How To Wash The Icon Helmet Liner? – (My Way)

It’s easy for us to notice how dirty our helmets get on the outside, but we often overlook the inside of the helmet. The second helmet I bought is an Icon AirFlite(My First Helmet: Fuel Full-Face Motorcycle Helmet). I love how the Icon Airflite Helmet looks and feels, but I noticed that after a month or two of summer rides, there is that ‘smell’ that just builds. So, let’s cover how to wash the Icon Helmet Liner.

Based on my experience, here is how to wash an Icon Helmet Liner. If you get a routine down, you can have your motorcycle helmets inside lovely, clean, and ready to ride quickly. Remember ATGATT?

Steps I Take To Wash My Icon Helmet Liner.

Collect Items I Need.

1.- I Wash My Icon Helmet Liner With A Large Basin/Pot.

Everyone has that pink plastic basin they kept during their Emergency Room visit.

Today I’m using a big sauce pot.

2.- Hypoallergenic, Unscented Mild Laundry Soap Used To Wash The Liner.

Icon Helmet Manual instructs using a mild soap, like a baby shampoo, but I don’t like this. Baby shampoos are hard to come by in my house; my youngest is in the teens, and baby shampoos have scents.

I don’t want a perfume-smelling helmet liner next to my face.

Plus, if I trust my laundry soap to wash clothing that sits against my body daily, It should be safe enough to use on my liner occasionally.

3.- Towels, A Few Clean Towels.

I get messy, so I lay one towel on the kitchen floor, close to the sink, and lay out all the items I need to wash my liner. It keeps from creating slippery conditions, and I can put my liner down on a clean surface.

One towel I use at the end to help pull water out of the helmet liner pieces to aid in faster drying.

Remove The Motorcycle Helmet Liner.

Removing the helmet liner is pretty simple, but I am still gentle since this liner keeps my head safe. How I Remove The Padding From My Icon Helmet:

Remove The Helmet Liner Cheek Pads Are Next.

Snaps are located on the rear section of the helmet; I fish my fingers inside and pop the snap, continuing by pealing the cheek pad away from the Velcro. 

Remove both sides.

Remove The Chin-Curtain.  

FYI, the chin curtain of the motorcycle is the first thing that shows ‘dirt’ on it. The Icon AirFlite helmet has a vent selector above the chin curtain and inside the face section. My gloves must be rubbing off on the chin curtain.

The Chin Curtain is a good indicator of the Icon Helmet Liner’s cleanliness.

FYI, the Helmet’s chin-curtain could have been removed first. 😀

Helmet Liner Top Pad Is Final.

Fishing fingers between the liner and foam interior, I pop both snaps on the rear. I gently removed the forward plastic rim from under the viewing hole bezel.

Finally, once all the pieces of the helmet liner are removed, I do a quick inspection.  

What is the condition of the helmet liner?

• Any tears?
• Are there any wear spots?
• Are there any ripped seams?
• Foam feels ‘crunchy,’ no spring back left?

The helmet liner is part of the helmet’s overall system to keep my head safe. If the liner is old and worn, the helmet might not sit right on my head, or part of the impact protection might be compromised.

All my helmets have been cheaper than any ER visit; I’ll remove them as they wear out.

Time To Wash The Icon Helmet Liner

Fill Up The Basin With Soap And Warm Water.

I use it as warm as possible without it being hot. If it feels ‘good’ on my hands, it should feel good on the foam.

Now I add very little soap. Just enough to make the water ‘wetter’ and a slight amount of bubbles on the surface with agitation.  

To quantify this, a cap-full of laundry soap.

Submerge And Gently Squish The Liner In Sections.

Holding the liner parts down, I gently squeeze and release. The idea is to have the soapy water penetrate the foam and material, carrying away any dirt, grease, or smell.

Let The Helmet Liner Soak For Several Minutes.

With the helmet liner’s foam soaked, the liner tends to float just below the surface.  

I let it soak, but not for long. Just long enough for me to return the laundry soap to my wash area.

Submerge And Gently Squeeze And Clean The Liner Again.

After a few minutes, I give the helmet liner more swishes and foam squeezes.

Dump Soapy/Dirty Water.  

Now, the point of soapy water is to carry away the dirt and grim, so get rid of the soapy water.

Gently Squeeze Water Out Of Helmet Liner.

After draining my basin, I squeeze the helmet liners over my sink before returning them to the liner pieces and back to the basin.

Refill the Basin With Clean Water And Gently Squeeze Liners.

The goal is to remove as much remaining dirt and soap from the liner parts as possible.

Squeeze and wiggle, drain and refill the basin, and repeat as needed.

Drain Water And Dry Helmet Liner.

I figure I’m done when the water remains clear during the rinse operation. 

Now, it’s time to do the final drain. Squeeze out the remaining water, and for the last squeeze, I take a clean towel and wrap the liner with it.

The towel will help draw out reaming water.

The liner pieces are laid out to dry. Sometimes, you lay them out to dry. I might have them near the heater vent on my floor, but not directly over the grill.

Wipe Out the Interior Of Your Icon Helmet.

This moment is a good time to wipe out the helmet’s interior.  

I used a clean cloth and did single passes with a clean side of the fabric each time.

FYI: It is not unusual that I use this time while my helmet liner is drying to wash the outside of my helmet. Since I am cleaning a matte finish motorcycle helmet, it takes a while, and I can do it while waiting for the helmet liner parts to dry.

Re-Install Helmet Liner.

Starting With The Top Icon Helmet Liner Piece.

I slowly feed the plastic rim under the helmet’s visor area bezel.

To help with alignment, Icon added an arrow and indicator mark to help line up the plastic pieces.

After the front of the top liner is snapped in, I attach the two rear snaps.

Next, The Cheek Pads.

After figuring out which cheek pad goes on which side of the helmet and looking for the “L” and “R” tags, I connect the single snap. Then, slowly apply the pad to the helmet’s Velcro area. 

Ensuring the bottom edge of the cheek pad foam is lined up with the bottom opening of the helmet.

Finally, The Helmet Chin-Curtain.

Slowly feed the chin-curtain plastic piece into the small gap of the chin area.  

Helmet Liner Cleaning Completed!

Writing these steps out seems like an ordeal to wash your Icon Helmet Liner, but I just broke the steps down into smaller steps to explain how I wash my Icon AirFlite Helmet.

Now, if you get into the habit of cleaning your liner when needed, check the chin curtain for tell-tail dirt marks; it can help prepare your helmet for your next riding experience with a clean, no-perfume-smelling interior.

FAQ’s About Icon Helmet Liner Washing.

Two Icon Helmet Questions I Read And Wanted To Address.

Can You Machine Wash the Helmet Liner?

Simple answer: I wouldn’t wash my Icon helmet liner in the machine.

Some people talk about putting the helmet liner parts inside a laundry net bag to protect it, and my experience trying to wash foam items in the washing machines wasn’t successful. I am even using the laundry nets.

1.- The washing machine doesn’t do a good job squeezing and mashing the foam liner, trying to remove the sweat and grim.

2.- If the washing doesn’t check the condition of the items as it washes, meaning if one area is getting hit hard, the machine wouldn’t know to stop before tearing a seam or wearing a hole in the material.

So, from what I see, you shouldn’t wash your motorcycle helmet liner in the washing machine.

How Do I Keep My Motorcycle Helmet From Smelling?

I don’t like the ‘funk’ smell that grows in my helmet over time, but it’s easy to prevent this.

I wash my helmet liner and allow it to air dry thoroughly before reinstalling the liner parts. With a wash basin and a little soap, you can wash away any smell that starts to develop.

On the other side, I don’t like fake laundry perfumes right in my face. I use unscented, hypoallergenic laundry soap to keep that smell from developing.  

These steps keep my motorcycle helmet from smelling.

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Now get out there, Ride Fun, Ride Safe!