mommyoffive Posted January 15, 2018 Share Posted January 15, 2018 Help me out on this one Dh bought me a pair of pants for Christmas. I tried them on didn't notice them smelling at all. I wore them without washing and they smelled horrible. Like a really bad chemical smell. I had to shower when I got home, because my legs smelled so bad. So I just washed them with other clothes and now the smell transferred to all those clothes and the pants still smell. I rewashed the other clothes with a fragrant detergent (normally we don't use one). They smelled fine coming out of the washer, but now smell bad out of the dryer. What? I am thinking I might have to get rid of the pants. So tell me how do I get the load of clothes I washed with the pants to smell ok? How do I get these pants not to stink? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted January 15, 2018 Share Posted January 15, 2018 What material and any washing instructions on the pants that is causing the problem? As a kid, I was ultra sensitive to synthetic material so my dad would either presoak with bleach or vinegar before washing (hand wash or washing machine) and then he hangs them up to air dry them. For me, it tends to by the clothing that contains nylon/polyester that don’t smell as nice after washing, 100% cotton or linen were okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnE-girl Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Am I the only one who now has Phoebe singing “Smelly Cat†stuck in their head after reading this thread title? I would try vinegar and baking soda in the wash for the other clothes and then the original smelly pants separately. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyoffive Posted January 16, 2018 Author Share Posted January 16, 2018 They are cotton, polyester, and spandex I think a lot of my pants are like that and I have never had this happen before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyoffive Posted January 16, 2018 Author Share Posted January 16, 2018 Am I the only one who now has Phoebe singing “Smelly Cat†stuck in their head after reading this thread title? I would try vinegar and baking soda in the wash for the other clothes and then the original smelly pants separately. Um me. So I am not weird. I will give that a try. Ugh and I really like the fit of these pants too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosika Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 I had the same problem last year with a pair of dark denim jeans. I tried everything, including several washes in all temperatures with a variety of detergents and methods. I even let them "air dry" in the garage thinking they'd off gas or something. They stunk so bad my son moved them to the shed with the lawn mower. They were out there for 11 months!!! (I was pregnant for 9 of those and couldn't wear them anyway so I forgot about them.) We went to the shed a few months ago, saw them, AND THEY STILL STUNK. It wasn't as strong, but the smell was there. I trashed them. I never trash anything, I always donate or give away. But these were total trash. I hope you have better luck. I was bummed. It was a pair identical to a pair I already owned (which did not have the same stink). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 The only time I’ve had this happen, I had to throw them away. I tried a super hot wash, and vinegar, and then I have up. Mine were jeans. NYDJ, dark jeans. Ooooh, did they stink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solascriptura Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Something similar happened to me when I had been painting my laundry room. It’s odd to ask, but is this the case for you? My clothes came out of the dryer smelling like I had washed them in gasoline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Maybe try Biz. It works great on teenage boy funk. I would soak the pants in it for a couple of hours. Then wash and maybe line dry outside. Also, biokleen bac-out might work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Am I the only one who now has Phoebe singing “Smelly Cat†stuck in their head after reading this thread title? . Nope, I immediately thought of it too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSmomof2 Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Am I the only one who now has Phoebe singing “Smelly Cat†stuck in their head after reading this thread title?. Ha! I was just going to reply the same thing! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 I've never had a problem with new clothes smelling. But for sweaty boy stinky work out clothes I swear by a bit of PineSol added in with detergent. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 It's usually black garments, yes? I use Synthropol, from Dharma Trading, the first time I wash anything that might run - with black clothes being at the top of the "might run" list. It surrounds excess dye particles (that haven't bonded to the fabric) so they can be washed away in the rinse water. It has worked for me in the past with that nasty gasoline-smelling dye. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Maybe try Biz. It works great on teenage boy funk. I would soak the pants in it for a couple of hours. Then wash and maybe line dry outside. Also, biokleen bac-out might work. Thank you. Not the OP, but I have a smelly situation going on here and will try these, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioMomof3 Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 I think it's a special dye that some companies are using. I purchased a dark denim pair of jeans that had a horrible smell that wouldn't go away even after many washings. I eventally threw the pair in the trash. I will admit that I do a sniff test on any new jeans that I buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 It's usually black garments, yes? I use Synthropol, from Dharma Trading, the first time I wash anything that might run - with black clothes being at the top of the "might run" list. It surrounds excess dye particles (that haven't bonded to the fabric) so they can be washed away in the rinse water. It has worked for me in the past with that nasty gasoline-smelling dye. Does this work with dye that tends to rub off? I haven't had smelly pants, but I've had dark dye rub off on my legs during wearing, I assume because the dye wasn't properly bonded to the fabric. This happened with pants that had been washed several times and STILL had dye rub off on me. I looked up answers online, and discovered that the dye-rub-off is a thing that happens to many people, so apparently I'm not going crazy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Am I the only one who now has Phoebe singing “Smelly Cat†stuck in their head after reading this thread title? I would try vinegar and baking soda in the wash for the other clothes and then the original smelly pants separately. Yes, me! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 I had a t-shirt from a running race that smelled bad. I threw it out. I'm not sure if it was the t-shirt or the decal that caused the stink, but it was bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassenach Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 I had this experience recently with a pair of Vera Wang jeans from Kohl’s. It took 5 or 6 washes before they stopped smelling like moth balls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Does this work with dye that tends to rub off? I haven't had smelly pants, but I've had dark dye rub off on my legs during wearing, I assume because the dye wasn't properly bonded to the fabric. This happened with pants that had been washed several times and STILL had dye rub off on me. I looked up answers online, and discovered that the dye-rub-off is a thing that happens to many people, so apparently I'm not going crazy. To set dye sometimes soaking with salt works great. I use the bucket method of soaking, rinse, then wash like normal. I buy fabrics from different places and use this all the time if they are homemade. I have used it on my jeans too. No way was I letting the pants that actually fit have to get thrown away. Lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyoffive Posted January 16, 2018 Author Share Posted January 16, 2018 Does this work with dye that tends to rub off? I haven't had smelly pants, but I've had dark dye rub off on my legs during wearing, I assume because the dye wasn't properly bonded to the fabric. This happened with pants that had been washed several times and STILL had dye rub off on me. I looked up answers online, and discovered that the dye-rub-off is a thing that happens to many people, so apparently I'm not going crazy. I had the same thing happen to me last year with a shirt dh bought me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Does this work with dye that tends to rub off? I haven't had smelly pants, but I've had dark dye rub off on my legs during wearing, I assume because the dye wasn't properly bonded to the fabric. This happened with pants that had been washed several times and STILL had dye rub off on me. I looked up answers online, and discovered that the dye-rub-off is a thing that happens to many people, so apparently I'm not going crazy. Yes, it works for dyes that rub off (called "crocking"), and those that run in the wash. This is what I use. You need no more than a tablespoon for a large load of wash. In the vast majority of cases it removes the fugitive dye without affecting the dye that has chemically fixed to the fabric. In other words, it shouldn't fade the fabric at all. In a very few cases I've had items, like one of dh's red polo shirts, where the original dye was never properly fixed. (It ran in the wash every time before I used the Synthrapol.) In that case the synthrapol did indeed remove all of the fugitive dye, leaving a very faded red shirt that never ran again. Nowadays I rarely run into this problem, unless I've bought dubious fabric from the sketchy fabric salvage store. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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