Hello Everyone,
I’ve noticed some of my shirts have become “hard” in the underarm area. What is causing this and can it be fixed? I’m thinking that is an effect of my deodorant. Washing does nothing to remove this.the deal?
I would love to know, too. A few years ago I became obsessed with this and tried everything I could to get it out: bleach, oxi-clean, vinegar, boiling the shirts… nothing worked. Also, I noticed that if you hit the hard patch with steam, you’ll get quite a whiff of body odor, indicating that the sweat-and-bacteria associated malodorous compounds are still trapped in there even after washing. I’d love to know if you find anything out.
I’ve not tried any of these methods, but here’s some ideas including a product specified for this purpose.
My guess would be something to do with stick anti-perspirant. Try getting new shirts and using the gel, spray or roll-on kind of anti-perspirant.
I use only the gel antiperspirant and it happens to my undershirts also.
Out of curiosity, I spent a while using a deodorant on one side and an antiperspirant on the other, and it’s for sure an antiperspirant issue. Since the only difference is the aluminum compound, I imagine that’s what it has to be. Both the gel and solid antiperspirants have similar ingredients, so I don’t think it’s any big improvement.
Mechanic’s hand cleaner (Goop or GoJo brands) will get that out. Rub some in until the area is soft and saturated, then launder.
Is there someone else who can vouch for this method? I have had the same experience as Arcite–none of the vaunted solutions from the interwebs have made a difference.
Wear undershirts so the combo sweat/deodorant hard shit accumulates on them instead of your nice shirts. You can then throw out and replace the cheap undershirts thus saving your more expensive shirts.
I already do that, but I’d like to be able to make undershirts last longer too, plus t-shirts I wear casually in the summer.
I doubt it. Those are just lipophilic substances designed to dissolve grease. If what people are saying is true, and the hard patches are caused by aluminum from the anti-perspirant bonding with presumably ions from your sweat, those aren’t going to touch it.
Here’s a Metafilter thread saying that basically nothing works except ceasing to use anti-perspirant or wearing a specific one called Certain-Dri. I just find it hard to believe that literally nothing will get these spots out. I suppose a concentrated strong acid like hydrochloric acid would, the only problem being it would get the shirt itself out too.
Or do as I do and just continue to wear undershirts with stiff underarm material.
Weirdly, this happens to my husband’s shirts but not mine, and we wear the exact same gel deodorant.
It’s antiperspirant.
I’ve had it happen very little since I started (1) continuing to put deodorant/ap on before putting my shirt on (I really don’t understand the “get dressed, then pull your shirt up to rub your pits” model…); (2) wait a bit while doing other morning things like brushing my teeth; and then (3) blot my pits with something like a used towel.
No more underarm, er, armor.
^^^Agreeing. I wait quite awhile before putting the shirt on.
For me, I found that when Dry Idea gel brand was sold off from Gillette, it caused this problem from the new manufacturer big time. White vinegar helped a tiny bit on tops. I switched brands to another gel, and the problem stopped, but again, I kept the shirt off longer.
Since I’m too thrifty to randomly toss clothes, after about 10+ washings with special attention given, the crunchy parts came clean.
I used to have this happen when I used stick anti-perspirants. The stiff matrix that forms is due to the fact that the stick does not dispense a thin even layer of material if you are in a hurry applying it or are generous with the amount applied. Whatever is in the stick material, if a lot is applied, is polymerized by some protein component in perspiration.
The stiff matrix that develops is almost a plastic. It is never dissolving and it is never coming out, and it is far tougher than the fabric holding it.
Switching to gel AP’s 15 years ago solved the problem completely.
Well, I looked up the ingredients of Secret stick antiperspirant, and found two different siloxanes, hydrogenated castor oil, and two different alcohols, all of which are soluble in organic solvents such as in GoJo or Goop. Besides, I used to use the stuff for that purpose. It worked well.
Hmm- not sure why the quote thingy didn’t work right.