# Mildew/nasty smell and clothing - Help? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 12, 2006, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868 "2006-12-12T20:53:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BlueKangaroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3d9bf3/32.png) [@BlueKangaroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlueKangaroo)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/1 "2006-12-12T20:53:06Z")
My husband went out of town for a week, and just before he left he washed a load of laundry. However, he forgot to dry it. He told me about it as I was taking him to the airport, but by the time I got done with classes, I’d forgotten about it. Until a week later, with predictable results. Now I have a wet mass of dark clothing that smells bad. I tried just washing it twice, and that didn’t work. Then I tried washing it with straight white vinegar (a suggestion I read somewhere online) and that helped, but didn’t fix it. Then I tried a vinegar/detergent mix, at the suggestion of a friends mom. Now I have clothing that smells like bad and vinegar. Any thoughts on how to get this smell out? ---
**Author:** ![goldenmean1975](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@goldenmean1975](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goldenmean1975)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/2 "2006-12-12T21:14:23Z")
Are they clothes that you can use bleach on? Even a small amount? If so thats what I would do then re- wash in regular detergent. If you can’t use bleach, you could try pouring in a box of baking soda with the washing detergent. But it may not help much. Bleach is the best bet. It will usually get any smell out. Sorry I can’t be more help. ---
**Author:** ![BlueKangaroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3d9bf3/32.png) [@BlueKangaroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlueKangaroo)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/3 "2006-12-12T21:46:27Z")
Unfortunately, these aren’t bleachable clothes. They’re my blacks and blues and other “darks”. And my jeans, and some random other things he threw in there. It’s a bit of a mess. ---
**Author:** ![No\_Me\_Ayudes\_Compadre](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/no_me_ayudes_compadre/32/5224_2.png) [@No\_Me\_Ayudes\_Compadre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_Me_Ayudes_Compadre)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/4 "2006-12-12T21:56:28Z")
Try running the load through the full cycle with warm water, a cup of sodium bicarbonate (Arm & Hammer) and a half cup of hydrogen peroxide (nonchlorine bleach). ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/5 "2006-12-13T00:05:06Z")
Enzyme products work best for biological odors. ---
**Author:** ![ryobserver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@ryobserver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ryobserver)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/6 "2006-12-13T01:00:33Z")
Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), already mentioned, will destink anything, in my experience. It got the stink out of a lab refrigerator after buckets of dissected eyeballs rotted in the freezer; it should work on moldy clothes. It does need a bit of time to work, though; you might have to soak the clothes for a while in a baking soda solution. And while it’s not a bleaching agent, there’s no absolute guarantee it won’t affect dyes. ---
**Author:** ![xbuckeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9e8a1a/32.png) [@xbuckeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xbuckeye)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/7 "2006-12-13T01:11:03Z")
I used to have that problem at my parents house since everyone tended to leave damp loads in the washer too long because the dryer was too slow. We never really found a solution. When the clothes are dry they don’t smell as much, but if you are wearing them when you are out in the rain or something, they reek again. Febreeze was the best solution, though wasn’t perfect. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/8 "2006-12-13T01:35:59Z")
Cup of Bicarb and a cup of Twenty Mule Team Borax destinks towels taken to the beach and left in car trunk. Plus a cup of Febreze fabric softener. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/9 "2006-12-13T01:52:49Z")
The first thing to do is get the clothes out in the sun. Dry air and sunshine will kill the spores of any mould or mildew. Then launder to get rid of the smell. I foolishly allowed mildew to grow on a friends treasured cookbook the I had borrowed. By judicious drying and brushing over a period of days I was able to return it to pristine condition. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/10 "2006-12-13T03:17:27Z")
I washed a load of sour-smeling towels with a cup or two of white vinegar with the regular detergent. After that, they smelled fresh as new. I believe I saw that advice on the SDMB once. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/11 "2006-12-13T04:36:59Z")
I’m a “forgetter” myself. I’ve found that the best thing to do is add a cup of ammonia to a warm-water wash. It won’t harm the clothes and it works like a charm. ---
**Author:** ![BlueKangaroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3d9bf3/32.png) [@BlueKangaroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlueKangaroo)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2006, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildew-nasty-smell-and-clothing-help/383868/12 "2006-12-13T04:51:56Z")
Well, I tried the baking soda & hydrogen peroxide thing above, and it seems to have worked. I don’t know about the rest, but it’s good info to have. Alas, tomorrow won’t be sunny, but rainy, and we work all day for the rest of the week. I hope the clothes aren’t ruined, like rain making them stink as someone said above, but I’m pleased to realize it was a much smaller load than usual, and so the loss will not be as huge as it could be. Thanks, everyone.