Help! My whole house smells of teenage boys.

I have 3 boys (one at uni, so home at times) & seem to have avoided the worst of the stink, although DS2 does have a bit of a whiff. He's been on holiday with his dad all week & his room smells like the rest of the house- clean- after the usual hoovering/ bed change/ wipe down, but as soon as he's home he'll sleep one night & it'll have a slight musty smell again. It's wild.

I'll agree with bar soap/ Mitchum/ weekly bed washing/ shoes aired/ windows open all the time etc.

One tip I've always done is all socks, & pants are kept until I do a weekly, long, hot wash (60 degrees) with double the usual washing powder (I swear by powder & not gel or pods). Put dark towels or bedding or rugby kit in with them if need to fill the wash.

I have 2 rugby players, 1 karate guy & all 4 (inc DP) are mountain bikers, so well used to sweaty washing - the key here is immediate washing!

its the same smell as the changing rooms- absolutely rank!

showering- they need to wash their whole body with soap and dry it and put in clean clothes daily. Dr Squatch are cool so as for men but pricy. Dettol soap is actually good idea.
washing - a long wash at 40*c I use the cotton rather than quick wash. Dettol laundry cleanser instead of softener
sheets - use the washable divest with no cover and wash weekly. Use a mattress protector. Pillow protectors
deoderant - sure max
coats and shoes and bags - I notice the stench clings to these so wash these

the best thing to remove awful smells is Dettol disinfectant spray for rid of an awful smell at my house instantly from the poorly dog!

The best thing ever ever ever is persimmon and goats milk soap. It’s famous for getting rid of gross musty smell. Google it! I think it’s called a natural deodorant bar. We get it from Amazon.

Windows permanently open,
zoflora/bicarb added in the washing machine,
only wash clothes on a really hot wash, with bio,
air freshener gel things/reed diffusers hidden in rooms,
febreeze air freshener spray and use fabric refresh spray on soft furnishings,
Make sure they use proper bar soap each not shower gel,
Proper antiperspirants not deodorants,
shove any smelly trainers, gym bags, coats etc in the washing machine as they can hold smells.

Bar soap only
Tell them to scrub the soap onto a flannel and do bits, pits, feet and ass
Say it jokingly if you have to but they may need a reminder of how to wash their body. They get lazy. One of mine used to take his phone in the shower and just stand there under the water using it !!!!!!

I'm afraid I got rid of carpets in kids bedrooms upstairs and replaced with lino and rugs.. was much better.. but some of that was bc of general replacement, pets and dds hair straightener burns and makeup stains 🙃

Too much moisturiser in it and not enough proper soap to count as a proper soap.

Soak socks in Napisan. It kills the stinky feet bacteria. I do this for all of our socks. My DH used to have stinky feet and shoes at the end of the work day. Using Napisan fixed the issue.

Three teen boys here too!
I have put a Dettol soap in the loo and in their bathroom so if they do wash their hands, they will be clean!!
sholl “fresh step” shoe sprays
lots of deodorants available
lots of fun shower gel
lots of “fancy” shampoos and conditioners
a steady supply of Clearasil
dirty laundry collected daily
no food in bedroom policy (which is blatantly ignored, but i would like to believe it makes them reign in the amount of food they eat in their bedrooms)
plates and cups collected weekly
lots of compliments when they look clean

what’s wrong with Dove @ all the comments on here against it

I second glycolic acid - I have the one from The Ordinary and I put it on a cotton pad, then wipe under my armpits. It's not for daily use though, as the skin is quite thin and you risk over-exfoliating it.

Also, the Inkey List now does a glycolic acid stick which would be easier/less faff to apply under the arms. I haven't used it but I've used other Inkey List products and really rate them.

Pour Dettol in the bath that should help with the smell, and give them a new smell.

Also washing clothes at 40 degrees rather than 30, and making sure they wash their armpits with soap or shower gel, not just water. Tell them they need to wear a clean top every day too

Oh also get net bags for laundry not baskets, then the bags get washed too (emptied) or a plastic laundry basket and clean it every week

Simple solution stain and odour remover

Dettol laundry cleanser, not a smelly teen yet but DHs grim gym clothes, works a treat, also use it to wash duvets, towels etc.

Also fully enclosed zippable mattress protectors I got ours from a company called house of Emily they do stuff for care settings, there soft and not rustly but completely waterproof, so no sweat or spills soaking into mattresses.

Also yes to mitchum and bar soap.

DS is only six but he's just come back from grandparents he smells grimy, he's currently in a lush bubble bath and I've properly washed and conditioned his hair and given him a flannel to scrub with, I'm hoping to get him into good habits before the stinky years 🤦🏼‍♀️

This is most definitely a thing!

some things that have helped me tackle the smelly teen boy smell.

Antibacterial bar soap (I buy the dettol one, it ls yellow and just smells like soap but is anti bacterial).embarrass them if you must, but detail how to wash their bodies using the soap … they may just be allowing water to run off them and not actually washing.
Also, a big one- check how they are washing their hair. I think a lot of this smell comes from hair oils… turns out my son was using the slightest little smidge of shampoo and mainly just wetting his hair to ‘wash’ it. I taught him to lather rinse and repeat… 2 good goes with plenty of shampoo and his hair smelled clean after washing. I had to teach this by actually washing my sons hair over the side of the shower (he was dressed, just to be clear) , so he learned the process and the sensation of what actually scrubbing his scalp and hair clean felt like … he is ND and has some sensory issues so this took some teaching. He got it after a few times of being sent back to shower when he was clearly still smelly! I think some if this was the teen lazies, and some if not was needing to embed the process.

windows open and lots of air flow.

bedding washed every week, good quality wash liquid and some antibacterial laundry stuff (I buy mine from Lidl or similar, no need to buy the branded dettol stuff which is pricey ) no fabric softener (can cause smells to cling as coats the fibres apparently) and a glug of white vinegar in the softener drawer.

This one is controversial but I swear is an absolute game changer- I got an enzyme cleaner that’s for dog wee/poo accidents , and smells and stains (I know !!!) and sprayed it on the mattress when it was stripped each week, also a spritz on the carpet after weekly hoovering. It isn’t like febreeze, it actually neutralises the smell as it’s got enzymes that are designed to neutralise biological smells. It doesn’t smell bad, and is safe to use for humans as well as for dogs! I will try and link the picture. I buy it in a huge carton for about £20 on amazon as I use it for everything (it’s an amazing stain remover for absolutely anything, it even got an huge tomato bolognaise stain out of my cream carpet !!! ) . This was the most effective thing I’ve ever found for the teen Smell.
I also spray it in trainers, armpits of sweaty boy coats, onto smelly backpacks … anything… and it just neutralises the smell. It’s magic.

Dettol soap is key to your solution. It’s anti bacterial so actually clears the smelly parts whereas shower gel does not. It’s anti bacterial has completely solved the issue in our house. Your boys need to wash their armpits, private area and feet with Dettol soap every shower. That will stop the problem at source. It’s available cheaply in blocks of six from Amazon or widely available at supermarkets

I think the soap and biological washing powder make the biggest difference.
I find biological washing stuff hard to find too the majority of fancy smelling ones are non bio which is just useless. Everything ends up musty

I have 3 boys only two at home now. They just stink.
I recommend

1. Soap -Pears - proper soap!! not dove or simple
2. Biological washing powder
3. Windows open daily
4. Dry washing outside/ use a dehumidifier if drying indoors

The one thing I would add to all of this... socks, gym clothes, and football gear have to go into a wash with a disinfectant laundry additive as well as the detergent, and not on a quick cycle. Sweaty gear must not go into the washing basket and sit. But socks is a big thing for the stink here!

This is interesting. Does it happen with mothers and daughters too? At certain times of the month, I find DD really stinks but neither DH nor her siblings can smell it. They all think I'm imagining it.

I have a primary-aged son and am already anticipating the teenage grimness. The tips on this thread will be useful!

I really disagree. I don't think shower gel gets you anywhere near as clean as soap (and most disappears straight down the plug hole!). Soap in a bar (not Dove) leaves you properly clean.