Originally Posted by
cyccommute
That could be a function of the gripper material rather than an effect from the dryer. Plastics, especially soft plastics, can decompose with age. Heat may not have anything to do with it. I have many shorts with grippers on them that are quite old without any deterioration problems.
I’m not saying that the deterioration problem you are having isn’t due to dryer use but it could be other factors as well.
As for hanging Lycra in direct sun, I don’t see why that should be a problem. We ride them in the sun so why would hanging them in the sun be any different?
Luckily most grippers these days seem to be silicone that is much more durable than the variety of elastics with natural rubbers or other less durable compounds. Those Tyr shorts are from the late 90s.
I hung some shorts out to dry once and forgot about em til 48 hours later. They were even in the shade for half the daylight hours. But they got cooked in the AZ sun. You can see the pattern of areas that were in the shade from the folds resulting from way they were hanging. I'd assume the damage is cumulative, so may be unnoticeable after 2 hours in the sun, but set em out for two hours every weekend and I'd expect to see degradation of materials after a few months.