Stinky clothes

Si_Clist

All of my shirts and tops come from charity shops, and I have a problem. I don't want to smell like a tart's handbag.

However, the clothes that I buy do often smell like one, due to the amount of incredibly powerful stinky stuff that modern men seem to splash about their persons.

At present, the only way I know of to deal with this is to wash the garment, then hang it out on the line in all weathers till the smell eventually either disappears or subsides to a tolerable level. Problem is, this can take a week or more - especially if it doesn't rain.

Does anybody know of any magic technique for ridding garments of unwanted pongs?

Piggywiggy

My working clothes don't smell to pleasant by the end of the day, I find a long wash (at least 2 and a half hours) on 40 and some fabric conditioner works a treat.

oystercatcher

It might be the laundry detergent used. Some of the brands have added perfume and to me smell awful. I have a friend who passes on clothes to me who loves perfumed laundry. I find it takes , on average three washes on my nice unperfumed detergent to get rid of the perfume. Your hanging outside for a few days seems a more moneysaving alternative.
I wonder if vinegar might help dissolve the pong ? Hopefully someone will be along with more ideas soon.

elona

I found soaking items in a vinegar solution overnight then washing in machine and hanging them in the fresh air to dry helped a lot.

jrtfan

I know that bicarbonate of soda if sprinkled dry over a carpet/upholstery and left for a while will eliminate lots of nasty odours (ie cigarette smoke, dogs etc) but I haven't actually tried it on laundry. I suppose it wouldn't harm to give it a go, if you felt like experimenting! Perhaps sprinkle a bit of the dry stuff over 1 item and leave for 30 mins; then try soaking a different item in some warm water containing 2 or 3 teaspoons of bicarb, to see if either method works?

Sorry I can't be of more use.

Si_Clist

Thanks Maybe one thing I'm doing wrong is, because I've trained myself to be frugal, I'm only giving these things that stink when I get them the usual 40 minute wash before hanging them outside.

Fabric conditioner's out because of (a) the cost of buying one specially and (b) the smell they have, so I'll try a full-fat wash with the next stinker and see if that helps

karren

vinegar in your wash or soak in bicarbonate of soda

sweetilemon

Have you tried napisan in the wash? It's odourless but has antibacterial to kill smells. That and some fabric conditioner should work.

Si_Clist

I like the idea of Napisan but it's not bacteria causing the pong - it's all the smellies that Modern Man smothers himself in!

Debran

Just put vinegar in the final rinse slot of the washing machine. I never bother using white vinegar for this purpose as I find it makes no difference as you are using such a small quantity. Just use cheapest vinegar you can find. The washing may have a very slight smell of vinegar when when you first remove it from the machine but this will soon disappear as it dries.

krlyr

I often chuck bicarb in with the washing powder when I throw the dogs' blankets etc. in the wash, helps a lot with their whiffiness.