Smelly towels?

[ghostlykisses]

Our towels don't smell fresh when they are clean! I hate getting out of the shower and feeling like I am rubbing stink all over myself What will freshen them up? Vinegar?

[ollyoxenfree]

I was having trouble with smelly dish towels. I soaked them overnight in a fairly strong vinegar and water solution and then laundered in hot water (normally I use cold). I did it a couple of times before the smell disappeared. I'm careful now not to leave them sitting damp for too long. If they don't dry quickly by hanging, then I toss them in a bucket of vinegar and water until I can do a load of laundry.

[artemis33]

I like Bac Out for smelly laundry issues.

[MaxMommy]

I find that if I let the towels and cloths dry before putting in the laundry hamper they will not get stinky.

If by chance my towels smell funky when I'm putting them in the wash, I wash in hot water and add tea tree oil to the laundry soap and vinegar in the rinse. Takes care of it every time.

Hope this helps,

Sandra.

[Katie T]

Stink can also be from detergent build up. Wash on HOT w/no soap & check for suds. Repeat until no suds your towels wont stink I promise!

[GreenGranolaMama]

We're having the same issue! I'm going to try these things as well, thanks mamas!

[oiseau]

I'd been having this problem. Since we moved to our new apartment, we've been having laundry issues because the washer here is pretty crappy.
This is what has worked for me:
HOT wash (I usually do cold)
detergent (Arm & Hammer...the green kind)
OxiClean
About 1/2c. vinegar

I add all that stuff then run an extra long wash cycle. Then I dry them like normal.

Good luck..I hate that nasty towel smell too!

[painefaria]

Line Dry in the sun... That seems to clear out all of my towel stinkies

[disney205]

The only thing that worked for us was to wash with hot water with vinegar in the rinse. This method was recommended to us by a friend and I didn't believe it would work but no more stinky towels for us!

[OakBerry]

Do you have a front loader? I never had stinky towels until we got a front loader machine.
My solution is add 1/4 scoop of Oxyclean to the tub, fill with towels, then add less than a tablespoon of detergent (for a front loader). I also use hot water. Works nicely!
I also found that I have to leave my front loader washer open all the time when it's not in use, otherwise it stinks. I miss my old washer!

[blumooned]

We had the same problem - washed in hot water with baking soda added to the wash & the smell went away. Also, make sure they are 100% dry when you remove from dryer - ours were really thick & took a little longer.

[ILoveMyBabyBird]

Originally Posted by OakBerry

Do you have a front loader? I never had stinky towels until we got a front loader machine.
My solution is add 1/4 scoop of Oxyclean to the tub, fill with towels, then add less than a tablespoon of detergent (for a front loader). I also use hot water. Works nicely!
I also found that I have to leave my front loader washer open all the time when it's not in use, otherwise it stinks. I miss my old washer!

yeah i leave mine open overnight and the close it in the morning when its not damp anymore. I wil have to try this, i got the stinky towel issue too!

[hippie_mommy]

We were having this problem a few months ago, and I read on several sites that liquid detergent in a front loader can cause this. We switched back to powdered detergent and now nothing smells sour.

[MissRubyandKen]

I second the tea tree oil. Just a wee bit in a hot wash, soak if you want. I do this sometimes for my dish rags.

[cristeen]

If any of your towels have a poly content, they'll hold onto the smell and redistribute it when you wash. I know some of my cloth napkins have that problem - and they can stink up the entire load if I don't deal with it.

[just_lily]

I do a wash with a cup of baking soda, and then repeat the wash with a cup of vinegar. Cleans the funk out of my towels, AND my front loader.

[noobmom]

Originally Posted by Katie T

Stink can also be from detergent build up. Wash on HOT w/no soap & check for suds. Repeat until no suds your towels wont stink I promise!

Yep, this happened to us. I was using too much detergent (liquid) in my FLer. I switched to powder and cut back some...made sure it was rinsing well. My towels never stunk coming out of the dryer--they would just start to stink after 1 or 2 days of use.