Peter F:

While 99% of my fishing friends consider my habit excessive, (because they're too lazy themselves to do it), I clean my wading shoes after each trip when I'm not going fishing the following day.

I use Dawn dish washing liquid with a scrub brush on the felt soles to keep them clean for better grip and to get rid of any poison ivy oil that ALWAYS finds it way to my hands and arms. I figure it might kill other critters as well.

I use the same scrub brush and Dawn for the rest of the shoe with the exception of my Russell shoes that are made of top grain leather. On those shoes I clean the leather portion of the shoe with Saddle Soap. Afterwards I rinse them clean and air dry.

I have been cleaning my felts and soles like this for years and my shoes and felts have outlasted ALL of my friends shoes with more than twice the use. It takes a little bit of time to clean them but I think it's worth it.