Clothes smell after washing. Have tried EVERYTHING *title edited by MNHQ*

[badatwashing]

Hello,

I'm looking for some help in desperate times. I know there's a lot of information about this problem on the internet but I am certain I have read and tried it all, and still suffer from this problem!

After washing my clothes (T Shirts being biggest culprit) the smell at best musty, at worst like a combination of mold & BO. It's most obvious around the inside collar, you can also smell it when they're still damp during drying.

Here is what I've tried with varying degrees of success, maybe there's a magic combination I haven't managed, or I'm cursed? But hopefully someone might have the answer before I have to buy a new set of T shirts every 2 weeks!

1. Problem has followed across 3 houses & 4 washing machines, which rules that out.

1. Loading machine at less than 50% capacity.

1. Only drying clothes outdoors in sunlight.

1. Drying clothes on a heated rack & with a dehumidifier.

1. Washing with clear vinegar & bicarb soda (has moderate success but smell comes back by the next couple washes)

1. Washing at 60C rather than 30, seems to work sometimes, but sometimes not.

1. Had all T shirts professionally dry cleaned, smell returns after next couple of washes.

1. Have tried a vast selection of detergents, fabric softeners, liquid, pods, powder etc.

9.Affects t shirts of any quality (different cotton, polyester blends etc.)

The clothes don't smell when I take them out of the machine, but once I've hung them up and I can smell the musty smell on my fingers, so it would imply that the odour is already there, and not occurring during the drying process.

Sorry for the essay, but I am all out of options & ideas and at the point where I just end up having to wear clothes that smell. The smell is always most prominent in t shirts, as I've mentioned. I can also smell it on socks & underwear but strangely never on bedding or dress shirts.

Grateful for any ideas/ opinions!

Thanks everyone, my next steps will be: Cleaning cycle at 90C followed by a wash at 60 with bio power.

I’ll let you know how I get on!

Have you cleaned the filter and drawer too?

Clothes are usually labelled to be washed at 40.
To those who wash hotter: do they not shrink?

This is my worry about washing at a higher temperature as the majority of my clothes say to wash cold.

Soda crystals. Cost about a pound in the supermarket. Half a bag in the drum on a 90° wash every now and again. It cleans away any residue that is sitting in the machine and the pipes. That residue is a wonderful little bacteria farm and could definitely be causing at least some of the smell.

Leave the drawer and door open between washes. Clean the gunk from the drawer regularly.

@Elieza

Clothes are usually labelled to be washed at 40. To those who wash hotter: do they not shrink?

Oh not clothes, Elieza - just towels here (& some cotton bedding. Not polycotton though)

Use soap (proper soap) instead of shower gel

I do my towels at 90 at the moment and bedding at 60.

I dont think you need to wash everything at 60

Just the occasional cycle at a high temperature to make sure you dont get bacteria build up, and then a cleaning cycle occasionally too.

I expect you have resident sludge of soap and fabsoft in the machine.

Do a HOT HOT HOT wash of white towels only, with NO powder and NO fabsoft, but a cup of washing soda crystals.

Does the water go grey and foam up? That's the soap sludge dissolving. Do it again until it stops.

If you want to create smelly soap sludge, the best way is to use excessive amounts of powder and fabsoft, and do low temperature washes.

If you don't want smelly sludge, use minimal product and add half a cup of soda crystals to each wash.

I had this majorly with my teenagers clothing, to a lesser degree with mine and my little girls.

I would say, clean your machine. Run a few hot washes with just soda crystals. Do a good clean out of any sludge from the rubber seals - you will be amazed what comes out. Clean the drawer and also the filter at the bottom. It will take a few hot washes with soda crystals to sort.

Then just use powder. No liquids, no fabric conditioner. It’s amazing how quickly your clothes smell better. Leave the door open slightly if you can between washes too.

As someone also previously said - don’t wash yourself with shower gels etc. Use normal soap - this is also a game changer.

I only ever got this stink when I tried eco laundry products - ecover and Method. Switched back to Ariel bio and never get it now.