuff from Eva01's post. I didn't even know something like that existed.

Storing the helmet with a bar of soap sounds like a good idea too, or maybe a cedar block.

Oh and that's not how you say my name; it's *click* bee lay.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 4-ageTOg63 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I turn the bike on and let the fumes from the exhaust fill it.... then close the helmet up and hang it on the rack. Seriously. I'd rather it smell like exhaust then sweaty stankness.</TD></TR></TABLE>

That's pretty hardcore. Dang.

Thanks again guys.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by !xobile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Haha thanks for all the advice guys. I think I'm going to stop by the local CycleGear and try some of that foaming stuff from Eva01's post. I didn't even know something like that existed.

Storing the helmet with a bar of soap sounds like a good idea too, or maybe a cedar block.

Oh and that's not how you say my name; it's *click* bee lay.

That's pretty hardcore. Dang.

Thanks again guys.</TD></TR></TABLE>

what kind of helmet do you have? removable liner?

my shoei has a liner that mostly comes out. i pull it out, fill up the sink with warm water, and get some woolite or small amount of laundry detergent.

throw your liner into the sink and let it soak for a little bit. then, start washing it by hand. gently but thouroughly massage out the funk. you'll have to empty and refill the sink a couple of times when you see how funky it is. then, rinse the liner with cold water, thoroughly.

squeeze out as much water as you can, i like to squeeze, then use a violent shake out method, and air dry. if you're in a hurry, a low heat tumble dry will work too.

then reinstall your laundry fresh helmet liner, after taking a gentle cleaning solution or deodorizer to the hard part of the inside of your helmet.

voila, fresh lid.

 

Yeah. That's the problem. My Arai Quantum F doesn't have a removable liner.

Lesson learned: Next helmet will definitely have a removable liner.

Thanks.

 

I have the helmet care @ home but I don't think it works all that well.

I took the liner out of my RX7 Corsair and washed it with bath soap and warm water. I nearly puked when I saw the grey water.

 

grey........water. erg.

has anybody ever tried just hand washing the whole helmet (since I can't take the liner itself out).

would it be ok for the helmet to be submerged? or will it undermine the protective contents underneath the shell?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by !xobile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">grey........water. erg.

has anybody ever tried just hand washing the whole helmet (since I can't take the liner itself out).

would it be ok for the helmet to be submerged? or will it undermine the protective contents underneath the shell?

</TD></TR></TABLE>

i wouldn't submerge the helmet. aside from it possibly damaging the foam, i think it won't ever fully dry and you'll then have a funky + mildew boquet, which is worse.

 

aw man. good point.

even if I were to stick the helmet in the dryer after I would never be able to be sure it's fully dry.

I can't believe all this over a stinky helmet.

 

Yeah dude... bad ideas, no dunking and definitely no excessive/concentrative heat like a dryer... not good things to do to foam.

 

Just have some Halls or mints before riding...that way you can blow a fresh smell whenever you need to

 

um....i think i'm beyond mints.....

.....might be in the realm of urinal cakes.