How Do You Clean A Cornhole Bag?
Cornhole is a wildly popular lawn game played both for fun and competitively. Because the game involves throwing cloth bags at the ground, the bags used to play the game inevitably need to be washed or replaced to clean off the dirt, grass, and other outdoor debris on your bag.
Types of Cornhole Bag Filling
There are two common types of Cornhole bag filling: corn and plastic or resin pellets. Corn filling is the traditional filling for cornhole bags and is thought to be where the game gets the first half of its name. Some cornhole enthusiasts believe corn-filled bags are essential to playing cornhole. They claim that the cloud of dust a corn-filled bag creates when it lands on a board provides dry lubrication that helps the bag slide into the hole if it lands correctly. Non-traditional plastic or resin pellets have become more popular as a cornhole bag filling over the years due to their hardiness. Though a core component of the game has changed, the name ‘cornhole’ has stuck despite some people who have begun to call the game ‘bean bag toss.’
Why Should You Wash Your Cornhole Bags?
Not only do cornhole bags spend much of the time being thrown onto the dirty ground, they also collect the typical dust and dirt from being stored in garages, sheds, and other outdoor storage locations. In addition, corn-filled cornhole bags are at risk of growing mold or mildew if the corn within gets left in a damp environment. As a result, cornhole bags eventually get dirty, and you are left deciding to either buy replacements or try to clean your bags yourself. If your bags are not too far gone, washing them is a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to simply buying new bags every time they get dirty.
Washing Cornhole Bags
It is important to know how to properly wash your cornhole bags to avoid ruining them. Different materials require different processes for washing. Let’s take a look at the different ways to wash cornhole bags.
Traditional Corn-Filled Bags
Washing traditional corn-filled bags can be tricky because if the corn within gets wet, it could begin to decompose or grow mildew. One way to wash corn-filled bags is to use a damp cloth to gently wipe down the dirty spots on the bag. Corn-filled bags in need of a deep clean can be cleaned with a soft brush and a very small amount of soap. The trick is to scrub the bag gently and successfully remove all dirt while also preventing any soap or water from soaking into the bag. If one wash does not successfully remove all the dirt, let the bag dry and try again.
Non-Traditional Pellet-Filled Bags
Non-traditional pellet-filled bags are much easier to clean compared to corn-filled bags because the resin or plastic pellets can get wet. Washing pellet bags is as simple as tossing them in your washing machine on the delicate setting. You can put your pellet-filled bags in the washer with your choice of laundry detergent or fabric softener. If you have a mesh delicates bag, place your pellet bags inside there for safety. Make sure you check your bags for any rips and examine the tags for any particular specifications about washing machine settings. You can also soak a pellet-filled bag in a tub of soapy water for several hours or even overnight if your bags are particularly dirty.
Drying Cornhole Bags
As is the case with washing cornhole bags, different types of cornhole bags require different processes for drying. It is important to know which type of cornhole bag you have in order to know how to properly let them dry.
Traditional Corn-Filled Bags
Compared to the process of washing corn bags, drying traditional corn-filled bags is fairly straightforward. One option to dry corn-filled bags is pat drying if you need a quicker dry, or you can dry them with a hairdryer so long as you keep the hairdryer on the lowest setting and several feet away at all times. Simply placing the corn bag outside in the sunlight for a few hours should suffice; however, do not leave the bags outside for too long, or they may tempt critters or cause the corn to shrivel. Other things you should not do when attempting to dry your corn-filled bags include putting them in the dryer, leaving them on a heater, and microwaving them.
Non-Traditional Pellet-Filled Bags
Non-traditional pellet bags are just as easy to dry as they are to wash. You can put the pellet bags in the dryer on low heat, and they should be dry after one cycle. Just like with the corn-filled bags, you should avoid exposing the pellet-filled bags to extreme heat by drying them on higher dryer settings, microwaving them, and leaving them near anything extremely hot such as a heater.