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REVIEW: Clean Fight Tea Tree Disinfectant Spray 100% Natural Gear Cleaner




What’s the first rule of Clean Fight Club?

Make it a clean fight!

How can you do this? Clean your gear after

every…single…. use.




Your gloves and shin guards have to endure a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Stinky kick-boxing gear is not only a personal embarrassment in training, bacteria growing unfettered in a boxing glove could penetrate a cut or scratch on your hand causing an infection or worse. This rancid smell (bromhidrosis) is caused due to decomposition by bacteria and yeast of sweat gland secretions and cellular debris on your skin. Here at Clean Fight Club we love to try new products, especially ones that help us clean and sanitize our kick-boxing gear. With that in mind, we are delighted to share the results of our inaugural product review! Let us introduce you to Clean Fight Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray!



BRAND


We stumbled across Clean Fight AZ via Instagram earlier this year and were immediately drawn to the company. Not only was it a small business in its infancy with a company name similar to ours, but the owner (Jasmine Anderson) was interested in waging the same war as we were. “The never-ending battle against various gym cooties”. Jasmine has her Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering and is passionate about natural alternatives to not only traditional supplements but to cleaning supplies as well.


As Jasmine progressed from power lifting to Muay Thai and Brazilian Jui-Jitsu, she soon learned the joys of battling ringworm and other “gym cooties” that are common in MMA gyms. She believes strongly in her products and wants to share them with the rest of the fight community. Her hope is to get all-natural products into the hands of athletes at an affordable price so "natural" and "organic" is attainable.


As well as the Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray that is the subject of this review, Clean Fight AZ. also sells a wide variety of soaps, herbal rollers, bath bombs, CBD recovery salts, salves, and shower steamers.


INGREDIENTS & PACKAGING


If you are one of those people who do not want to clean their fight gear with harsh chemicals, it's possible that you have used or tried a version of a water/vinegar solution popular with boxers to clean your gloves and shin-guards. Clean Fight Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray is a huge upgrade and vast improvement to that old standby. If you don’t want your gloves to smell like a vinegar bomb every time you throw a punch, then this is the gear spray for you! Here is what Clean Fight AZ. tells us about their ingredients for this gear spray.



  • Apple Cider Vinegar: Vinegar can help kill pathogens, including bacteria. It has traditionally been used for cleaning and disinfecting, treating nail fungus, lice, warts and ear infections. We use ACV in our sprays because the main substance in vinegar, acetic acid, can kill harmful bacteria or prevent them from multiplying.


  • Pure Tea Tree Essential Oil: Tea tree oil is distilled from the leaves of the Melaleuca alternifolia plant, found in Australia. The oil possesses antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and antifungal properties. A person can treat acne, athlete's foot, contact dermatitis or head lice using tea tree oil which is why it's a key ingredient in our Clean Fight Gear Spray.


  • Pure Eucalyptus Essential Oil: The University of Maryland Medical (UMM) Center describe how traditional Aboriginal medicines used eucalyptus to treat fungal infections and skin wounds.


  • Full Ingredient List: Distilled water, apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, Pure Tea Tree Essential Oil, Pure Eucalyptus Essential Oil, Lemongrass Essential Oil, Polysorbate 80 (naturally derived from coconuts).


The Clean Fight Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray is sold in a 4 fl. oz size (comes in blue PLASTIC spray bottle) and a 16 fl. oz. (which comes in a blue GLASS spray bottle). Both of these blue spray containers provide UV protection against degradation from ultraviolet light, keeping the essential oils used in the product safe.


For this product review, we purchased four of the 4 oz. and four of the 16 oz. bottles from the Clean Fight AZ. company website. The bottles were shipped priority mail and arrived in California, on time, with all the bottles snuggly packed. No bottles were leaking or damaged during the shipping process.


PRODUCT REVIEW PARTICIPANTS


We assembled a diverse group of combat sports enthusiasts, who agreed to use Clean Fight Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray and share their opinions on the product.

pictured from left to right


1. Chris Ramos, owner of Rekon Athletics. www.rekonathletics.com

2. Dana Hernandez, strength training-mindset-MMA www.empoweredbydana.com

3. Kevin Iritano, trains in BANG Muay Thai (orange belt).

4. Ryan Lilley, Pro MMA fighter follow on instagram @ryan_thelion_lilley

5. Lauren Iannetta, trains in BANG Muay Thai (yellow belt).

6. Tisha Nagel, founder of Clean Fight Club and author of this review.

7. Damon Jacobs, Martial Arts, Fitness, Video/Photography @damonwjacobs

8. Paul Logan, Actor, Producer, Writer and Martial Artist,PaulLoganFitness @paullogan88



Each of the above participants were given their own bottle of the gear spray to use as they saw fit. After 6 weeks all participants filled out a questionnaire about the product. First, we will show the raw data of that survey and then move on to some more anecdotal thoughts on the gear spray. We will end with a detailed description about how I, Tisha, incorporated the gear spray into my daily care and maintenance of my personal kickboxing gear.


RAW SURVEY DATA - (from participants)



We asked the review participants to give us their thoughts on the packaging of the gear spray. The people who were given a 4oz. bottle liked the fact that it could easily be stored in their gym bags, and they all felt the spray bottle trigger worked well and none of the 4 oz. users had any problem with product leaking in gym bags. The participants who were given the 16 oz. bottle all really dug the fact that it was in an attractive glass bottle, although one person found it a little heavy to be stored in the gym bag. One of the 16 oz respondents had a small issue with the spray trigger getting stuck after 3-4 sprays, but said it was easy to reset. As a side note, one of our reviewers let so many other people at the gym use some of their spray, that he actually had to buy some more product for himself. During the shipping of his product, one of the bottles was damaged and the Clean Fight AZ. company quickly rectified the situation.


When we asked the group what they liked most about the product, 6 out of the 8 respondents said it was the smell they liked and how the fragrance would linger until the next training session. These respondents really felt their gear smelled better. The other two reviewers liked the fact that it was a natural product the most. and that no harsh chemicals were used in the ingredients.


Finally, when we asked the reviewers what they DISLIKED about the product, two of the respondents experienced a slight yellowing of the leather on their WHITE gloves and shin guards. One of these users was able to just wipe it off with a moist cloth. The other could not remove the slight discoloration. They felt that it was due to the essential oils in the product and said that they sometimes just sprayed their gear, and did not wipe it as recommended on the packaging. One of the reviewers loved the fact that it was a natural vinegar based product, but felt that every once and a while they could still smell that undercurrent of the vinegar base. One of the respondents felt that even though the product worked great at minimizing the bad smells of their gear, they still thought the fragrance of the gear spray was a little too strong. Another of the respondents felt that the fragrance was too feminine for his taste. One of the reviewers had a skin reaction on her face (around the eyes). She believed due to always bringing her gloves back to face after punching and touching her face with her wrapped hands during Muay Thai classes. The last two users could not think of a single thing they didn't like about Clean Fight Tea Tree Disinfectant Spray.


Everyone who tried the Clean Fight Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray noticed a definite decrease in foul odors emanating from their gear, although for some people the smell was a little strong for their preference. We should also say that a couple of participants of this gear spray review shared their product with other people in the gym who were not only interested in the product, but once they sprayed it on their OWN gear decided to purchase the product for themselves.


We were surprised to find that half of the respondents actually go out of their way to search out cleaning products without harsh chemicals. That was much higher than we anticipated, so this spray definitely is fulfilling a need in the fighting community. As stated a couple of times the scent is a bit strong, but if you are someone who sweats a lot you are most likely in need of something on the strong side. Although one of the respondents found the scent to be on the feminine side, we kind of disagree with that assessment…. It is really more of a strong essential oil smell that’s kind of hard to describe. This product’s fragrance is kind of like a Rorschach test, everyone smelled something different. Some people smelled the eucalyptus some thought it smelled like ginger, in our opinion it is more lemon or orange oil smell.


In hindsight, we think it would be interesting to test a natural product like this one in a lab setting to see exactly what the efficacy rate for killing bacteria and virus’ are in a product like this. Does it get up to a 99.9% effective rate of a Lysol type product? That would be interesting to find out, and if so, WAY better for the life of your gloves and shinguards.


In conclusion, we would STRONGLY recommend this product if you are interested in natural cleaning products for your fight gear and are in need of serious help with the stench emanating from your gloves. After all, no one wants to be that smelly guy in class.



 

HOW I USED THE PRODUCT TO CLEAN AND SANITIZE MY GEAR

-Tisha Nagel founder of Clean Fight Club


I think we all go through it. The first time a person shows up to a boxing gym, kickboxing, or even cardio kickboxing class, what is the first thing that happens? Most people don’t even have their own gloves yet but “borrow” a stray pair from the gym. And what, pray tell happens after this first experience? The smell on most communal gym gloves are fetid, and it only takes that one experience to send a person straight to the sporting goods store! Well once you get those new gloves, take a nice long whiff of the inside because they are never going to smell that fresh again unless you clean the gloves after each use.


The importance of cleanliness is heightened when you train in an MMA gym. Think about it, everyone in bare feet (show me a 16 year old without athlete’s foot and I’ll show you a unicorn!) and wrapped hands, shadowboxing, sprawling, hitting the bag, hitting each other. Gloves on gloves off, in the clinch, push-ups, more sprawls…. it’s chaos. Awesome chaos, but chaos none the less. Despite the fact that the gym I attend is clean and well maintained, I still contracted conjunctivitis a couple of times before I really dialed in the way I care for my equipment and myself.


1. WASH AND SANITIZE YOUR HANDS


Perspiration itself has no scent. It is only when the sweat encounters bacteria on the skin that the bad smell emerges. The easiest way to decrease the potential stench is to simply wash your hands and remove most the dirt, bacteria and other contaminants that may be there. The use of a strong hand sanitizer afterword can maximize this precautionary measure.


2. WEAR HAND WRAPS

Wearing hand wraps can not only protect your wrists and knuckles but can soak up most of the sweat before it can even start permeating the boxing glove. Be sure to buy enough wraps to allow you to use a fresh wrap before every training session. Wash wraps after each use to avoid shoving yesterday’s blood, sweat and tears into today’s cleaned glove.



3. WIPE OFF GLOVES AND SHIN GUARDS


Immediately after training wipe off any moisture on the inside and outside of the glove. Get as much of the sweat out of the glove as possible. Personally, I use whatever cleaning product I’m currently using to sanitize my gloves when I get home from the gym (unless of course I’m not directly going home). I keep high quality absorbent paper towels in my gym bag to immediately pull the moisture out of the gloves and shinguards as soon as I step out of class.


4. DO NOT STORE FIGHT GEAR IN A GYM BAG

Between training sessions always store your gear in the open. Not in a closed gym bag. If you’ve ever left your sweaty gear in a gym bag overnight, or God forbid a gym bag in a hot car you know how quickly that musty smell can present itself. I hook my gloves outside my gym bag after a training session just to be certain they do not get forgotten inside the bag. I also invested in a nice mesh gym bag which I really think has made a difference. The bag is super easy to just throw into the wash and hang dry. The simple act of washing a gym bag once or twice a month will really aid in combatting that musty gym bag smell.


My mesh bag

Meister Breathable Chain Mesh Duffel Gym Bag

Available on Amazon Prime for $29.99





5. SPRAY THE GLOVE WITH GEAR SPRAY


If I am sparring or training with someone who is a very heavy sweater, I will wash off the outside of the boxing glove and shin guards with a gentle soap and water. Then I spray the inside and outside of the glove with the Gear Spray.







I wait a minute and then wipe the spray all around the inside and outside of the glove to get in all the cervices.








6. DRY YOUR GEAR

After my gear has been sanitized, the focus is on getting any moisture left on or in the gear to dry as quickly as possible. I set my shin guards on a shelf with good airflow, sometimes using a fan if needed.


When it comes to my boxing gloves I have taken to using a boot dryer with a ozone function. I set the timer for 9 minutes and let it blow out. After that, I usually let the ozone function go for another 9 minutes. This drying time is usually sufficient to completely dry out the gloves. This method of drying boxing gloves is really great if you are training twice a day, as it enables you to completely dry the glove between sessions.





Why do I like an ozone function? Ozone gas attacks bacteria, odors and viruses through a natural oxidation process at a molecular level. I just store my gloves on the boot dryer, which holds the gloves open to allow are flow all day, then just throw the gloves into my gym bag on the way out the door for my next training session.








My ozone boot dryer:

Ayaprak Shoe Dryer with Ozone Function


as of 11-22-20 out of stock on Amazon


*there are other brands but be sure to make sure it has an ozone function




 

Remember, professional grade gloves and shin guards are NOT cheap. Just a little bit of effort put into prevention is well worth it. Once the bacteria starts growing it is nearly impossible to reverse that trajectory. Using a high-quality product like Clean Fight Tea Tree Gear Disinfectant Spray to clean and sanitize your equipment in conjunction with good every session cleaning habits will ensure a nice long stink-free life for your gloves and help you to follow that number one rule of Clean Fight Club….


Make it a clean fight!



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