When it comes to storing your shoes for different seasons, it’s obvious that you want to store them in a way that will help to keep them safe.
When you’re storing shoes of more sensitive material like leather, you might have a lot of concern around how to keep them perfectly safe.
A major point of concern when it comes to shoe storage is knowing how to store shoes to prevent mold.
If mold starts to grow on your favorite pair of shoes, they might very well be lost forever.
This is why we have compiled this handy guide to help you keep your shoes safe and secure during the off season so that you never have to risk any problems with mold!
Maintain the quality of your closet air
The biggest concern when it comes to protecting your precious shoes is going to be maintaining the quality of the air where you are storing them.
The easiest way to get mold buildup is to store your shoes somewhere that has any kind of moisture.
If you are working to store shoes, you don’t want keep them anywhere that is known to collect moisture.
In the event that you don’t have a choice and simply must keep your shoes in a basement or a closet that is dangerously close to a shower, try to take precautions to keep the warm dry.
This might mean doing something like increasing ventilation or using heaters to keep the air dry.
Your only goal is to make sure that you do not have any kind of humidity in the air because this will act as a perfect breeding area for mold.
Taking these kinds of steps are even more important if you live somewhere that naturally has a lot of moisture in the air.
Store shoes in a way that lets them breathe
Once you have made sure that the air surrounding your shoes is dry, it is up to you to make sure that you are not at risk of any moisture building up within the storage device itself.
This is why so many storage methods for prone types of shoes involve the use of a cloth bag or cotton box rather than using something like a plastic box.
Storing your shoes in a way that allows them to breathe is an important way to make sure that moisture does not build.
In some cases, leather can actually generate moisture by itself, making it that much more important to make sure that they are not stored in a way that allows condensation to build.
Related: Should You Keep Shoes In The Box?
Always let your shoes dry completely before storing them
The biggest mistake that amateurs make when storing shoes is allowing them to be stored with any kind of moisture.
This can be caused by moisture leftover from your last wear or by product leftover after the shoes have been cleaned in come capacity.
Prior to storing your shoes, you should always leave them out for a day or two in order to let them dry.
This is important if you have worn them or cleaned them recently since both of these methods are capable of leaving behind residual moisture that can be incredibly problematic.
Even if you can’t see any moisture or they feel relatively dry, you should always go against your personal judgment and leave them out to dry just to be safe.
Regularly check them for any moisture
You might think that if you follow the other steps it means that you can just throw your shoes aside and not worry about them until next season, and while that might be true, we are here to tell you why you shouldn’t do that.
Sometimes even if you take the right steps, there might still be a buildup of moisture around your beloved shoes.
This is why it is important to continuously check on the shoes as you continue to store them.
It might sound a little tedious, but finding out that there is any moisture around your shoes in a quick fashion allows you to save them if something goes awry.
It just might be the difference between your shoes living and dying.
Don’t let the air get stagnant
An effective way to manage the quality of air surrounding your shoes is to avoid storing them anywhere that has stagnant air.
While steps can be taken to help keep stagnant air dry, it can still be incredibly effective at creating moldy conditions.
The best way to avoid stagnant air building up is to keep the air moving in a continuous way.
This can help remove any moisture, will help your shoes to stay comfortable and dry, and has plenty of other benefits beyond merely managing moisture like removing odd smells and making it less likely for bugs to gather.
Always wax your leather shoes
One great way to keep your leather shoes from molding in the odd event that they are exposed to moisture (though we know that you wouldn’t let that happen) is to make sure that you give them a solid waxing before you store them for the season.
Using wax is a great way to protect the surface of your shoe from any kind of moisture buildup or mold.
It essentially acts as a protective layer between your shoe and the world around it. This makes it a perfect last line of defense.
Conclusion
Knowing how to store your shoes to prevent mold is a useful life skill that just about anyone should have.
While some shoes are easier to store than others, these practices are actually beneficial for storing various other kinds of items.
Let this act as a reminder that it is up to each of us to put a conscious effort towards protecting the things that we value.
If you own the kind of shoes that require being safely stored away, taking these easy steps is a great way to help keep your shoes safe so that they can join you on your journey for years to come.