My Clothes Don't Smell Good

Laundry smelling like dog or musty smell Post By Brian (Guest Post) (02/09/2008) I read all the notes and comments, but never really saw one that suggested a "cure" except try vinegar or powdered soap instead of fabric softener or liquid soap. I spent a lot of money on this washer and dryer and it makes my clothes smell! Editor's Note: Many have said that it is the design of the washers, look up "Smelly Clothes" here and you will find a lot more information. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By april (Guest Post) (01/15/2008) I have been using dry soap with darks and I have not had the bad smell lately. Even cheap powder soap seems to work. I tried this because of the feedback about liquid soap having animal fat in it. My whites don't smell bad because I use bleach with them. So i just use liquid still with whites. Try powder, it may be as simple as that. Also, I am hooked on using white vinegar as a fabric softener. Not sure if it is helping, but it is an odor iliminator, so it makes sense. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Genie (Guest Post) (01/14/2008) I think I know what causes the bad smell in clothes. A couple of weeks ago we noticed that our clothes from the dryer had a chemical smell to them. Again yesterday we had that same smell. On doing some research this is what I found out. Yesterday we had a painter in the house using oil base paint. Needless to say the oder was very strong. Now when you use your dryer it sucks air from the inside of the house and blows it outside. If you have strong fumes (paint, dog, cooking etc.) in your home these would be pulled into your dryer and through your clothes. The painter was here a couple weeks ago when we had the problem with the bad smelling clothes the first time. I am no rocket scientist but I think what would solve some of the problems is that you don't do laundry when your house smells bad. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Wendell (Guest Post) (12/01/2007) X-O Odor Neutralizer really does work to honestly take any odor out of fabrics. Hunters even use it for an odor mask, so you know it's good if animals can't even detect a human smell. Use XO in your wash cycle or immerse the clothes in a diluted gallon and soak before washing. Instead of using dryer sheets you can soak a towel in some XO and throw that in. This really works for those problem clothes that come out clean from the wash initially but then once again acquire that same smell when you wear them. You can find it at Xospray.com online as well as that qvc site. Good luck Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By StarsOnmeShoes (Guest Post) (11/18/2007) I don't know why exactly but my clothes do stink when I receive them already 'washed'. It sucks, but, can it be that it is because of where we keep our clothes too? The thing is, my family likes to just keep my clothes inside a big plastic bag and without putting them in the drawers. So, I am asking, can it be the bags that make my clothes so vulnerable to 'icky' smells? Or can it still be that it is something else? Anything about my questions would be appreciated. ^-^ Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Jacqueline (Guest Post) (10/19/2007) If bleach, baking soda, ammonia, vinegar, etc. don't take away the odor there is a washing machine cleaner called called "Purewasher" that guarantees to remove washer fungus odor and mildew smell from towels and clothes. One order lasted me for over a year and I've been doing monthly maintenance washes just to make sure the odor didn't come back! Their website is www.smellywasher.com Report Spam or Abuse stinky clothes and smell coming from the washer Post By bassman (Guest Post) (09/20/2007) I came here looking for help for my stinky clothes. It started out my Egyptian cotton towels smelled as soon as we got them as a gift (mom smokes). Don't know if that is relevant, but anything that comes from her house is contaminated with musty smoke. I hate getting anything cloth from her as a gift. She doesn't believe in opening windows. I used to smoke, but used the window to ventilate. Anyway that started as the first problem noticed. Then we noticed some of our shirts smelled like a sewer or something. We tried washing them as much as 3x, but to no avail. Now the whole laundry area smells like a dead animal or a sewer. We have tried every soap- febreze you name it on the market. I did the borax -vinegar-pinesol thing, it only helps a little. Maybe my clothes are too far gone now. Any help is appreciated. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Coco (Guest Post) (09/08/2007) Our clothes seem to have a slight chemical smell and sometimes a doggy smell (we don't have a dog.) We have a Kenmore Elite, which is a Neptune-like washer and dryer. I have tried different things like leaving the door opened when not in use, adding vinegar to the wash, baking soda, bleach, hotter water, Simple Green, Lysol, extra rinse cycle, etc. (they all help a little, although I think Simple Green makes them smell the best.) Last week, when I was taking the washed clothes to the dryer I noticed a sock hanging out of the rubber gasket between the drum and the door. I turned down the gasket and found about six old, moldy socks that had gotten stuck behind the gasket for who knows how long. They had a terrible musty chemical smell to them. So, my suggestion is check out that big rubber gasket at the door and be prepared for some surprises. I am not sure this totally solved the problem. These front loading washers make the clothes fibers and colors look better, I agree, but this smell thing has really got me puzzled. I will take the advice of some others now and stop using the Tide HE and maybe try reconstituted dry powder detergent. I am not giving up! Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Kare (Guest Post) (09/08/2007) We moved to Germany, where almost all washing machines are front loaders like the Neptune. Yes, there is always some water in the bottom. I do a 90° Celsius (almost boiling) was every once in a while to kill any bacteria/fungus, etc. We had a problem with only certain items, like workout and yard work clothes, and I washed them, long cycle, with detergent and 1/4 c. baking soda, and a vinegar rinse cycle. (one extra rinse, too). That really helped. Borax is OK, but can fade clothes and seems to be tough on the fabric fibers. Good luck. Oh, and ALWAYS leave the washing machine door open when not using it. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By help from an appliance store (Guest Post) (09/07/2007) Use powdered soap, the animal fat in liquid detergents turns rancid. Use less that 1/3 of a cup of soap (use a kitchen measuring cup). Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By RH (Guest Post) (08/30/2007) I googled "smelly laundry" and found the complaints for many are the musty or dog smell. I have a Neptune and it is just about 3 years old that we bought with our newly constructed home. So everything attached is new too. From day 1, if we don't IMMEDIATELY put our laundry in the dryer, we get the musty smell. So we always try to be on top of it and avoid that. BUt our smell has now moved on to a worse and a more disgusting problem. It smells like dead fish. But it is baffling us, because it doesn't seem to be associated with getting it into the dryer right away. At first the washing cycle would finish and you would open the washer and you would smell the dead fish smell immediately. Then we ran a bleach/vinegar/dishs oap cleaning solution through the machine 4 times, as well as flushing out our water softener and we have had some improvement and for awhile, thought maybe we cured our problem. But now we will do a load and we don't smell it until the clothing gets wet after being washed and dried. So my workout clothes smell good going on, but as soon as I start to sweat, they smell like dead fish! The same with our towels after using them out of the shower, hang them to dry, the smell like dead fish. We have called the City we live in thinking maybe it is the water. The dishwasher doesn't have that smell and the water coming out of the showers don't smell either. The puzzling thing is that it doesn't happen with EVERY load. I am ready to call in a professional, but which professional? The maytag repairman? WHO? Thanks for any input. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By erika b. (Guest Post) (08/29/2007) Please check out "washing machine smell" listing on Thrify Fun. The stinky clothes are cause by mold and fungus that is not accessible to remove by hand (see postings that go into this in detail, and explanations of what may cause this). I've tried bleach with no luck, and regularly use vinegar. I've been reading about a product called Purewash http://www.smellywasher.com that I have not tried but am going to order. Several people on the link above say it has solved the smelly washer/clothes problem. Worth a try seeing as a new washer is much more expensive! Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By LisaHawkins (Guest Post) (08/24/2007) I think I have finally found the answer to my bad smelling towels. Tide HE. I have several homes and I am know experience bad smelling towels in all the houses. The only thing in common is I have changed to HE from regular Tide and am going to switch back to regular tide. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Tab (Guest Post) (08/18/2007) Not sure if this is is the problem, but when I used my mother's Neptune while on vacation, I could still hear water around the drum if I turned it after the cycle. I think it's possible that there is water that sits in between cycles. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By april (Guest Post) (08/17/2007) before anyone spends money on borax and vinegar, i just want to say, it helps but doesnt eliminate from everything. now i am also adding regular dish soap and pine sol. that was another recomendation. i am beginning to wonder if there is a cure. to the guy who said to buy new clothes and get them dry cleaned, that would be nice but not very practical, for my family anyway! if anyone else has found a miracle cure for the musty smell, please post it. it may not even be "musty" its just not the right smell for clean clothes. thanks! Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By john boy (Guest Post) (08/16/2007) Hey I have the solution to your smell clothes problem. Buy new clothes and when they get dirty get them dry cleaned. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Mark (Guest Post) (08/12/2007) And all along I thought it was just me smelling the "musty" odor, like it was something stuck in my nose. Then one day at work someone walked up and asked me if I washed my clothes or just rinsed them in water from day to day. What a great feeling?! I am going to try the Borax and Vinegar this week and see how that works out. Heck, I am willing to wash my clothes in gasoline if it gets rid of the smell... J/K of course :) Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By BowdenBunch (Guest Post) (06/15/2007) We too had the "musty, dog smell" on our laundry. we bought a new washer & dryer, changed out the venting & water lines & even threw out all the towels & sheets, starting fresh & new. But, alas, we still have the smell.... we then started to look at the actual item that was the problem & found that more times then not it was something made out of cotton & produced outside the US. Has anyone else found this to be true? Is it possable for cotton grown outside the US, (or grown here & shipped outside for production,) maybe using a different process/chemical production then before? Anyone heard of this? Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By pvsully (Guest Post) (05/15/2007) i was looking around the internet and came across a site that someone mentioned using detergent designed for Hunters-- i looked around and saw a couple but i wondered where i could pick this stuff up locally TODAY without having to order online-- the stuff is called "Scent-Away" go figure... has anyone used this stuff? Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Cindy (Guest Post) (03/10/2007) Can someone help me with the smell in my dryer? I just bought a Kennmore dryer 7 months ago and about 3 months ago I started noticing a dirty dog kind of smell coming from the dryer. My home is new and so is the dryer so what could be causing this oder? The clothes don't smell clean like they do when they come out of the washer. We use tide original laundry soap and snuggles liquid fabric softener. How can I clean the inside of the dryer? service address is suthrngurrrl AT yahoo.com for reply. Editor's Note: Check the hose, there may be a lot of lint that is blocking the exhaust keeping the dryer from really drying the lint that collects there. Take a shop vac after removing the hose and vacuum as much as you can where the hose connects to the dryer and the hose itself. Report Spam or Abuse my dryer stinks! Post By jessie rose (Guest Post) (09/13/2006) hello all. i've been a dogwalker for a few months and after my first week there was an incident involving my coat and a lot of diarrhea. we got most of it off before i got home, but i obviously wanted to clean it further. since that wash, the dryer always smells like dog, and the clothes do too. if i take them out immediately, it's not as bad but i often turn the dryer on at night right before i go to bed just due to lack of time for waiting. does anyone have a solution for getting a smell out of a dryer? if so, i would love it if you emailed me at jessimocha (at) gmail (dot) com Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Shannon (Guest Post) (08/30/2006) Our clothes no matter what smell like wet musty towels. We do not have any type of water softner system in our home. We have no problem with our water smelling or tasting bad. I think it is coming from the dryer. I use tide liquid soap, and bounce dryer sheets. I don't let the clothes sit in the washer or dryer and immediately after I take the load out, it smells like dirty clothes. The smell gets in your skin. Even after they are folded and put away, the smell is still there. When you get out of the shower and grab a clean towel to dry off, I don't even want to use it. If I do, the smell sticks to my skin and hair. Why is this happening and what can I do to figure out if it is the washer or the dryer causing this and fix it? HELP Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By Linda (Guest Post) (08/26/2006) I add ammonia along with the detergent. It is a degreaser and deodorizer so it breaks down oils and removes any odors. 1/4 cup would be enough for everyday laundry, and I have used one cup for very greasy work clothes. It leaves the clothes clean and fresh. Dishwasher detergent instead of laundry detergent can be used on clothes worn working in restaurants. It breaks down oils as well. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By April. (Guest Post) (08/22/2006) Thank you so much everyone who gave me advice! I used 1/2 cup borax with 1/2 the normal amount of detergent. Then I used white vinegar in place of fabric softener. A little less than recommended, I was scared my clothes would smell like vinegar. They smell just fine now. Thanks again! Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By (Guest Post) (08/21/2006) Add vinegar to the rinse cycle instead of fabric softener - it acts as a disinfectant and helps to clean out anything that has accumulated in the pipes of the washer. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by 1bigmama (14) | (08/19/2006) Profile | Contact We recently brought a Maytag last year and I noticed that the inside of the machine was stink, but not the clothes. However, I was concerned because I did not like the way the machine smelled. At first I would let it air dry, but that did not seem to work. I have started washing every load that I have in One Cup of White Vinegar, One Cup of Baking Soad, and One half Cup of Borax, not only are my clothes nice clean and white, but I do not have that stink smell in my washing machine, and I can close the lid. Also, if you have a softner dispenser, instead of putting fabric softner in there, try using a little white vinegar and water this will soften your clothes and keep the stinky smell down as well. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by fauxpaslover (70) | (08/19/2006) Profile | Contact Dear April...you may have a "trap" somewhere in your plumbing where water is gathering and creating that "musty" smell. Does your water smell? You probably would benefit from a water condtioner, or at least having your water tested. All the other things will help, but I think I would want to get to the root of the problem and then go on with what can correct it. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by fauxpaslover (70) | (08/19/2006) Profile | Contact Hi, I am interested in talking with the "poster" who said they had the Maytag Neptune, the model after the problems. I just got the Maytag Neptune and have some questions for her, if you please. Please email me at sewer44bonnie at go.com Thank you so much!! Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by superwoman (2) | (08/19/2006) Profile | Contact VINEGAR! Works like fabric softener. : ) Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post By (Guest Post) (08/19/2006) Try cleaning out the fabric softener dispenser. Mine pulls off the agitator. I used a paint stick to clean it out and I must have had a half cup of gunk! Smells better. Report Spam or Abuse RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by debbes (5) | (08/19/2006) Profile | Contact I live in the humid south (Alabama) and I have this problem also. What I do is one a week run Pine-Sil through it. It seems to work for mine. Report Spam or Abuse Request: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by lewis_admin (1159) | (05/07/2006) Profile | Blog! | Contact I must have hard water. My clothes never smell clean. I don't want to put in some fragrance, it has to be the water. I need a filter or something. Anyone have any ideas? NYYankee from NY Answers: RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good I had a similar problem when we first moved into our new home. The home had a water softener system, and it seems like when we run out of salt in the filter, is when the odor starts reappearing in the washing machine and clothes. You may have a hard water problem that needs a water softener system. Good luck! (05/30/2006) By Krys RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Borax. Add 1/2 cup of borax to your washing cycle, and you'll be amazed at the difference. This is an old, old remedy that my grandmother used to get the smell out of grampa's overalls that he wore day after day. Also, line drying will help tremendously. (05/31/2006) By susabelle RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good THis is a very oldtime great-grandma solution: Wash your clothes well in borax, add vinegar to the rinse, and immediately lay the clothes out on the grass in the sun to dry. It's amazing what the chlorophyl and fresh air will do. Odors usually disappear. THis was an old-fashioned way to brighten clothes gently as well. And has the added benefit of raising your neighbors' curiosity level to new heights. I've done it occasionally and it beats even line-drying for that totally fresh smell. (08/11/2006) By maggie RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Borax (I use that and washing soda for my washing PERIOD) and use vinegar in your rinse (like fab softner) No toxins and all products neutralize and deoderize (the washing soda disinfects! (08/12/2006) By camo_angels RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good What is Borax and where can I buy it? (b)Editor's Note: (/b) It is usually available in the laundry section of the grocery store, with the all fabric bleach and other additives. Look for 20 Mule Team Borax. It is different than Borateem. (08/15/2006) By Anonymous Report Spam or Abuse Request: My Clothes Don't Smell Good Post by ThriftyFun (3767) | (09/11/2005) Profile | Blog! | Contact About a year ago, I started noticing my "clean" clothes had a faint smell of "dirty laundry". I first noticed it while on a trip, so I attributed the problem to clothes being packed in a suitcase. But the problem has gotten worse. I have tried baking soda in the wash, vinegar in the rinse, Febreze, and purchasing new luggage. The clothes smell fresh and clean after washing and drying, but after hanging in the closet for a while, the smell returns. Leaving them folded in a basket for a few days I sometimes notice it, and certainly packing for a trip seems to magnify the problem. I have a Maytag Neptune (the model after all the problems had been solved), and use Tide HE or Cheer HE. Maytag said I had a buildup of detergent in the clothes, and suggested running them through a cycle with just vinegar (which I have done many times). While I like fresh smelling detergents and fabric softeners, I don't want to just cover up smells that are remaining in my clothes. I want to know they are really clean, and all the dirt, body oils, perfumes, deodorants, etc. are out of the clothes. I don't perspire a great deal, and work in an office, so my clothes don't get particularly grimy or smelly. Any suggestions? Queen Bunny Answers: RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/12/2005 It sounds like sulfur or iron in your water supply. Take a load to a Laundromat and see if they smell the same after a washing. By Dorie RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/12/2005 Question: what are your clothes made of? My experience is that items made with polyester or acetate tend to retain smells even after washing. I, personally, stick with cotton, rayon or linen, which tend to be better. The other option is that something in your closet is re-smelling your clean clothes. I would advise taking EVERYTHING out of your closet and cleaning the be-jeesus out it. (Vacuum, wash the walls, etc.) Next separate your clothes by content. Wash everything again with about half the detergent you usually use using warm water. Put _only the non-poly/acetate stuff back in. Wait a week or so and see if the smell comes back. If it doesn't, it's definitely the non-natural fibers. I have a front-loader too, a Kenmore. And I don't have problems with detergent buildup as long as I use about half the detergent recommended. By Kathy K. (Guest Post) RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/12/2005 I have had the same problem with shirts--mainly in the underarm and chest area. They come out of the dryer smelling clean, but quickly regain their stinky smell after wearing only a little while. I've had some success with pretreating the offending areas with a spray bottle of lysol multipurpose solution. Before each load I spray underarms and chest areas and let sit while loading the rest of the laundry. I've also started using Borax with my detergent. I figure sweat is kind of like ammonia and the borax is alkaline and counteracts it. Then, my washer has a softener dispenser, so instead of softener, I put about a cup of vinegar to neutralize the detergent -borax mix after it's done its work. So far, so good. This stinky laundry after washing seems like such a universal complaint, judging by the mail received on this site, that some company should be able to come up with a "stink-free" solution! Any chemists out there that can give us a clue about this? By Paula W (Guest Post) RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/12/2005 I always use about half of the detergent recommended, add baking soda to the wash and don't use dryer sheets. I also buy only cotton and other natural fabrics. I think Kathy may be right - cut down on the detergent and go for natural fibers. Also, one time I bought a quilt that smelled like gasoline after I washed it - never got the smell out and I returned it. I think it was the dye or something. Try going with the natural fabrics. Good luck! By Ann (Guest Post) RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/13/2005 After my load of clothes has gone through the wash, rinse, and spin I reset the machine for another rinse cycle and add 3/4 cup white vinegar. One rinse just isn't enough to get out all the detergent and odor residue. By Beth (Guest Post) RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/13/2005 Could you be living in an area that has water which requires some type of treatment? By cookwie RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 09/15/2005 i use Clorox 2 along with detergent. It gets out odors and cleans everything better than those perfume detergents. I use regular Clorox for underwear that is all white. I rarely use any other temperature than cold and I also can't use any detergents with fragrance or dyes. I separate my sheets from my towels and clothes from my underwear and I don't overload the washer or dryer with clothes. My clothes always come out clean and smelling fresh for days by using Clorox 2. By snoopsnoop94 RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 10/25/2005 I work in a BBQ joint and smell of hickory smoke when I get home. My son used to work at Long John Silvers & then Fazoli's. His clothing would stink. Even after washing. I had purchased some X-O and X-O Plus for odor control. I use 4 oz. of the X-O Plus Concentrate in the wash. I rinse one additional time-but I love the product. You can order online or mail order from Don Aslett. If you go to the X-O site, it is possible to look for a store that sells their products in your area. Good Luck! By Circles123 (Guest Post) RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 02/28/2006 i have the same problem. No matter how I clean my clothes and sheets, they come out still retaining a somewhat dirty clothes smell. The only solution i've found to help a bit is to soak the culprits overnight when the smell builds up. I know it's my own body odor, not rancid pit stink, but just the smell I give off through body oils and sweat. The clean laundry doesn't overly smell but if you put your nose to it, it's definitely there. Heat seams to magnify it so it smells greatest out of the dryer or when it reacts with my own body heat when I wear them. The problem is really just with my shirts and bed sheets around my upper torso area. I know it's my body oils because on my shirts, the smell lingers around my neck and upper back areas where the body secretes more oils. Vinegar, bleach, baking soda, hot wash, cold wash, borax, etc., etc. I don't believe you can really help it. Each person has a unique body smell. Some people (like me) tend to give off stronger or much stronger smells. I'm a 21 year old female, 110 pounds. that blows the "stinky male" theory out. The best solution I've come up with is to wash often and soak sometimes. I use seventh generation orange-scented detergent. It's practically fragrance free. I don't like covering up smells with anything. I only put perfume on after i shower. I spray the back and front of my neck and i find that it transfers to my shirts leaving a pleasant smell even after washing that doesn't necessarily "cover up". By B RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 03/10/2006 All you have to do is, sort your clothes, and place the clothes that are REALLY dirty with the REALLY dirty/smelly pile. that pile, do double rinsing and use a more powerful laundry detergent. Then put in dryer for 20 minutes and let dry outside in the sweet smelling sun for an hour or two. By Deb RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 03/13/2006 I only have cold water for my washing machine so I have had great results by pouring Pinesole, about 1/2 cup for a big load, in with the detergent. It may smell strong in the wash, but once you put clothes in dryer the spell is gone and everything smells fresh. If you do smell the Pinesole after drying you have used too much. Also, I use Cheer Free, no dyes, fragrance, and Downey Fragrance Free liquid as I do not like the artificial smell. I have done this for 17 years. By Dana (Guest Post) RE: My Clothes Don't Smell Good 03/13/2006 I have noticed that some clothes of ours don't smell as fresh as I'd like, but that was an easy thing to solve for me... I was over-drying them. I have a Whirlpool Duet system, and I only use Tide detergent, but only need about half per load. Tide cleans a lot better than most detergents. Another thing I use is Downy Ultra, the concentrated kind. Now, when you put the clothes in the dryer, dry them on the like medium instead of high, and ONLY dry them until the clothes are dry and no longer... over-drying seems to make them lose that fresh laundry scent. I really hope this helps for you. Good luck. By katieandjeffy Report Spam or Abuse