Let’s say you wash a load of clothes and suddenly run off to Tahiti or something and come back days later to your clothes still in the washer.
Whenever I’ve forgotten about clothes in the washer, if it’s been over 2 days or so, I’ll wash them again to avoid the mildewey (sp?) smell. Is this overkill?
I’m speaking from personal experience but, depending on the temperature, it may not take too long (day or so) before that mildewey smell sets in. Since then, I try not to let anything sit in the washer for too long–but just in case you do, Oxyclean is great for getting out stains and nasty smells.
The smell sets in within hours here in summer.
If it’s hot, it can happen in a few hours. If it’s cold, they may be okay for a couple of days. If I’m uncertain whether they need to be rewashed, I go ahead and rewash.
Under water the laundry seems to be a little safer, but once they get some air it starts to mildew quickly in my experience.
It really depends on where you live, and the ambient level of humidity.
When I lived in New Mexico, laundry would almost never develop mildew.
In Florida, wet or even damp clothes would develop mildew within a few hours.