Last Updated on June 11, 2022 by Ecorf
When you are hiking, you will directly get into contact with vegetation including weeds, trees as well as bushes as you move around. Some of these plants consist of burrs which can stick to your clothes especially those with soft fabric like cotton or wool. Burrs have tiny and sharp bristles that may be irritating and difficult to remove from your clothes.
However, there are certain methods that can be used to simplify the process of removing burrs. As such, this guide gives you tips about how to get burrs out of clothing. There are different steps that you should follow to address the problem.
Table of Contents
Why Burrs Are not Good on Your Clothes?
Burrs can cause unpleasant things especially when it comes in contact with your skin. For instance, burrs can cause skin irritation and discomfort. In some instances, these irritating plant properties can even cause injuries. Therefore, you must make an effort to remove them from your clothing.
The other important thing that you should know is that burrs can also cause damage to the fabric of your camping tent. You must always make sure that your clothes have no burrs before entering your camping tent. If you notice some, then you would rather remove the clothes and store them safely away from contact with a tent.
What Are the Things You Will Need?
The burrs comprise of tiny bristles so they are difficult to remove using your fingers since this can be tedious and time-consuming. You will need the following things to be able to remove burrs on your clothes.
- Washing machine
- Dryer or clothesline
- Plastic fine-tooth comb
- Duct tape
There are certain steps that you should follow to successfully remove these irritating items from your clothing.
Step 1: Wash Your Clothes as Usual
The first stage is to wash your clothes as usual and put them in a dryer. The significance of washing clothes is that it helps to soften the burrs while at the same time weakening their grip on your clothing. It becomes easier to remove the burrs when they are weakened. Leave the clothes to dry before you move to the next step.
Step 2: Burr Removal
When the clothes are dry, place them on a flat surface where you can begin removing the burs. Using a fine-tooth comb, proceed slowly by sliding it through the areas that have the burrs. A comb can easily remove the burrs from your clothes if you carefully perform the process.
It is important to be patient when performing this stage since the aim is to remove the burrs and not to damage the fabric of your clothes. With a comb, you can remove most of the burrs. However, in the event that the soft comb method fails to remove all burrs, you can try the duct tape method which is equally effective.
Step 3: Using Duct Tape to Remove Burrs
Duct Tape significantly helps to remove stubborn burrs from your clothes. You must begin this process by cutting a duct tape with enough size to cover the entire area of the fabric with burrs. Stick it over that area to begin the removal process. As you pull the tape from the fabric, it will also extract
Now you should pull the tape, and it will catch and extract all the bristles remaining. You must realize that the bristles can go deeper into the fabric which can cause itching and irritation to your skin. Therefore, you must turn your clothes inside out so that you repeat the same burr removal process using duct tape to pull out all the remaining stubborn bristles.
Helpful Tips and Things to Avoid
If you opt to use the method of plastic comb, make sure you use one with fine teeth since it is not that sharp to damage the fabric of your clothes. It can stand against the strength of the bristles while at the same time protecting your clothes. Avoid using a metal comb since it can damage your clothes.
You must avoid using the method of duct tape to remove burrs from clothes that are highly delicate. Instead of solving the issue of burrs, you can end up damaging the fabric on your clothes. All the same, you must not apply full pressure even if you are using a plastic comb.
You must also avoid using a razor blade to remove the burrs on your clothes. The danger of this method is that a blade can only shave the top part of the burrs without completely removing them. As such, you can still experience itching and skin irritation from the remaining bristles embedded deeply in the fabric of your clothing.
A razor blade can also damage the quality of the fabric of your clothes. If it is too sharp, then there is a danger that it will slowly thin the fabric which results in it losing its originality.
The other important thing to consider is that duct tape consists of strong glue and you need to be careful when using it on delicate fabric like nylon and cashmere. There is a danger that duct tape can tear delicate fabric which will be very unfortunate.
Burz-Off Burr Removal Tool
Alternatively, you can get a Burz-Off Burr removal tool since it can help address the problem of burrs. It is convenient and can fit in your pocket such that you can use it during situations where detailed cleaning of the burrs may not be possible. You just need to apply a few strokes to the affected areas and you are on the go again.
Conclusion
Burrs on your clothes can be irritating to your skin since they can cause skin irritation and discomfort. As you have noted, burrs are not easy to remove with your fingers since they are tiny. However, there are viable methods outlined above that you can use to remove the burrs from your clothes. It is imperative to properly follow the steps in each method you use.
