Do i need to by some soakers as well as hard guards? i've only just got my skates and used them 3 times.. i want to keep them in perfect condition 100% of the time.

i might buy some animal blade covers (you know the soft blade covers with the cute animal heads and patterns on them)

And i also store my skates in the original box that they came in, after wiping the blades down with a wet tissue. Am i doing the right thing? can you help me please? Much appreciated!

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Giaz.
scene chav gonna tear you down .. because i'm gonna come and get you!
take the pee, and i'll hit you where it hurts with my toepick.

yes you definitely need both. wear your hard guards when you are off the ice but have the skates on your feet. just remember to take them off before you get on the ice!

put the soakers on when you don't have your skates on. dry your blades off with a dry towel then put on the soakers. i don't know about storing them in the box they came in--that seems like you could be inviting mold or other sorts of growth. its *best* not to leave them in any closed air container like a bag, box or a car, but i am definitely guilty of leaving mine in my bag, sometimes in my bag in my car.

as for keeping them perfect 100% of the time--its a noble effort, but it just won't happen. you will always end up with scratches and marks.

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You might also want to get a better cloth for wiping your blades - they rust really easily. I just use a flannel/face cloth - I have used a tissue occasionally when I realised my cloth wasn't in my bag, but I always found I ended up with bits if tissue everywhere, and they didn't absorb enough water.

Definitely get both the soakers and the hard guards. Soakers are for storing, hard guards are for walking around.

You should probably carry them to and from the rink & store them in a bag instead of the box. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, just big enough to hold your skates, guards, gloves & whatever else you need when you skate.

When you get home after skating, take the skates out of the bag, pull off the soakers, and just set them out to dry for a couple of hours. Not only is this good for preventing rust, but it also helps keep your boots from getting stinky After they dry, you can put the soakers back on (to protect the blades) and put them back in your bag.

A towel would probably work better than tissues for drying the blades. I used a dish towel for a long time.

Scuffs & scrapes on the boot will happen. It just means you're working hard