Washing of swags

Hiya Girtie

Dont Do It,Wipe dirty areas with damp cloth then make sure its dry before packing swag away.Your right soapy water is a no no,There are sprays that can retreat canvas..

Yes don't do it - after about 3 years of use I decided that mine was ready for a wash. Used washing up liquid and a scrubbing brush for the really dirty bits. Dried in the sun (mid summer) and it looked brand new! First trip away it poured with rain all night and I discovered indeed that the waterproofing wasn't there any more. Fixed with canvas waterproofing agent but I wont be doing it again!

Hi Gertie
I will now probably open a can of worms with what we have done on a number of times and has not effected our swags at all.
Any swag that is made of canvas, is made from a natural product. The products ability to repel water has nothing to do with what it is coated in, but how the fabric is weaved and the grade of canvas used. A good swag is made from canvas and not coated at all. The times that our swags have been in a need of washing is in times of wet weather and they get muddy.
After the trip, I have stripped out the sway, opened it flat and used a pressure cleaner to clean it. Leave the canvas to dry out of direct sunlight, make it up again and we have a new looking swag.
We have had to do this a couple of times over the years and has not effected the water proof ability in any way. After all, it is only water.

Others may not agree with my method, it has worked for me and we are still using the same swags over 15 years later. Another thing that I have found, is where they are made. Ours were made right here in South Australia, using good quality canvas. I have seen some swags that are made outside of Australia and I do not think that they will last the time, I could be wrong. I have also seen some very good swags that are made in Alice Springs. Like so many things, in the end you only get what you have paid for.

Cheers

Stephen

my swag was covered in mud and horse blood.. I layed it out flat and using a nail brush, with some pressure but not harsh, massaged every part of the canvas with a mixture of vinegar and bicarb soda. (I was also told salt was good, I bought the salf but forgot to use it!). anyways, so thoroughly covered the canvas, then hung it up and blasted it with the hose, the next morning (night time when I did it) the way I hung it I was able to see any pin holes from rocks in the bottom of the swag and off course used gaff tape to repair!, I noticed then that I had missed some bits the night before so I blasted it again with the hose and let it dry. the next day I noticed I had a pol of water inside the swag because the canvas was still so waterproof it wouldn't let even a drop leak out. Turned her inside out, rehung and dried and bingo.. one cleaned up, no blood swag! Good as new.

gertie

I covered this a while back.
Just in case I'll do it again
Go and get some horse blanket sealer, I did and it works a treat.
Most pet, or stock food suppliers have it.

Or..................


I have found another solution to waterproofing. Especially canvas.

I have a Dry-as-a-Bone type vest (different brand) and it used to let the water in.

My local camping store, advised me to use "this wax", and problems solved.
Leave out in the sun for 1 hr to warm up ( in southern Vic, in the winter, will never happen ) So I wiped this wax on with a chux cloth and grabbed SWMBO's hair drier.
10 minutes later, done and really waterproof.

From what I know, swags only leak in the stitching, so why not go and just waterproof the stitching, with the was or in my case I drowned the whole thing in the horse blanket sealer, and sis the seams twice.

Still good 4 years larter

Cheers
Bucky