Logging and chopping are dangerous tasks because of the involvement of chainsaws. Whether you’re a hobbyist chopper or you do it for a living, you just can’t avoid the necessity of wearing chainsaw trousers.
Chainsaw trousers are necessary PPE because it’s the legs that sustain the majority of injuries in a chainsaw accident. If you’re not wearing sturdy chainsaw trousers and the chainsaw breaches your pants, you can kiss goodbye to your limbs.
Even if you are careful enough to wear standard safety chainsaw trousers but you don’t wash and clean them properly, the strength will eventually be compromised.
If you work in conditions where there’s a lot of contact with oil and grease, you might have to wash your chainsaw trousers twice or thrice a week.
In cases where there’s less contact with grease and the majority of debris is dirt, dust, or chopped wood flakes, washing the chainsaw trousers once a week should be enough.
That’s not all that you need to know about the washing frequency of chainsaw trousers! There’s a lot more than matters like how you should wash them or what the water temperature should be.
Care to learn everything in detail for the purpose of protecting your PPE so that it protects you back? Dive right through and you’ll have all your questions answered!
What are chainsaw pants made of?
Wondering why we are making a mention of the fabric of the chainsaw trousers when you’re here to figure out how frequently you should wash your trousers?
Well, that’s because everything about the care and maintenance of chainsaw trousers depends upon what they’re made of.
As long as you don’t understand the fabric, you can’t expect to clean it properly. And dirty pants will become less and less breathable and more and more uncomfortable.
Cutting back to the chase, let’s answer the question at hand!
The fabric of chainsaw trousers has been changing with time. Initially, they had 4 layers of protection. With time, they’ve been designed to have 5, even 8 layers of protection.
The topmost layer is usually denier polyester. It’s highly resistant to oil, water, and cuts. Next comes the core of chainsaw trousers. The core (the layers underneath) is mostly Kevlar.
It’s Kevlar that’s the secret behind the greatest degree of protection an operator requires in the case of kickback. Kevlar is probably the toughest material to cut through. Now, imagine 5 to 8 layers of woven and felted kevlar guarding your leg!
That being said, since you shouldn’t expose polyester to bleach and Kevlar to fabric softeners, both bleach and softeners should be ruled out when washing chainsaw trousers and chaps.
As for the frequency, it depends on how often you wear your chainsaw trousers, and also the type of debris they’re being exposed to (mud or grade)
If you’re somebody who wears chainsaw trousers every single day, washing them once every week is mandatory. You will have to wash it more than once if your work exposes your trousers to oil and grease frequently.
See also: How Do Chainsaw Gloves Work? (Explained!)
Why is washing chainsaw trousers so important?
You wash all your regular clothes, don’t you? Then how’s washing chainsaw trousers any different? You wear these trousers to work every day. And chopping and logging are rigorous jobs.
You’ll sweat profusely, get in touch with dirt, mud, dust, and wood particles on a daily basis. Even oil and grease are the constants that downplay the cleanliness of chainsaw trousers.
If you won’t wash off these contaminants, the following problems will begin sooner than later:
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- Fungus and bacteria will affect unclean pants.
- Trapped dirt and dust will reduce the breathability of the fabric drastically.
- Durability and life of the chaps and trousers will reduce.
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Unclean chainsaw trousers will eventually become smelly, clubbed with germs and bacteria, and be a source of diseases, nothing else!
Besides, trapped dirt will affect the quality of the fabric too. So, the trousers will not offer the kind of protection they were designed to offer in the first place.
How to clean chainsaw trousers?
Now that you know cleaning them is important and how often you should wash them, it’s about time you learn how to wash them. Any carelessness in washing chainsaw trousers will decrease the strength and durability of the fabric.
Hand wash: Handwashing chainsaw trousers with lukewarm water is considered enough when you’re trying to remove dirt and dust.
Machine wash: Though you’ll find many people vouching against machine washing chainsaw trousers, sometimes, there’s no option but to machine wash them to remove oil and grease. Here, you have to practice a lot of precautions (to be discussed in the upcoming section).
See also: Best Hearing Protection for Chainsaw Use
How to machine wash chainsaw trousers? Will it deteriorate the quality of the pants?
When you’re planning to machine wash chainsaw trousers, there are many precautions that start with brushing away all the dirt, mud, and wooden husk.
It’s a prepping up step that cannot be overlooked for the sake of your trousers and that of your washing machine.
Now that you know you need to remove all sorts of dust as best as you can, let’s quickly jump to how do you machine wash chainsaw trousers safely.
1.) The very first thing to do is run a rinse cycle in the machine to make sure it’s thoroughly clean.
2.) Now, put the machine into synthetic washing mode and the water should be no more than 30° C.
3.) Add safe and very mild detergent. About 3 tablespoons.
4.) When you place the trousers inside the machine, make sure the pockets are empty and all the zips are tightly closed.
5.) Do not ever place more than two pairs of trousers at the same time for washing.
6.) Run the machine for a full cycle.
This shouldn’t deteriorate the quality of your chainsaw trousers. What will deteriorate its quality is tumble drying in the machine.
You should never dry the chainsaw trousers in a washing machine. The best way to dry them is to let them hang in natural air.
If you follow all these precautions, the quality of the trousers won’t degrade any sooner than it should.
3 Instructions to Wash and care for your chainsaw trousers
So, now you know how to wash them! Here are some instructions that should be followed strictly.
1.) Do not dry the trousers under direct sunlight, ever.
2.) Do not iron chainsaw trousers. Dry cleaning them isn’t recommended either.
3.) Before you store them, they should be fully dry.
Top 2 Chainsaw trousers you can invest in without a doubt
1.) Armorflex Chainsaw Protective Pants by Notch
- Constructed using 5-layer Avertic Engtex high performance protective fabric
- High abrasion resistant 4 way stretch fabric allows greater freedom of movement & flexibility
- Knee protection manufactured with Armortex abrasion resistant fabrics featuring DuPont Kelvar fibers
- UL classified in accordance with ASTM standard for leg protection.
- Meets ANSI, ASTM F1897-2014, & CAN/BNQ 1923-450-M91 Class 3 standard
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
These are 5 layered protective trousers that are highly resistant to abrasion. Some of the most noteworthy benefits of these chainsaw trousers are as follows:
• They are stretchable. Hence, it’s very comfortable to wear them.
• They are in compliance with ANSI, ASTM F1897-2014, and CAN/BNQ 1923-450-M91 regulations.
• They are highly resistant to cuts and impacts.
• They are designed to feature ventilation from the backside to keep you cool.
• The fabric is very durable and these chainsaw trousers offer full-length leg coverage.
The only possible con is their price. They’re certainly not cheap but they’re absolutely worth the money you spend.
Check Price and Reviews on Amazon2.) Husqvarna Chainsaw Pants
- All sizes have a 32 inseam - Large size Chainsaw Pant 36 - 38 Waist
- High tech materials with Dyneema, Cordura and Kevlar for maximum resistance against chainsaw chain.
- Reinforced seams for longer durability and maximum shelf life.
- Includes loop and hoop suspenders
- Easy access pockets with reverse zipper for easy access when wearing a harness
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
The harness is the USP of these trousers. They really hold up when the work gets rigorous and you have to climb up the trees. Some other noteworthy benefits are as follows:
• The reverse zipper pockets are extremely spacious.
• They’re highly durable and offer freedom of movement.
• It’s a 6-layered chainsaw trouser that is lightweight in comparison to many other chainsaw trousers in the market.
• They offer an amazing true-to-size fitting.
Again, they cost really high. That’s their only con but they’re absolutely worth the price you pay.
Check Price and Reviews on AmazonFAQs
1.) Can you machine wash chainsaw trousers?
Yes. It’s surely a tricky thing to do because there are many, many precautions related to machine washing chainsaw trousers.
2.) How to dry chainsaw trousers after washing them?
You should hang the trousers and let them dry in the natural air. Make sure you never dry your chainsaw trousers directly under the Sun.
3.) What temperature should I wash my chainsaw trousers at?
The ideal temperature to wash chainsaw trousers is less than or equal to 30° celsius. When you machine wash chainsaw trousers, it’s very important to make sure you put the machine in synthetic mode.
4.) Can you hand wash chainsaw trousers?
Yes. Handwashing chainsaw trousers is extremely safe. However, if there’s heavy greasing, you’ll have to machine wash them so that the trousers are thoroughly cleaned.
How often should you wash chainsaw trousers?
If it’s general mud and wood husk, you should wash chainsaw trousers once a week.
If your work exposes you to a lot of oil and grease, it’s important to wash chainsaw trousers two or three times a week.
Concluding Thoughts
We hope that we’ve answered all your queries and now you know why you need to wash greased chainsaw trousers at least thrice a week when it’s just once that you have to wash if the debris is just mud and wood husk.
As long as you’ll care for your chainsaw trousers and wash and dry them carefully, they will last for a long time and the quality won’t degrade either.
