Storing hunting clothes properly can be the difference between success and failure in the deer woods. Additionally, we can extend the life of our clothing by adopting best practices for storage. This article provides the best way to store hunting clothes throughout deer season and during the off-season.
When storing hunting clothes we want to keep them clean, dry, organized, and odor-free. Additionally, we want to keep our clothes away from rodents, bugs, and thieves. The best way of storing hunting clothes will likely be different throughout the middle of deer season as it is during the off-season.
Every person’s storage situation is a little different. For example, some guys live on the property where they hunt, while others travel out-of-state to hunt. Maybe indoor space is limited at our primary residence or a spouse doesn’t allow hunting equipment inside the home.
Regardless of what the situation is, here are the main objectives to aim for when storing hunting clothes:
Keep clothes clean
Off-season storage:
Always wash your clothes with scent-free detergent prior storing clothes away for the off-season (long-term storage). Click the link to ready my article: Best way to wash hunting clothes for deer hunting.
Storage during deer season:
Hunting clothes may or may not need to washed after every hunt throughout the season. I don’t wash my clothes after every hunt because I don’t need to. The only time I wash my clothes during hunting season is if I get them sweaty, dirty, or exposed to foreign odors like smoke or gasoline.
Keep clothes dry
Off-season storage:
Keeping clothes dry will prevent mold and mildew from growing on them. This will also help extend the life of the clothing and eliminate odors from developing.
Storage during deer season:
Hunters can hang their clothes outside for the sun and wind to dry them out. Just be cautious of rainy weather if the clothes aren’t covered by a roof. Hunters should only hang clothes outside if they are in-between hunts. Clothes shouldn’t be left hanging outside overnight.
Feel free to use a drying machine if the clothes need to dry fast prior to the next hunt. However, do not use dryer sheets. Don’t even use the dryer sheets made for hunting clothes. Click this link to learn why dryer sheets shouldn’t be used for hunting clothes, and what we should be using instead.
Consider using a cover-scent, like Nose Jammer, to hide any foreign odors that could be on the clothes.
Keep clothes organized
Off-season storage:
A scent-free closet inside a primary residence is the best case scenario for off-season storage. However, most hunters don’t have a scent-free closet in their home. Therefore, keep hunting clothes organized inside air-tight bags and then place those bags inside plastic totes.
Whenever possible, always store hunting clothes inside a temperature controlled environment. This will eliminate most issues that hunters run into with storing hunting clothes.
Storage during deer season:
A scent-free closet provides a good amount of space to keep clothes organized. Also, a closet provides visibility to see everything hanging.
I organize my clothes by garment type (tops, bottoms, gloves and hats). Other hunters like to organize their clothes by season (early season, mid-season, and late season).
All of my hunting clothes are stored inside scent-free duffle bags and plastic totes.
I have a separate scent-free duffle bag that I use for the clothes that I plan on wearing that day for the hunt. This works really well for me because I can look at the weather and then fill my duffle bag with the specific clothing items that I need based on the weather for that day. This is why I store my clothes by garment type and not by season. I layer my clothing based on specific weather conditions.
Keep clothes odor-free
Off-season storage:
Hunting clothes will stay odor-free as long as they were washed with scent-free laundry detergent, dried, stored inside an air-tight bags, and placed inside plastic storage totes.
Storage during deer season:
Keeping clothes odor-free during the middle of deer season is something a lot of hunters don’t think about. Good scent-control habits go a long way towards keeping hunting clothes odor-free. Many odors can be avoided just by only wearing hunting clothes when it’s time to hunt and then keeping them inside a scent free bag the rest of the time.
To learn more about how to keep clothes odor free, read my article: How to manage scent to see more deer.
Keep clothes away from rodents, bugs, and thieves
Off-season storage:
Rodents and bugs won’t get into clothes if they are inside air-tight bags and plastic totes with lids. Also, rodents and bugs are more likely to stay inside our garage and shed then they are our home. If we can’t store hunting clothes inside the home, try to get them off the ground and onto a shelf.
Lastly, thieves are not likely to come inside your home to steal hunting clothes. However, they will steal stuff from the garage or shed. We can reduce the odds of theft just by keeping our stuff out of site and inside the home.
Storage during deer season:
Once again, keep clothing inside bags and totes. This will eliminate any concern of rodents and bugs getting into our clothes. Rodents and bugs are also less likely to get into our clothes when we are using them regularly throughout deer season.
During deer season, many hunters leave their hunting clothes and equipment in their vehicles or in places are that easily accessible to thieves. Keep hunting clothes inside your home and out of site whenever possible. This will reduce the odds of theft.
Conclusion
The odds of success and failure in the deer woods can be the result of how well we stored our hunting clothes. Use the tips in this article to help you get one step closer to success.