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I've tried the uv thingies that get slightly warm and even bodged something together with a 6v psu and old hair dryer motor. These are fine for slightly damp shoes, but when everything is soaked through from riding in heavy rain all day and you need dry out for the next day, I need something that will really work without being overly aggressive and damaging shoes. Overnight would be fine, ideally portable to take away on trips.
A few from previous threads...
http://www.clasohlson.com/uk/Shoe-Dryer/18-4300
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Good-Selections-Shoe-Warmer-Dryer/dp/B0040GJ3QM
And I particularly like this home made one...
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I bought the previous version of [url= http://www.clasohlson.com/uk/Shoe-Dryer/18-4300 ]this[/url] to help dry out my 5 10's. After a wet ride on Saturday, 3 hours later they are wearable again.
The Guardian works ok for me, I've tried the local free newspaper but it doesn't seem to have enough "wick"... 😉
Newspapers crumpled up and stuffed into the shoes, sat overnight, does the trick for me. I guess if you needed quicker you could lean the shoes against a radiator.
How does the clas ohlson one work, is it heat or some sort of dehumidifying? Thinking of getting one to dry out my commuting shoes but not if it's going to stink the place out.
It's just a hair dryer for shoes.
Cheap disposable nappies, stuffed inside.
I've a couple in my locker.
9000btu radiator on max, shoes sat on top.
How noisy are the blown air dryers?
I've got the Chas Olsen one.
Like a low powered/low speed room heater really. So noticeable but not intrusive (I've not tried sleeping in a room with one, though).
[i]Cheap disposable nappies, stuffed inside.[/i]
It rains a lot in Scotland, I'd imagine over a year I'd spend more on nappies than the clas ohlson dryer.
Ha.... Just came across a similar thread I started 3 years ago. Must have been when I bought / made my current drying devices.
Must be time to upgrade to something more fit for purpose.
I see bike radar are suggesting nappies!
Drying room at work. 😉
Seal Skinz socks, then it doesnt matter if the shoes are wet or not?
Anyone tried using a big bag of silica gel?
You can buy big bags of Silica Gel from Robert Dyas and places - they're pretty good for drying the insides of wet shoes and you just microwave them to 'recharge' them once they're saturated (the ones I got have a window and the gel changes colour when it can't absorb any more liquid).
[edit] this sort of thing
[url= http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/pingi-dehumidifier-250g ]http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/pingi-dehumidifier-250g[/url]
You do need enough heat to turn the water in the shoe to vapour though - they're great in conjunction with placing the shoes in an airing cupboard, for example (I found there was enough air movement to dry the insides on my winter boots even though they were warm).
I've got the last version of that Clas Ohlsen linked above. Mine is wall mounted in my garage and it's brilliant. It'll dry shoes and gloves in a matter of hours no matter how wet they get.
Insoles oot, everything on the radiator. Easy peasy. They'll take longer to dry if you leave the insoles inside.
[i]Insoles oot, everything on the radiator. Easy peasy. They'll take longer to dry if you leave the insoles inside.[/i]
Generally I wouldn't put shoes on the radiator in work as damp shoes do tend to stink a bit.
I was going to suggest the cupboard above the boiler but that may be a struggle to take away with you 😆
Don't tell my wife but the rail on the aga is awesome.
I've got a set of Dampires- big reusable dessicant pouch things- which work pretty well, no doubt you can get the same thing for less now but they were a Thing when i got them. But yeah, they don't work well when the shoes are cold, they do sook up some water but not enough.
The drier-and-uv things are better but not amazing tbh.
Hooky things from ebay to hang shoes on the reservoir are grand. And antiseptic shoe spray to stop them honking.
One thing that speeds up drying the shoes massively is packing them in the old pillow cases and throwing them into the washing machine: my trick is to run a "quick" wash followed by additional high-speed spin.
When you take them out they are nice clean and just damp, instead of being soaking wet.
great for gloves, shoes etc...
And I particularly like this home made one...
That would be my creation. The hairdryer was on its last legs and went pop eventually. Worked a treat though.
It's pretty warm in my utility now but if it wasn't I'd make another.
Cat litter and an old pair of tights.
I've got one of the Clas Ohlsen ones, it's slightly bigger than the one posted above, and has 4 nozzles. I thought it would be a game-changer but I'm not that impressed TBH. It's got a 1 hour timer but it seems a bit pathetic, it takes several runs (I.e. 3-4 hours) to get shoes dry when they're completely soaked. This might be because I've got it in an unheated garage.
Anyway, if I need shoes to actually be dry, I'll just stick 'em on a radiator.
So, uh, don't buy a boot dryer that's currently unavailable.
Trekmates sell a similar gel bag idea to the Tioram above but Cotswold sell them for £14. They come in smaller balls so you can use as many as you need rather than have a specific size. I haven't used them but will definitely be getting some after a week in Scotland with wet feet all week due to stupidly only taking one pair of shoes. The place we were staying had central heating but shoes just wouldn't dry overnight meaning damp shoes every morning!
[i]Cat litter and an old pair of tights. [/i]
Oh ffs sake just buy a shoe dryer 🙂
I must have had this thread in my mind when I went into town this morning as I automatically went into Clas Ohlson and hunted one of theirs out. Last one on shelf and the guy at the till said they'd had two customers come to blows over one a few days ago 😯 Skiing types apparently..
Blown air dryers like a hotronic flash dry are faster than bags of silica gel. Small enough to take on holiday and robust enough to use all the time at home. Mine has had a lot of use this year.
My shoes don't stink yet either.
If you want to go down the silica gel route, look for ordinary silca gel - not something marketed specifically for drying shoes, as these are massively overpriced.
I got mine from [url= https://www.7dayshop.com/products/7dayshop-silica-gel-moisture-absorbing-dehumidifier-sachets-packs-bags-100g-bag-10-pack-SILICA100GX10 ]7DayShop[/url] but not sure that they're listing the size that I have, any more. The 100g ones sound about right, but I could only comment definitively after I get home and look. Two of the size that I have fill a boot up just right.