Banish lingering smells from clothes with £2 hygiene product

One common hygiene product could help make your clothes smell better.

There’s nothing quite like the smell of freshly washed laundry. In fact, it’s so sought-after that even candles and home fragrances have a scent that tries to mimic what it’s like when you put your nose to a fresh towel or bedsheets.

But what if your washing machine wasn’t able to give you the freshly cleaned feeling you desired? Sometimes, particularly with clothes, unpleasant odours can linger on fabrics even after they’ve been washed.

This is the problem one woman is facing, as she claims her clothes constantly smell of body odour. She said she isn’t an “especially stinky person” and doesn’t sweat excessively, but she finds the smell is worst around the armpits of her t-shirts.

In a post on Reddit, she asked for advice from cleaning fans as she declared she is “at the end of her rope”.

In her post, the woman explained she has tried soaking her clothes in white vinegar and in specialised odour-killing products, but finds that the effect wears off after a few washes and her shirts go back to smelling “musty”.

She also said she doesn’t think the problem is her washing machine, as although it’s old, her partner – whom she described as “sweaty” – is able to wash their synthetic material clothes without any issues.

Cleaning fans in the comments had several pieces of advice for the woman, but among the most popular suggestions was a rather odd home hack – use mouthwash. Many of us will have mouthwash in our bathrooms already, but it can be purchased for around £2 from supermarkets and pharmacies.

One person said: “Try soaking the pits in mouthwash. I once bought a shirt from the thrift store, and the armpits had BO. I soaked them in mouthwash, and they were gone!”

Other commenters also recommended filling a spray bottle with Vodka and spritzing it on the problem areas of her clothes. This method uses alcohol to clear the scent, which is also used in the mouthwash version – although buying a bottle of Vodka just to clean your clothes will be more expensive.

One person also said they’d had a similar issue and had discovered it was actually due to using too much detergent in their washing machine. They added that washing at a hotter temperature can also help to shift some of the unwanted smells.

They said: “For me, it was using way too much detergent, which was lingering on clothes and collecting smells. I got rid of all dryer sheets and fabric softeners, then ran through the wash with no detergent but vinegar in the fabric softener to make sure everything was rinsed out twice.

“From then on I use maybe 2 tablespoons of detergent for a full load and throw some vinegar or other rinse aid in the fabric softener when I wash them. Clean, fresh clothes every time.”