This tutorial will show you how to clean your Hunter boots to remove white bloom.
It’s normal for Hunter boots to bloom, aka turn white.
The good news is it’s very easy to clean your Hunter boots with common household products once they have bloomed! There is no need to buy expensive rubber boot cleaner to do so!
Do you own a pair of Hunter rain boots you love so much, but you’re not sure how to clean your Hunter boots that turned white from blooming?
If so, then you’ve come to the right place because today I’m going to show you how easy it is to remove white bloom marks from your Hunter boots with a common household product!
Once your Hunter boots begin to settle, you may notice that your boots need to be cleaned and will begin to have a white powdery texture on them.
Don’t worry, they’re not ruined! Blooming is a completely normal process for rubber!
Instead of buying pricey Hunter boot buffer spray cleaner, you can clean the boots yourself with something you probably already have at home!
HOW TO CLEAN HUNTER BOOTS TO REMOVE WHITE BLOOM
What to Use to Clean Your Hunter Boots
To clean your Hunter boots that have bloomed, all you need is some olive oil and a soft microfiber cleaning cloth.
How to Clean Your Hunter Boots to Remove White Bloom
To clean your Hunter boots, dab a small amount of olive oil on the soft microfiber cleaning cloth and wipe the bloomed boots in a circular motion.
The olive oil will begin to remove the white powdery texture.
Use a small amount of olive oil so you don’t make the boots too oily. When you use just enough, you should be able to remove the bloom with the oil.
Continue wiping down the boot with the microfiber cloth until the boot is dry of oil.
It’s not necessary to wipe with the boots with water, but if you put too much oil, you may need to do so to dilute it. 
Once you’re finished, your Hunter boots will look brand new again and the white bloom will be gone!
You can’t prevent Hunter boots from blooming, since it’s a common occurrence in natural rubber, but this easy way to clean your Hunter boots is affordable and simple enough to routinely follow when they do bloom.
If your boots happen to bloom again, just repeat this cleaning process.
If you have any other tips on how to clean your Hunter boots, I’d love to hear them! Share in the comments below!
Looking for more tips, tricks, and life hacks like this one? Check out these posts!
Kate Mitchell says
This is so helpful! Thank you!
Jennifer Kleinsasser says
Awesome, can't wait to try this on my hunters!
whileshedreams says
Great tip, thanks for sharing!
Kate at Green Fashionista says
This is FABULOUS! I was wondering why my boots were getting that white stuff on them. I thought maybe I stepped in something I was unaware of 😛
Terri. says
This is great! Thank you so much for sharing.
Ally Swanson says
Great tip! Sounds easy enough, I will have to try this, thanks!
Veronica Lee says
Thanks for this great tip! Gonna try this. Thanks!
Mish L. says
Great idea! I love the boots by the way. 🙂
Alina says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing I'll be needing this 🙂
Colleen says
I've read this before but found that the blooming came back almost immediately- did you find that as well?
Dara @ The Southern Thing says
I don't believe there's a way to fully prevent the boots from blooming, as it's a naturally occurring process with rubber; however, when I cleaned mine, the bloom stayed off for months.
Debbie says
Thanks so much!
Emily says
Yes, I did to I was wondering if I did it wrong. I tried again to and it once again did not work.
Jules says
I actually tried this and the blooming cake back immediately after it dries!
Life in Color says
This only works temporarily
Dara @ The Southern Thing says
It usually stays off for several months for me, but there really is not a way to permanently prevent it from happening. Blooming is a natural process from the rubber, so it will do it regardless. Thankfully it's very easy to wipe off!
Angela O'Mahony says
Thank you for the great tip!! Life in Color, there is no reason to be mean! She never said it was permanent.
Unknown says
Thanks for the great tip, I didn't want to buy the actual hunter boot buffer spray. You saved me a few bucks.
Hanny says
Thanks for sharing the tips, but I read on the hunter site that exposure to solvents, oils and animal fats, can swell the rubber. Since you are explaining to use a bit of oil perhaps it should be fine right?
Heather says
We just did this and they look brand new and it was so easy to do. Thank you!!
C.S says
Will this work if my boots have white bloom on them for a long time already? (at least a year), because the hunter spray didn’t work and they have been sitting in my closet like that.
Jen says
I ran out of my Hunter boot cleaner but tried the olive oil and worked great. Thanks for the tip!
Jen says
I ran out of my Hunter boot cleaner but tried the olive oil and worked great. Thanks for the tip!
Grace says
My boots look brand new again! THANK YOU!
Jody McSorley says
I’ve cleaned my boots 3 or 4 times now using the soapy water and rag method, however they only stay black (without the white hue) for about a day or so, then it completely returns if not worse. Any other ideas…so frustrating for the price paid for them.
Denise says
Do you have to wait a specific time before being able to wear them? Or can you just wear them right away?
Crystal says
My hunter boots had the white bloom on the top half of the boots. I used a couple drops dish soap in a bowl of water and washed them with a microfiber towel after dipping it in the solution and wringing it out. I dried them and buffed them out with a dry microfiber towel and olive oil until they were super shiny. Just like new out of the box. I’m happy with the results. Thanks for blogging this. Another tip to add… Be sure not to apply the oil on the bottom of your boots. This could be a huge safety hazard.
Erica Bonney says
Just did this and it worked perfectly – Mine were sitting in closet with bloom for almost 2 years and it removed it all – super easy. thank you!
Stacey says
I just received mine & they are like that in the box…should I return them??
Camilla says
Yes… unless your ok with the “blooming” I’ve had mine less than a year.. & no matter what I do it comes back before I’m back home from 1 outing😫 So frustrated😬
Carol says
I did not know about the bloom and returned mine immediately. A nice sales rep at zappos explained that this was a natural process of the type of rubber used by Hunter. I find it frustrating as well. They sent me a new pair and free products to address the blooming. Today I pulled them out and they were completely covered in white bloom…navy blue boots. I tried using the Hunter products but I needed to get to work and honestly it was not returning them to the original navy fast enough. I have many rubber boots that do not do this. I guess I’m happier with the cheaper boots that don’t “bloom” as I can just put them on and wear them. I won’t invest in another pair of these. This maintenance should be included on the box to make the customer aware that this is going to happen as a natural process after purchase. You will have to do this for the life of the boot and that’s a lot of maintenance for $100+ I’m going to try this instead of their products. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Michelle says
worked perfectly, thank you so much for sharing!
Unknown says
This worked great! Thanks for the tip I thought mine where ruined forever. I was getting my boots on and was so upset so I googled it and it took 5 minutes or less and it was gone. Thanks again!!
Nadine says
I bought the hunter spray and I think it makes it worse. I have been buffing into a sweat. I will try this. I knew there had to be an easier way.
Lakyra WilliamsL says
What if i don’t have any olive oil ?
Rachel says
Use coconut oil?
J says
Try hair oil products, I tried my Biosilk on mine and I’m going on a week since I cleaned them 😊
Suzanne says
does the blooming also occur on the glossy Hunter boots or just the matt Hunter boots?
Sonya says
I have a pair of both, matte & glossy. The matte ones have not bloomed at all.
Tammy says
I would say this is a bit of false advertising don’t you think??? The models in advertisements never have bloomed boots on and neither are they sold in stores looking bloomed!!! There are also no guidelines give when you purchase a pair of Hunter boots, well not here in SA anyway!
Very disappointing after spending so much money, R2700!!
Lindsay says
When I went to try them on the other day at Lord & Taylor, the sales rep bought a bloomed pair and not bloomed pair for me to try on, just so she could inform me of it which was super helpful! I think most stores probably clean them to not put off customers.
Rachel says
I think this site copied your article. They have the same pictures and some of what you wrote word for word. http://www.tradehome.com/2016/09/30/how-to-clean-your-hunter-boots-remove-white-bloom/
The Southern Thing says
Yes they did steal my copyrighted work. Thank you for letting me know!
Mimi Green says
Thanks, mine are white right now.
Diane says
I use Meguiar’s Endurance tire gel (no silicon) on my boots. Seems to last a few months before it soaks in and has to be reapplied. I like that it dries to the touch and I don’t have to worry about getting an grease stain on my clothes.
Huntingspro says
I love to follow this website for update hunting resources, thanks
Susie says
Thank you for sharing! I need mine clean for a photo session and actually scrubbed them with a brush 😂 of course no luck! I’m getting out the olive oil as we speak! You are awesome! Thanks for the tip!
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Merritt says
I’m afraid of the blooming coming back quickly for me too as I live in TX where the heat will evaporate oils like nothing! I read somewhere else that black boot polish works great too, especially for the matte wellies. Has anyone tried that? If so, what brand worked for you??