How to Clean Jordans Like The Real Sneakerhead You Are!

Part of loving your sneakers is to make sure they’re always looking “Deadstock.” Keeping your sneakers clean and fresh is almost as crucial as owning them. So you gotta know how to treat your kicks and how to clean Jordans and any other sneakers like Yeezys, the right way. For more shoe care guides and news, check out our blog.

You’ve probably spent quite some cash and time on these precious pairs. Thus you wouldn’t risk shoving them in the laundry machine. And you seriously don’t want them looking weathered, dirty, or Fake! You want to keep them worthy of your side hustle efforts. So how to clean Jordans?

What You’ll Need!

You may or may not have invested in a Sneaker cleaning kit, but we highly advise using such kits to clean your sneakers. They’re usually engineered to give you the best results without compromising the material or the color of your shoes. And most of what you’ll need to clean your kicks is usually included in all high-quality kits. We recommend using the SneakerAid shoe cleaning kit as it includes everything you need for an affordable price.

So here’s what you’ll need to clean your Js:
– Shoe Cleaning Serum
– Soft Brush
– Hard Brush
– Clean & Dry Cloth
– And, your shoes. Obviously!

Extra!
You may need to use a toothbrush to clean the smaller cracks and crannies in the soles.

How to Clean Jordans Shoelaces

With shoelaces, you have the option of cleaning them manually or in a washing machine. However, if you opt for machine cleaning, make sure you place your shoelaces in a laundry mesh bag or a pillowcase. This way, you’ll avoid having them tangled or losing them in that sock-eating blackhole.

White Shoelaces

NOTE:
Put on gloves and avoid direct contact with bleach.

1. Clean out any loose dirt or grime from the laces with your hands or a scrub brush. Dry dirt or mud comes off easily with a bit of scrubbing.
2. In a clean bucket or the sink, add a Gallon of water (approx. 3.8 L) with around three tablespoons of bleach. Not more!
3. To avoid tangling, put the laces in a small mesh laundry bag and soak in the cleaning solution for a couple of minutes.
4. Stir or agitate the laces in the solution using a spoon or a spatula.
5. While still in the bag, place the laces in the washing machine. Add detergent and 1/2 cup of bleach and wash them in hot water.
6. Air-dry the shoelaces. Never use a dryer. Never.

Colored Shoelaces

NOTE:

Never Use bleach with colored laces.
Laces with words are treated the same as colored shoelaces to avoid rubbing off the words.

1. Clean out any loose dirt or grime from the laces with your hands or a scrub brush. Dried on dirt or mud comes off fairly easily with a bit of scrubbing.
2. In a clean bucket or the sink, add water with a small amount of liquid soap.
3. Allow the laces to soak for several minutes in the soapy solution. Then stir the laces in the solution mimicking the movement of a washing machine. Not as fast, though!
4. Use a soft brush or an old toothbrush to scrub the laces while still wet. Be careful around the aglets, so they don’t crack.
5. Clean your bucket or sink, fill it again with fresh room-temperature water and sink your laces. Repeat steps 2 to 5 in case the laces are completely clean.
6. When laces are clean and soap-free, air dry them. Never use a dryer!

Leather Laces

Leather shoelaces tend to be more delicate. So sink them neither in bleach nor in soap. Instead, prepare a warm water-soap solution and apply the soap gently along the length of the lace. And then wipe it off with a damp cloth.

Now set your laces aside to dry completely. Then, using a dry clean cloth, apply some olive or coconut oil to the laces. This will help to restore the shine and softness of the leather. Then set the laces aside to dry completely before you lace up your sneakers again.

Cleaning the Insoles

A significant part of learning how to clean Jordans is knowing how to clean the insoles. Other than dirt, mud, dust, grass, and so on, insoles get smelly. This can be due to sweaty feet, low-quality socks, or poor cleaning habits.

Most insoles are removable, so cleaning them is relatively easy. However, they’re generally made from synthetic materials and foam, so it’s essential they don’t get soaking wet.

Soap and water, in most cases, are enough to clean your sneakers’ insoles. However, sneaker cleaning kits usually include a cleaning serum that would give you better and long-lasting results.

What you’ll need:
– Hot water
– Soft scrubbing brush
– Dry & clean cloth
– Liquid dishwashing detergent / Shoe cleaning serum (like the one included in SneakerAid Kit)

How to Clean Jordans and Sneakers Insoles

1. Carefully remove the insoles from your shoes.
2. If they were extra smelly, leave them to air out for a while before you start cleaning.
3. Using the soft brush, clean off any debris, like dust, dirt, mud…
4. Fill a bucket or a sink with hot water.
5. Add a few drops of the shoe cleaning serum (or dishwashing detergent) to the water.
6. Mix the solution well.
7. Dip the soft Brush bristles in the solution, and with a circular motion, scrub the insoles with the brush.
8. While brushing, emphasize any stained areas. Usually, the toes and heels leave bigger stains due to sweating.
9. Wet the brush conveniently but make sure you don’t soak the insoles.
10. We recommend cleaning both sides of the insoles, so once you’re done with the top, start cleaning the bottom.
11. Remove soap residue using a cloth. SneakerAid kit includes a microfiber cloth that helps dry out any residue efficiently.
12. Air-dry the insoles. Make sure they’re completely dry before placing them back in your Jordans.

Note:
Never place the insoles of your Jordans under running water!

How to Clean Your Jordans’ Uppers

The most important part of cleaning your Jordans is cleaning your Jordan’s uppers! You can’t go walking with some crusty-ass Jordans – you can’t even flex them! What’s the whole point of owning a Jordan? You can’t flip nor flex! Besides, your sneaker’s uppers are the part that gets all the attention – ain’t no one gonna care about your clean insoles if your uppers look like

What you’ll need:
– A small bowl
– Cool water
– Diluted liquid dish soap or sneaker cleaning serum
– A couple of clean and dry cloths
– Microfiber cloths work best
– A soft shoe cleaning brush. An old toothbrush can also do.

Cleaning Knit Uppers

1. At this point, the shoelaces should be out, still drying up.
2. Dilute a small amount of a cleaning serum in a small bowl half-filled with cool water.
3. To prevent soaking the sneakers on the inside, stuff the shoe with a balled-up cloth.
4. Dip a second soft cloth into the cleaning mixture, squeeze out a bit of the excess water.
5. Start scrubbing the stained/soiled area of the sneaker. Use firm but gentle pressure so that you don’t snag the yarn.
6. Repeat as needed until you get the desired results.
7.  Rinse the cloth in clean water, squeeze it well, and go over the entire shoe a few times to remove any detergent residue.
8. If the shoes are severely stained/soiled, use a soft brush to allow the cleaning solution to get into the shoe. But again, be very careful not to ruin the material.
9. Gently pat your Jordans uppers with a dry microfiber cloth and let them air dry.

How to clean Jordans with Leather Uppers

1. Dilute a small amount of a sneaker cleaning serum in a small bowl half-filled with cool water.
2. To prevent soaking the sneakers on the inside, stuff the shoe with a balled-up cloth.
3. Mix the solution with the bristles of a soft brush. You must use a soft brush not to ruin Jordans’ premium leather.
4. Once mixed, you can apply the solution to the Jordan using the soft brush in circular motions over the entire uppers.
5. If some stubborn stains persist, use a stiff shoe brush and run it along the entire upper of the shoe.
6. Also, using the stiff brush, scrub the midsoles back and forth to clean out dirt stuck in the rubber cracks.

Finishing Off with The Soles

Once you’re happy with how the uppers look, you can move on to the soles. The soles are likely to have the most dirt and mud, and cleaning them requires the most force.

1. Dilute a small amount of a sneaker cleaning serum in a small bowl half-filled with cool water.
2. Use a hard brush to clean the soles. Dip the brush in the shoe cleaning solution.
3. First, brush along the whole length of the soles in a back and forth motion. This movement should get any superficial debris out.
4. Wash the brush you just used clean, and then again apply some of the cleaning mixtures to the brush.
5. Now, to clean out the cracks, you need to brush more thoroughly. Going through every crack, making sure it’s clean.
6. For smaller or dirtier crannies, you can use an old hard toothbrush.
7. Once you’re delighted with the results, pat the entire shoe down using a microfiber towel.
8. Set your Jordans aside to dry completely before storing or wearing them.

Got Yeezys? Here’s how to keep them cleaner than Kanye’s. And if you don’t yet own a Jordan and would like to make a debut in this crazy sneaker community, you may wanna check AIO Bot. It has had the highest success rate on Jordan’s release lately, and you’ll have the highest chances at copping using it!