Dirty game bags

[Cschelin24]

So i broke a cardinal rule and was going through my hunting stuff yesterday to get ready for the season and found my last years game bags.... After the hustle and bustle of a hunt last year and my wife being pregnant I forgot I stashed them away In a plastic sack to take care of them and completely spaced on cleaning them. So i pulled out the bags and they are all dried up with blood. What's y'alls take on if it's ok to run them through a couple cycles in the wash machine and use them this year or throw them away and just get new? They are the Caribou Wapiti meat sacks so they weren't cheap... Thanks for the feedback

 

[muddydogs]

Not going to hurt trying to clean them up. How about a soak for a day or so then a wash?

 

[jhm2023]

I've done the same. I make a mix of hot water, small amount of bleach to sanitize and some scent free soap to remove stuff as the bleach doesn't have surfactants like soap. Let the bags soak for a bit agitating occasionally. I then wring them out some and wash them with a bleach soap mix on hot water in the washing machine and hang dry. That process has always worked for me without issue.

 

[Cschelin24]

Thanks Was worried about the material breaking down..

 

[Desk Jockey]

+1 on the soak. Think about taking them to a laundry mat. Your wife may kill you if you funk up her washer.

 

[JG358]

Not going to hurt trying to clean them up. How about a soak for a day or so then a wash?

That was my thought as well.

 

[Mt Al]

Been there, done that! Soak, wring them out, soak again, wash. I didn't use bleach, probably should have. Mine have worked for many years after The Year of Leaving Them Crusty With Blood.

 

[Dos Perros]

They'll clean up fine.

 

[afdiamond1]

I followed the instructions on the Caribou Bag website and let them soak in cold water with some dish soap for a day and then ran through the washer with detergent and a little bleach. They cleaned up fine.

 

[jspradley]

The bags should be OK. Soak em in water with a little bleach in it then toss them in the washer with some scent free soap and you should be good to go

 

[zach14]

Wash them in cold water. Hot water won't get the blood stains out, cold does.

 

[rileybassman]

Hydrogen peroxide - soak in water with HP for maybe an hour - spot clean with HP and then soak it, then rinse, then soak with whatever recommended detergent for like an hour, then rinse, then washing machine with bleach.

 

[Okhotnik]

Cold water. Oxyclean soak over night

Wash out in cold water

 

[Downeaster]

Like everyone else said, cold water. Hot will set the blood stain. If theyre still a little greasy after you get the blood out (which they shouldnt be) you can always rewash in hot. Oxy is a beast on blood stains...years old and gone!

 

[87TT]

Just wash them. Who cares about blood stains. Going to get new stains anyway.

 

[jhm2023]

I use hot water to help with removing the grease and killing bacteria. I'm less concerned about the cosmetic appearance of my bags and more concerned with the amount of nasty stuff in the fabric that could affect future meat. They still come completely white with the combo of hot water, bleach and soap though so win win.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

A little soaking in peroxide first will help.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

You could go through a 10 step process or, you could just wash them and be done with it. They are game bags. Not dress pants.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

Soaking in hydrogen peroxide and a washing or two will get them cleaned up and bacteria free.

 

[Cschelin24]

I use hot water to help with removing the grease and killing bacteria. I'm less concerned about the cosmetic appearance of my bags and more concerned with the amount of nasty stuff in the fabric that could affect future meat. They still come completely white with the combo of hot water, bleach and soap though so win win.

Thanks! Ya I wasnt too concerned about the looks, was just worried about it affecting the future meat as well. Have em soaking right now after their first wash.