My washing never smells nice! What do you use?

[MamFran]

I use persil bio liquid and comfort pure fabric conditioner. But I never get that ‘ahh these clothes smell so nice’ feeling.
they don’t smell unpleasant or anything and they are all clean but I want to be able to say oh that smells so nice!
any recommendations on what to use ? My kids don’t have sensitive skin or anything and are older now so feel I don’t have to stick with the gentle stuff

Clean your filter.
Clean your drawer.
Clean your rubber gasket.

Run highest temp wash with empty drum every two months.

Don't overload the drum.
Leave door open when not in use.

This. My flatmate’s washing always smells lovely and I would walk into the flat and thought that it made the whole flat smell nice. Same with old flatmates too.
I asked her one day what she used because it smelt nice and made the room smell nice and she said that she thought the same about mine and she doesn’t notice hers anymore. I don’t notice mine anymore.
We both had been using the same detergent for 2ish years.
I also got a free fairy fabric softener and boom, nice smelling clothes again. So I think that we both have got used to our detergents.

I have washing drying in the bathroom and can smell it. It's just lovely and fresh.

Fresh washing does not smell of fabric conditioner. My washing is laundered using biological powder at high temperature and then line dried or put in the tumble dryer. My washing smells ‘clean’ and neutral - not drenched in artificial smells. They make my stomach churn.

Another vote for line drying smelling horrid! And I live 200 metres from the beach, so fresh sea breeze, not loads of city pollution.

two examples today - washed laundry, hung straight out, smelt nice as it came out of washer. An hour or so later, checked up on it to see what had dried - all the nice smell gone.

checked on a basket of laundry that I couldn’t remember whether had been washed or needed washing. Sniffed it to try to work it out… figured it needed washing as it didn’t smell of washing powder or anything fresh. Then realised it had been hung out to dry the other day and was clean!

snells naff after it’s been outside.

It doesn't smell "naff" - it just smells clean, which is how it is supposed to smell.

It doesn’t though…. Hence why I couldn’t identify an entire basket of washed laundry as “clean” when I sniffed it! Nearly washed it again! 😂

How can clean laundry not smell clean? The fact that your washing didn't smell of some type of perfumed product does not mean it doesn't smell clean, it simply means that you prefer your laundry to have a scent of some sort (weirdly).

Drying outside makes a massive difference

I live near the coast and I always think my washing smells a bit weird when it comes in. Once it's once it's hung up/worn/put on beds, it's fine but when it's fresh off the line, it always has a strange damp smell to it. Maybe it's the sea air because I never noticed it when I lived inland.

I use Daz and Lenor blue usually.

Yes, same. I live near the coast and hate the smell of line dried washing. It doesn’t smell bad, just like "outside", i can't really describe it. Perhaps its the hard water then the salt in the air. Either way i find it unpleasant. I love the heavy fragrances personally!

I think it’s what you’re used to thinking of as “fresh”. For me, the smell of laundry dried outside is the best in the world. If it smells too much of washing powder or fabric conditioner (we’ve never used it), it smells musty and unfresh to me. It’s the clean, neutral, outdoors smell that to me says clean, fresh laundry. I wouldn’t think that the lack of washing powder smell would equate to dirtiness as loads of people use unscented anyway.

Yes, exactly. I can’t describe it either, just a sort of outsidey nothingness…. Perhaps our sea air is too pure and removes all the scent 😂

my water isn’t overly hard, and it does smell nice out of the washer or if I dry it inside!

My ex’s mum used to use that ecover eco-friendly stuff. VILE.

their whole house smelled of it and he always had this odd smell. Wasn’t til we moved in together and he bought some that I realised what it was. Urgh.

to me line dried just smells like it’s been left in a cupboard for months. Not a dirty smell, but not fresh either. Just a bit flat, airy, almost musty even though it’s clearly not must.

Ecover is nice and fresh. Smells expensive.

Yes agree, if I can smell a heavy overpowering laundry powder/fabric softener it doesn’t smell clean to me, that smell reminds me of clothes when you’ve worn them on a night out with loads of perfume and it stays on the fabric, it doesn’t smell clean.

Fairy fabric Conditioner!
or try Spanish fabric conditioner Avesi

Oh it’s vile. Truly, truly vile. Used to hate the word smell lingering in their house and it certainly didn’t make me thing it was something clean, or laundry! 😂smells dusty.

Agree that perfume smells awful on clothes. It goes stale and horrible. To me that doesn’t smell anything like a subtle laundry detergent.

Fairy non bio pods and fairy fabric conditioner here - love it! Dry outside where possible or in tumble or on hanger asap if not. Don’t leave clothes in the machine for long plus leave door open. Clean machine with a dettol cleaner when I remember so approx every other month - and the fairy gel for cold / hand washes

Either Ariel powder or Sainsbury's Lavender & Jasmine Bio powder.
Fab Softner is Lenor Outdoorables Northern Solstice or Spring Awakenings

Colours washed at 40 & whites & bedding/towels at 60 & tea towels at 90 (a MN habit)
Powder goes in a one of those washing ball things inside the machine.

Every so often do an empty wash at 90 with a few drops or Zoflora or Bleach to clean the machine.

Always wipe/dry inside door/seal & keep door slightly ajar when open.

Line dry when weather good or when not tumble/heated airer.
When home sometimes hang the odd few items on hangers from the curtain rail in the sunniest room with a window slightly ajar if can't be tumbled & don't want to use the heated airer.

Clothes smell lovely for ages in the wardrobe & same for towels/bedding in airing cupboard.