BikeBookBread Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 This is REALLY important. :tongue_smilie: We live in an older home that has rather poor ventilation. The bathrooms do not have ventilation fans, and the AC is not efficient. We live in a very humid climate. Our towels stink. I replace them often. I wash them with chlorine-free bleach, and dry them thoroughly in the dryer. I hang them up over the shower curtain rod, so they are in the middle of the room, air circulating freely all around. Is there any way to avoid stinky towel syndrome? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flobee76 Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 can you put a splash of bleach in the wash? I try to avoid bleach in cleaning, but I always have some on hand for linens. You could also try sunning the towels, or baking soda in the wash and white vinegar in the rinse cycle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogMom5 Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 You can try adding baking soda to the wash, 1/2 cup or so. If you can hang them out on the line the sun and a good breeze may help. It's a problem in humid climates, even w/good ventilation. Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 I use oxyclean in with the detergent, and vinegar in the fabric softener cup. It cured my problem, although I did do a HOT empty wash with a lot of the above to make sure my washer wasn't hiding fungus first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarreymere Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 Use them once and then wash them. Only real thing that works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyR Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 Run your washing machine without adding any laundry to it and add a good splash of bleach to the water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgonczi Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 I have no idea why, but I have this problem with dark colored bath and kitchen towels. I don't have the problem with light colored ones - even ones I don't bleach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 Mine get this way if they are put away the slightest bit damp. Vinegar in the rinse water helps, too. I also had to wash down the wooden shelves in my closet, as the linens stored there acquired a sour smell somehow--but the baking soda wash down helped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaMa2005 Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 I use vinegar in the wash and rinse cycle. I also replaced our really thick heavy towels with a thinner towel. They are still fluffy, but dry so much faster. That has helped a great deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenNC Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 Smelly Towel. http://www.smellywasher.com/product/smelly-towel.html This stuff is fabulous and the company has the best customer service I've ever encountered! You can wash them in just a capful of the cleaner instead of detergent and it gets rid of the smell. I've even used it to get the stink out of my husband's martial arts uniform (he sweats a lot and practices in a dojo with no air conditioning all summer, this is a big deal!). If they are really semlly, you can start the washer and then stop it to let them soak for a couple of hours. Our towels no longer smell and it's great (we have a front loader and it was causing lots of issues). The only drawbacks I have found are that it's hard for me to find locally (if you have an ACE hardware they carry it) and the stuff was caked in the bottle when I opened it (I use a chopstick to loosen it up---a lot like onion powder does for me). I also highly recommend the Smelly Washer to periodically clean out the washer. Much cheaper per use than the Affresh tablets (that didn't work for us). My husband washed rags containing paint thinner in my washer and this was the only thing that cleaned it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 Quite honestly, I bleach the towels if they develop a sinister smell. Our towels are dark colored and haven't seemed to fade much over the past 11 years, even with bleaching. If you have a top loader, I would recommend filling completely, starting agitation & adding the bleach diluted in water to avoid spots. Otherwise, I've found most things are pretty colorfast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BikeBookBread Posted June 5, 2011 Author Share Posted June 5, 2011 Thanks everybody! Great suggestions. I used to use vinegar in my rinse cycle in lieu of fabric softener. I think I'll go back to doing that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 I dump some white vinegar in with the laundry soap. Is it bad not to wait for the rinse cycle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snickerdoodle Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Stop using fabric softener or dryer sheets on your towels. It just builds up a wax coating sealing in all those nasty smells. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kathkath Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 bac out from the laundry section of whole foods/wild oats or sport wash from the camping section at walmart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blossom'sGirl Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Same situation here. I put mine in the washer full of hot water at night along with detergent and about a cup of ammonia. I let them soak all night then run the washer in the morning using a vinegar rinse. This is all I have found to work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patches Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 The smelly towel stuff is available on Amazon Prime! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 We have electric towel rails in the bathrooms. You can set them to run for just an hour or two to dry the towel. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamee Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Can you put a small, dehumidifier in the bathroom? Maybe get some extra racks so all the towels can air out? I hate it too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 when I lived in FL, we used very thin towels. It helped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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