Rope washing, how clean is clean enough?

Good to know about woolite. Thanks. 

Interesting links.

Hydrogen peroxide removes blood well. I wonder if it’s safer than bleach. But maybe doesn’t disinfect as well?

Juffrey T wrote: I daisy chain my rope and put it in the washer under delicates. Soak for 30 minutes and spin. Then take it out and let it hang to dry inside till I go climbing again.

Well crap. Now I have to shop for enough Victoria's secrets to cover my rope. 

Old lady Hwrote:

Well crap. Now I have to shop for enough Victoria's secrets to cover my rope. 

That's gonna cost ya...

Andrew Krajnikwrote:

That's gonna cost ya...

Well, she’s been saving up in the year and a half since she posted that.....

Marc801 Cwrote:

Well, she’s been saving up in the year and a half since she posted that.....

What the hell? This popped up in my notifications, so I replied... apparently someone replied and then deleted their comment? I promise, I didn't necromance a thread just to post that reply.

At the rope access houseware where I work we wash the works ropes full of cement and dirty stuff in an industrial washing machine. But for my climbing rope I wash it at a delicate cycle in a traditional washing machine with unscent soap! 

Andrew Krajnikwrote:

What the hell? This popped up in my notifications, so I replied... apparently someone replied and then deleted their comment? I promise, I didn't necromance a thread just to post that reply.

Not only that? My comment clearly refers to something that is no longer there. Not what I quoted. And, up thread? Buck quotes me, and someone else's post is attributed to me.

Lately, there have also been spam links edited into quotes, somehow. Not sure what, but sumthins broke.

Now I get to flag myself, see if the new owners notice, lol! 

Best, H.

Washing rope seems like a waste of time to me.

Anyone notice if the spiral brushes degrade the dry treatment 

stefan thomaswrote:

Washing rope seems like a waste of time to me.

All ropes get dirty...unless you use it purely for decoration. 

stefan thomaswrote:

Washing rope seems like a waste of time to me.

Why?

Ewing further notes that you can restore some of a rope’s elasticity by soaking it in hot water (normal home tap hot-water temperatures), and that to allow for shrinkage, Sterling cuts its ropes three percent longer than marked. Most other rope manufacturers also trim their ropes so they are longer than advertised—you needn’t worry about a rope shrinking to the point that it will cause you to get dropped while being lowered. You have bigger things than shrink to worry about.

Whoh, clicked the link upthread. Not long after he made this statement Ewing decked hard (some kind of Grigri issue) and had his lower leg amputated. Dudes got more in him than most of us, he's still at it after some healing and prosthetic stuff. 

BTW, Stefan, might be to you until you find a partner who makes it a big issue. Then guess what? You (hopefully) WILL NOT find it a waste of time to make your partner happy. 

We use old climbing ropes when developing local crags. They get trashed with mud and granite dust, and we would never use them for climbing again. Recently, out of curiosity, I longitudinally cut open a couple of the most dirty ones to see the condition of the cores. They were white as snow.

Stefan Jacobsenwrote:

We use old climbing ropes when developing local crags. They get trashed with mud and granite dust, and we would never use them for climbing again. Recently, out of curiosity, I longitudinally cut open a couple of the most dirty ones to see the condition of the cores. They were white as snow.

Not surprised. I did similarly for mid-rope marker, as well as my used ropes (though not as trashed as what you describe). Also white as snow. But I think that for a rope that actually goes through gear, the longevity of the gear will appreciate moderate amount of dirt/grains.

Franck Veewrote:

... for a rope that actually goes through gear, the longevity of the gear will appreciate moderate amount of dirt/grains.

Agreed. It has a grinding sound when a wet and dirty rope passes through a grigri abseiling...

stefan thomaswrote:

Washing rope seems like a waste of time to me.

Maybe you dont climb often enough.  Or dont climb on sandstone.  Or dont mind replacing gear often.  Or just dont notice your aluminum gear is getting worn.