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You could try adding vinegar to the rinse cycle. Also line dry out in the sun if you can - don't know how much sun you get in October in the UK...

 

I'm not sure that I can add anything to the rinse cycle because my machine is a front-loader, but I can try just running them through with vinegar for a wash and then re-wash with detergent maybe.

 

And we don't get much sun where I live even in August! I'll try the vinegar, though. Thanks.

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One of my dc has this issue and we also found that vinegar is very effective - I keep a spray bottle by the washer and just spray those shirts in the arm pit area while I'm sorting laundry. I then wash them with the regular clothes and usually that will do the trick. If it's basketball season and I have a lot of stinky shirts I'll take a whole load of them and add vinegar to the whole load and wash on HOT (our heater is set to 120 degrees) and that really works but I don't like to wash everything on hot all the time.

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Thanks for the replies. I just realized that I could probably put the vinegar in where the fabric softener goes for that part of the wash cycle. Or I'll try the spray bottle of vinegar - great idea. And I'll look for those other products. I'm pretty sure we don't have those brands, but I'll see what I can find if the vinegar doesn't work.

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My two eldest had this problem. I found adding fabric conditioner helped a bit. The only cure was to prevent the toxic sweat in the first place :D. I invested in cans of extra strong underarm anti-perspirant and deodorant, then nagged them to use it. I didn't have too much trouble with DS13, I bought him a variety that had 'chocolate' undertones, and told him it would drive the girls wild; he's at that age when he considers the wearing of such a product an interesting and possibly rewarding experiment :D.

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My two eldest had this problem. I found adding fabric conditioner helped a bit. The only cure was to prevent the toxic sweat in the first place :D. I invested in cans of extra strong underarm anti-perspirant and deodorant, then nagged them to use it. I didn't have too much trouble with DS13, I bought him a variety that had 'chocolate' undertones, and told him it would drive the girls wild; he's at that age when he considers the wearing of such a product an interesting and possibly rewarding experiment :D.

 

I forgot that we have have also invested in the the "Precription" strength deodorants that you put on at night. They have made a huge difference.

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Most stink is due to buildup. I don't know if you can get it there, but you can run their laundry through with RLR - a residue removing laundry aid. You run the packet through until there are no more bubbles. There might be something comparable where you are. After that you just try to keep the build up from happening. Use a scent-free, clean rinsing detergent that won't trap odors and spray the armpit area with vinegar before going in the wash.

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Most stink is due to buildup. I don't know if you can get it there, but you can run their laundry through with RLR - a residue removing laundry aid. You run the packet through until there are no more bubbles. There might be something comparable where you are. After that you just try to keep the build up from happening. Use a scent-free, clean rinsing detergent that won't trap odors and spray the armpit area with vinegar before going in the wash.

That was my thought as well. It's the same as with diapers; the deterget residue reacts with urine (or perspiration, in this case) and smells horrifying. The vinegar rinse helps remove any lingering residue at the end of the wash cycle, but you may have to strip the fabric first with something like what Lily_Grace described.

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Since you have a front loader, insufficient water is used in the washing and rinsing process. I would take a bucket, fill it with hot water, detergent and oxyclean, and soak those items and and then hand-agitate them in the bucket, then wring them out and put them in the washer with the rest of the clothes.

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I have found lighter loads and a switch to name brand non-bio tabs (perisil) with fabric softener every load have made things much better. In the US I used vinegar and baking soda with our stinky dog stuff. Beware of "washing soda" here -- it is apparently much different. We used it for a craft project in a group and I asked about laundry uses. I guess it is not a good idea but unsure why.

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My 16-yo DS is a cross country runner and has toxic sweat. We have a front loader and have no issues with lingering smell. I credit it to using Tide detergent. I know that may not be available in the UK, but I'm guessing there's something comparable. IMO laundry detergent is one of those things where you very much get what you pay for.

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Ok, this is going to sound strange but my mother swore it worked. Buy some of the colorless mouthwash and soak or pretreat the underarm area and then run through a normal wash. Supposedly the mouthmwash kills the bacteria that is causing the smell. One of my brother had a terrible problem with this and she said it worked for his clothes. Hydrogenperoxide might work as well with the added benefit of whitening the clothes some. You could also add baking soda with your detergent.

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Oxyclean is great at removing odors. My mother used it when she was caring for my sick grandmother. I also used it to remove some odors after a house fire. The professional cleaners couldn't remove the odor, but Oxyclean did. It also brightens your clothes and works great as a stain remover.

 

 

Suzanne

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So someone in my family has what appears to be toxic sweat. Their t-shirts end up smelling even after they've come out of the wash. Is there any way to deal with this, to get rid of the smell? TIA

 

I've found adding Odoban to the laundry with Really Stinky Things rids them of their odor.

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Thanks for the replies. I just realized that I could probably put the vinegar in where the fabric softener goes for that part of the wash cycle. Or I'll try the spray bottle of vinegar - great idea. And I'll look for those other products. I'm pretty sure we don't have those brands, but I'll see what I can find if the vinegar doesn't work.

 

Yes, put the vinegar in where the fabric softener goes, and wash on hot!

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We've got these problems too. It seems like sometimes vinegar works and sometimes oxyclean works, so I rotate.

 

I might try the simple green too.

 

 

We also had to switch to a stronger deodarant AND an antibacterial soap (which I am very against otherwise).

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DH has toxic sweat and wears judo gis. I swear they hold ten pounds of sweat. They're nasty. What works for us is to soak in ammonia before washing. I do this for his shirts and Ts also. This is easiest in a top loader, but you could also use a utility sink or wash tub to soak, then wash as usual.

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My 16-yo DS is a cross country runner and has toxic sweat. We have a front loader and have no issues with lingering smell. I credit it to using Tide detergent. I know that may not be available in the UK, but I'm guessing there's something comparable. IMO laundry detergent is one of those things where you very much get what you pay for.

 

I went from using whatever was on sale to using Tide because it did a really good job. Recently I had to switch to something else because the Tide either wasn't getting things clean or was leaving a mildewy smell behind. All the stripping in the world wasn't helping. We have Purex in the cabinet right now, and it seems to have fixed the build-up we had from the Tide. I was swearing by the stuff for a while though.

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We used to use any store brand (wherever we happened to be shopping that week) non-bio. I recently switched to store brand bio detergent. Wish we had Tide here. Is there any brand here in the UK that you think is better than the rest?

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We used to use any store brand (wherever we happened to be shopping that week) non-bio. I recently switched to store brand bio detergent. Wish we had Tide here. Is there any brand here in the UK that you think is better than the rest?

 

I'm not really happy with any of the brands I've tried, we not only get the smells you describe but neither do they seem to remove stains in the wonderful way they promise. I shop at Sainsbury's and tend to buy whatever they have on offer that week, currently I'm using Persil liquid bio. I've also used Fairy, Ariel (which DH thinks is our version of Tide), and Surf recently.

 

Mmm ... now I'm on a mission to find the perfect laundry detergent ... :sneaky2:.

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We used to use any store brand (wherever we happened to be shopping that week) non-bio. I recently switched to store brand bio detergent. Wish we had Tide here. Is there any brand here in the UK that you think is better than the rest?

 

We had to reteach one of my sons how to shower. He was just kind of standing in the water, not using soap and rubbing. I sent his dad in to give instructions. The smell issue improved enormously.

 

Laura

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We had to reteach one of my sons how to shower. He was just kind of standing in the water, not using soap and rubbing. I sent his dad in to give instructions. The smell issue improved enormously.

 

Laura

 

Crazy, isn't it, the things we would just ASSUME...

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:lol::lol::lol:

 

BOYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I just discovered my 15 year old has been using conditioner on his hair for the last few months. What could be wrong with that, you wonder? He was using JUST conditioner. He thought it was a bottle of shampoo. :svengo:

 

And believe me, we've had many terse conversations about his hair (and my urge to shove his head under the kitchen sink and scrub it with dishsoap). When I found out why I was actually sort of surprised it wasn't even worse.

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