Smelly towels

[ILoveGregoryHouse]

How often are towels supposed to be changed? Mine are starting to smell a bit funky and am not sure if towels are supposed to last years and years in which case any tips on getting the smell out or should they be replaced every few years. Help. The smell is really getting to me right now as am just pg (I think) and can smell anything at four hundred paces

Of course, I don't mean they never get washed! These are clean towels that still smell.

How hot do you wash them? I wash my towels at 90 degrees, or else they get a bit whiffy.

Some of my towels are getting on for 15 years old....(not sure of I should admit that)

I recently gave all my towel a hot wash (60deg) with white vinegar and then another wash with bicarb and it seem to have got rid of the 'wet dog' smell. I too am PG and can smell things no-one else can.

Does your washing machine need a clean out? Sometimes if the filter needs cleaning it can leave washing smelly.

60C, bio powder on a long wash should sort them out.

Mine went like this and was horrible. I realised that they weren't drying quick enough. I washed them hot with a prewash and rinsed in vinegar as suggested above. Then either dry outside, or in drier. make sure they are bone dry. It was the sitting around damp that made mine worse.
HTH

Great, thanks. Will boil them! Forgot about vinegar - it's great for the dishwasher too. Shame a boil wash and a tumble dry will be a bit environmentally unfriendly but better that than getting a load of new ones unnecessarily ( I hope - it's a bit like the reusable nappies argument innit?)

I just fixed my towels-gorn-bad (due mainly to dh taking them to footie and then leaving them mouldering in a holdall for a fortnight) by washing them at 60 with a scoopful of soda crystals as well as the usual detergent.

It took away the slightly mouldy smell that even a boil wash hadn't been able to fix.

i had smelly towels - they were fine when first washed (at 60) but lost their freshness quickly and starting smelling a bit yuck.

now i still wash them at 60 but always use white vinegar in the fabric conditioner drawer - problem solved! now they smell fresh until they have been used.

You should always wash towels at 90 degrees to kill any bacteria in them. My washing machine repair man told me that I should do a boil wash once a week for the benefit of my washing machine - stops it getting clogged up and therefore should last longer.

I guess that if OP hasn't solved her smelly towel dilemma in the intervening six years they may be a suitable alternative momo