Help! My whole house smells of teenage boys.

[moofolk]

Help! My house smells of teenage boy and I don’t know how to make it better. AIBU to think this is not inevitable?

What can I do? There’s three of them. The 17 year old washes fastidiously and without prompting. The other two need reminding, but even straight after a bath or shower they smell.
I wash clothes & bedding more frequently than is environmentally sound.
The musk comes off them and infiltrates everything. Their bedrooms smell disgusting. The fastidiously tidy one less so, but still bad, which leads me to fear I might be being U to expect to be able to change and just have to wait it out. But how long? Until they all leave home?

As I walk upstairs in my house the fug hits. I hate it but also very embarrassed if anyone comes round.

Are they washing with soap rather than shower gel?
More industrial deodorant?

Are windows open? Do they have decent mattress protectors? How old are their mattresses/pillows/duvets and do they ever get a wash? You could get them on the washing line and see if that helps (obviously not so much the mattress itself). What about things like coats and jackets? Do they store shoes in their rooms?

Bicarb is your friend too. Sprinkle liberally on the carpets and then vacuum up a couple of hours later.

I know the smell. With 3 of them it must be strong!

What do you mean by washing more than is environmentally sound? Have you got carpets? Do they do deep cleans? Is the whole house aired?

I'm pretty sure I read something once about teenage boys developing an odour that only really affects their mother, and it being nothing to do with how much they wash etc.

I don't know much about it, but hopefully someone knowledgeable about such things comes and explains it to see if it's that.

Open the windows.

If the smell is lynx then that's OK. If it's grim dirty musk smell, are their clothes being washed and dried outside?

Pillows and duvets probably need a wash or air.

You need to do weekly room inspections - I bet there are festering food containers in there. And encourage them to open the windows daily or at least a couple of times a week.

If they still smell after having a shower, they might not be washing properly. Can you check with them about technique? It might be a bit embarrassing, but it's a useful thing for them to know. I think DS1 was about 12/13 when I actually checked with him one day if he knew how to wash, because I hadn't been physically washing him myself since he was about 4/5 he had sort of slipped into bad habits and forgotten what to do, and wasn't bothering to agitate/scrub - just letting the water run over his body.

I get smelly armpits myself and the best thing I 've found weirdly is to use face wash under my arms. Clearasil or whatever you probably have lying around anyway.

We went through this phase.
I think i got by with open widows, freebreez and a lot of understanding Don't worry it does end!

Of people, come round i used to say, if you can smell a thing, its the boys! They stink no matter what we do.

These days im saying, if you can smell anything, its the dogs!

The you grst had a really strong body odour and was embarrassed by it. He did all the rights things. Clean shirt every day, changed when he got home from school, used anti deodorant, washed with soap and made sure he was properly dry etc.
Then one day it just stopped!

Actually this is totally true at least IME and it's worse at certain times of my cycle, so if you're perimenopausal it could be hormones gone mad. If you don't have a partner to ask, invite your most blunt and non-offendable friend over and ask them if they can smell it.

Open windows, a good quality bo basher (not crap like links) wash all bedding and clothing with bicarb and put trays with bicarb in all the rooms. Hang jackets etc outside inside out (unwashed) to let the sun kill off any stinky bacteria living on the boys sweat in them, preferably daily if possible.
It won't get rid of all the stench but will cut it right down.

One thing I do these days which I never imagined being a job anyone would need to do - wiping out the inside of the empty laundry bin with disinfectant spray. That actually helps a lot, I think the hair oils or something were getting transferred to the laundry bin itself and then building up. And washing promptly rather than leaving stuff to fester.

My pre teen boys room stinks, it is very clean, regularly cleared out etc but it’s just boy smell. I manage it by keeping his window open all day, changing his bedding regularly (it’s the worst culprit I think), regularly emptying his washing basket and spraying fabric scents on curtains/rug etc. I also have a wax melt burner in the upstairs hall and the scent of that gets into his room.

I fear it will only get worse as he gets older though, I do wonder if it is a mother thing though as mentioned upthread because DH always thinks that it’s not that bad.

Addressing a few points from above:

Have just started on washing the actual duvets & pillows but obviously can’t do them all at once.

Will get on it with the bicarb. Can you really just put it in with a wash?

I have windows open so much, and dry outside as much as possible I’m dreading the end of summer!

And although I might find it worse being their mum, it’s definitely not only me who can smell it!

I will try getting them to walk with soap instead of shower gel though.

And any recommendations for better-than-Lynx deordorant / body spray? Or air freshener for that matter?

Shoes go by the front door which is a waft if sink too but I’ve been trying to tackle separately!

I have 2 teenage boys and leave the bathroom and their bedroom windows open 24/7 this time of year. When it’s colder I still open them in the day when no ones at home. I was thinking about getting a kitten but couldn’t bear the thought of not being able to leave the windows open for a couple of months, so that idea is on the back burner.

Yes, bicarb just goes in the wash with your normal stuff. And a dash of vinegar in the rinse tray.

Its not really much to do with hygiene and more to do with biology. Our teenage boys 'go off' to their mothers, it's evolutions way of preventing incest. There are some things it hasn't caught up with yet.

It does pass though. They probably smell delicious to girls who like them.

That is unfortunate.

Just wondering if they are hanging up wet towels which aren’t drying properly and then reusing them? Sniff the towels!

You have my sympathy. I spent a year as a student being the only girl living in a shared house with three boys.

I vividly remember coming down from my attic bedroom every morning and passing through the windowless first floor landing, from where all their bedrooms led. It stunk! A weird, musky boy smell eminated from their rooms and just hung in the air. They weren't even particularly untidy or unwashed as students go.

I'm pleased to say that I'm still friends with all of them and none of them or their houses smell these days.

For me, the best way of getting a nice smelling house is to open the windows - all day, everyday where possible.

No dirty or damp laundry lying around - it smells musty and infiltrates the entire house.

Nice scented candles or wax melts to burn - we just get the cheap ones from Home Bargains. They smell lovely and one block lasts all day.

Vacuuming daily and cleaning hard surfaces so that smells don’t get too ingrained.

Blankets on sofas etc. which are rotated and washed once a week to try and protect the actual fabric of the sofa.

About twice a year I’ll properly clean the carpets and fabric sofas as well.

Yep its the pheromones that will be getting to you.
May I suggest oder eaters insoles or spray for their shoes and trainers.
Mitcham is a good bo basher. But a good quality soap (not shower gel) for washing pits and bits is a good idea they can rewash after with shower gel if they want but definitely need real soap first

If they wear lynx, make sure it’s the anti perspirant rather than just the deodorant. It grates me that my ds gets about 12 cans of the deodorant for Xmas from well meaning family members, and it doesn’t help the smell!

I swear by sassy scents room sprays they are the only ones that really linger but aren’t overpowering.

I remember John Bishop doing a routine about teen boy stink (he has three sons). Seems very common.

Sure Maximum Protection or Mitchum (you can definitely get the Sure in a ‘manly’ container which might be more acceptable to them, not sure about Mitchum)

Definitely DEFINATELY bar soap for the shower instead of shower gel. Mitchum roll on. Helps me tolerate my ds room better