# Best way to get sweat smell out of clothes? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 3, 2006, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268 "2006-05-03T18:25:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/1 "2006-05-03T18:25:37Z")
I can’t get the sweat smell out of some of my t-shirts, even though I don’t really sweat in them that much. I thought at first it might be my deoderant, but it is only certain shirts that seem to hold on to the odor. I tried washing them with a cup of vinegar thrown in with the regular laundry detergent, but it didn’t do any good. Any other ideas or tricks? ---
**Author:** ![ShelliBean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f9ae1b/32.png) [@ShelliBean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShelliBean)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/2 "2006-05-03T20:38:40Z")
A couple of people I know swear by putting the offensive clothing outside in the sun. I don’t know how long, but a few hours seems to do the trick. ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/3 "2006-05-03T20:43:56Z")
I had good luck with game-worn hockey jerseys by washing them with baking soda. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2006, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/4 "2006-05-03T20:48:17Z")
Wet the pits, rub them like crazy with a _lot_ of detergent powder or liquid (wear rubber gloves), and leave overnight before washing in the machine. Dry on a line outside. Repeat a few times if necessary. ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2006, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/5 "2006-05-04T01:18:34Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Wet the pits, rub them like crazy with a _lot_ of detergent powder or liquid (wear rubber gloves), and leave overnight before washing in the machine. Dry on a line outside. Repeat a few times if necessary. Also wash with borax and don’t let them sit for a long time being stinky, rinse them out if you can’t wash within a day or so. If they are all cotton white t-shirts you can use bleach too but rinsing the deodorant out of the pits will keep them from yellowing and holding the odor in. If it is a polyester blend dont’ use any clorine bleach because it makes polyester yellow. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2006, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/6 "2006-05-04T14:43:53Z")
This addresses the stain more than the smell, but here’s what [How to Clean Anything](http://www.howtocleananything.com/tipdetails.asp?tid=496) has to say. > [@](#): > > Fill your washer with very warm water without the clothes. Add 1 to 2 cups of hydorgen peroxide, add your clothes and let them soak up to an hour. Hydrogen peroxide is a safe bleach and shoud soak out the stains. If you have already dried the clothes in the dryer, the stains may not come out. The stains are heat set and can be very difficult to remove. It’s worth a try. Try pre-treating the stains with a digestant or enyzme pre-treat. This site has been invaluable to me. Worth bookmarking! ---
**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2006, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/7 "2006-05-04T16:45:42Z")
Thanks guys! Also, are all of these (except the bleach) safe to use on colors? They are all cotton t-shirts, if it matters… And **Snakescatlady** , how much baking soda do you use? ---
**Author:** ![Stainz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Stainz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stainz)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2006, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/8 "2006-05-04T22:11:31Z")
There is also a type of Febreze Fabric Spray that is safe for clothing. ---
**Author:** ![wonderlust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonderlust/32/7237_2.png) [@wonderlust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonderlust)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/9 "2006-05-05T04:56:45Z")
You can’t get much smellier than my 13yo son. I wash his clothes in a kind of Tide that contains Febreze. ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/10 "2006-05-05T14:40:27Z")
There’s also a Febreze laundry additive–not the spray stuff, this is a liquid you add to the wash. I’ve only found it at KMart in my area, so if you have one near you, try there. ---
**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2006, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-sweat-smell-out-of-clothes/355268/11 "2006-05-07T23:06:24Z")
Success! The Tide with Febreeze worked wonderfully - all of my clothes smell nice and clean now 🙂 Thanks you everyone for your suggestions!