This DryGuy boot dryer means no more damp shoes or dank gloves
Content is created by CNN Underscored’s team of editors who work independently from the CNN newsroom. When you buy through links on our site, CNN and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Learn more
When my husband took up fly-fishing, I figured it would involve a lot of gear — and I was right. But what I didn’t expect was the absolutely repulsive smell filling our house as his wet wading boots sat drying in the mudroom. Seriously, it was like a dank and moldy odor had permeated our kitchen, and I couldn’t walk by the hallway without getting a whiff of total grossness. We tried all the internet-recommended solutions like storing them in a ziplock bag or filling them with baking soda, but nothing cut through the stench filling our main floor.
That is, until we discovered the DryGuy Force Dry DX. Not only did this four-pronged boot-and-glove dryer save our house from smells, but it is also the most useful piece of gear we’ve purchased in the past five years — and that’s saying something as a writer who reviews outdoor gear for her career. It solved our wading-boot woes, but it also became an invaluable year-round tool for our ski boots, our daughter’s snow mittens, wet beanies and even ski helmets. We’ve owned the DryGuy for nearly three years now, and there isn’t a week that goes by without turning on that delightful little dryer.
Want to learn more about the gear dryer you never knew you needed? Here are the details.
DryGuy Force Dry DX
With an intuitive design and easy-to-follow instructions, this boot and glove dryer uses cold or hot air to easily dry two pairs of gloves or two pairs of boots at the same time. And it runs on a timer so you don’t have to worry about it running all night.
$88 at Amazon
$110 at REI
$110 at Christy Sports
What I liked about it
With a family of three living in a Colorado ski town, I consider the DryGuy Force Dry DX to be the unsung hero of our gear closet. We’re constantly rotating our gear as we play outside on a daily basis, and this handy device ensures everything is dry and ready to go — without throwing it inside the clothes dryer and ruining its structure.
It actually works
For a product like the DryGuy, a review boils down to one factor: Does it work or not? Nothing else matters if it doesn’t deliver as promised.
Thankfully, I’ve had nothing but success with the DryGuy. Four drying ports stick upward like cylindrical prongs, making it super easy to place footwear or gloves over the top. The manufacturer’s description says it can handle up to 6.5 pounds of weight, but I routinely place two pairs of ski boots on the prongs without any issues. (Ski boots are roughly 8 pounds per pair.) If I’m only putting one pair of boots on the dryer, I make sure to put one on each side to balance the weight.
I’ve also used the DryGuy for snow hats, ski helmets, wading boots, wet socks and soaked winter mittens. I have a kindergartener who spent all of last year in forest school, playing outside in the Colorado Rockies for six hours every day. She’d return home slathered in mud and snow with saturated mittens completely soaked from the inside out (because 5-year-olds do weird things with their gloves). I didn’t want to throw her stuff in the dryer because some of it was line-dry only. Plus, the heat of a clothes dryer is often too much for outdoor gear, breaking down the various waterproofing elements, especially when used on a daily basis. That’s why the DryGuy quickly became my best friend. I’d immediately pop her hat and mittens on there first so they’d be dry before dinner. Then, I’d swap those out with her soaked winter boots before I went to bed.
Wash, rinse, repeat — for nine months straight. Never once did she return to school with wet or cold gear.
Easy setup and design for tech novices
If something is complicated to assemble or difficult to use, you can just forget about it because I won’t ever crack the box in my house. But the DryGuy is as basic as it comes.
When it arrives, you pull the device out of the box and find a flat surface. Then plug it in and it’s ready to go. There isn’t any fancy setup or assembly required — thank goodness.
Beyond assembly, it’s so easy to use that my kiddo does it by herself. There are only two controls on the front: a knob and a button. The knob controls how long you want the forced air to run. When turned to its maximum, it’ll operate for three hours. (It’s a rarity to need more than that.)
The button is a hot/cold switch. When flipped one way, you’ll have hot air to dry everything. When flipped the other, it’ll be room-temperature forced air. The heat option is fairly mild (105 degrees Fahrenheit), but we tend to use the No Heat option the most. Lots of outdoor gear like ski and snowboard boots or even wading boots can dry out or crack over time if you use too much heat. For us, the No Heat option circulates enough air to dry everything without worrying about causing any damage.
Its small footprint fits anywhere
I’m lucky to have a mudroom that holds everyone’s shoes and chaos, but I still don’t want a massive device hulking up the space.
At a foot wide and 7.5 inches deep, the DryGuy’s footprint is pretty small on its own (and it’s only 15 inches tall). I have it sitting on top of a plastic shoe tray to catch any dripping water, and the tray is the bigger space hog. Plus, it comes with a 6-foot power cord so you don’t need to have it right next to an outlet. For a while, I even stored mine in the garage, and the cord was long enough to reach a power source.
Cuts down on bacteria
While the emphasis of the DryGuy is on drying your gear, I’d be remiss if I didn’t touch on one of the best parts: It helps prevent bacteria and mold.
Remember the disgusting wading boots? There is a good chance they smelled so bad because they were developing some type of bacteria, thanks to the persistent damp and dank conditions inside the boot. Snow or rain boots can have the same thing happen, especially if they are used frequently. In general, boots are tough to fully dry because you can’t really get a lot of natural air down into the toe box where it’s needed.
That’s why the DryGuy is awesome. By using a forced-air blower to circulate the airflow, it can easily reach the dark corners of your gear. This ensures that all the nooks and crannies dry out, which is a powerful step to preventing the growth of bacteria. My husband fly-fishes at least a few times per week in the summer and is one of those die-hards that still wades in the river to fish all winter. This means his wading boots were perpetually wet and smelly until we started using the DryGuy.
But once this little machine became part of his post-fishing routine, nearly all odors disappeared. He immediately props his boots on the device when he gets home, and it runs for the full three hours. While you can still catch a slight wet smell in the corner, it’s nowhere near as disgusting as it was before we owned the DryGuy.
What I didn’t like about it
Honestly, you can’t beat the DryGuy Force Dry DX. But if I’m being picky, here’s one sticking point.
It could be quieter
To be clear, it’s nowhere near as loud as a clothes dryer or even my constantly running Roomba. But don’t go into it thinking it will be silent.
My DryGuy is tucked in the mudroom at the end of a hallway, so it is set back from most of the house. When I’m sitting in my living room, I can’t even hear it. But if I’m in our kitchen or my office — both of which are much closer — it sounds like faint white noise running in the background.
It’s not obtrusive and no one on Zoom calls ever picks up on it. But I have had a few guests over for dinner in the kitchen who randomly ask, “Hey, what’s that noise?” while cocking their heads to the side.
How it compares
When it comes to boot and glove dryers, folks have options. If you need a smaller device, the Forlim Boot Dryer is a much cheaper pick and comes with a bendable design that easily fits into boots, but it only comes with two drying ports.
The Everlasting Comfort Heavy-Duty Boot Dryer is another option. Like the DryGuy, it has four drying ports and can blow hot or warm air. However, it does cost a bit more money at Amazon.
If you know that DryGuy is the brand you want to support, it does sell the DryGuy Force Dry Boot Dryer, which has two drying ports instead of four. The brand also makes the DryGuy Travel Dry DX Boot Dryer, a much smaller (and more affordable) option that is designed to go with you in a suitcase. It isn’t as powerful as the Force Dry DX, but it can be useful if you’re on a ski vacation.
Bottom line
After nearly three years of use, I couldn’t be happier with the DryGuy Force Dry DX. If you’re an outdoor enthusiast who is constantly battling the elements with your gear, you will be happy with it too. It’s also a great option for families or those with younger children since it can simultaneously handle multiple products and dries relatively quickly.
And if you’re feuding with your partner over smelly gear, this one is a no-brainer.
Note: The prices above reflect the retailers' listed price at the time of publication.
For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
