Hi moms, we buy fleece blankets to put down for the dogs to lay on. They are typically washed weekly (as are the dogs), although sometimes it gets a bit longer.
Recently, we've noticed a sour smell, even after washing them, that won't seem to go away. My husband tried doing a load of them with White Vinegar (Warm/Cold cycle, normal detergent, 1/2 cup vinegar), and while they smell better, it still isn't enough to bring the blankets back up into the family room.
Does anyone have any tried & proven suggestions? FYI, this is different than the smell when you've accidentally left laundry in the washer for a few days...
Thanks in advance! T. :)
Wow, ladies, thanks for so many great ideas!! It sounds like we need to "ramp up" the attack with the vinegar, & maybe baking soda.
We will try soaking overnight, completing the wash in the morning, & hanging on a line in the sun to see if that all helps.
Karen - these are blankets we buy specifically for the dogs, not for us. We buy them @ Goodwill for $5 each, but I've got about 10 of them I want to de-smell, so it's worth a little bit of effort :)
I'll post an update this weekend & let you all know how it turned out!
I get cheap towels to use for my dog and cat. When they get funky and washing doesn't work they become rags in the garage and I get new cheap towels.I usually wash in hot water with detergent and bleach. No fabric sheet in the dryer. If the weather is nice I'll dry them outside.
I would try washing with baking soda in hot water (let them soak for a while if you can), then using white vinegar in the rinse. If you can, hang them outside to dry on a super sunny day. I find the sun sanitizes things and takes out a lot of odors.
Have you considered just tossing them? Time is money...the amount of time and energy you are putting into having them smell normal (which is probably unlikely at this point) is far out-weighted by the man hours you're now spending to fix them.
Simple advice, toss them, get new ones, don't let the dog sleep on them.
I'd add baking soda to the above mix. That stuff is a miracle worker.
i always add a scoop of baking soda to my laundry, and put white vinegar in the rinse cycle. every now and then the cool water fabrics (such as our running clothes or his work stuff) will retain an odor, and i ramp up the vinegar and run it through a warm cycle.
if you usually wash your fleecies in warm, they can probably withstand an occasional run in hot. combined with some baking soda and extra vinegar, i'm betting that will take care of it for you.
khairete
S.
Have not read other responses but you might want to try washing at a laundromat also. The machines are a bit more heavy duty and might cycle through a bit better with more room. Also cold water wash might help.
when i get the funky wet dog smell that won't wash out i wash with tide, 1/4 cup borax and 1/4 cup washing soda. set to the longest cycle, then i add 1 cup vinegar to the rinse cycle. (if that fails then another wash cycle with bleach added) dry outside on a cloths in sunshine and fresh air
Check out One Good Thing by Jillee. She has how to get the sour smell out of towels. You wash on hot with just white vinegar and then wash again on hot with baking soda. I don't remember the amounts offhand but you will find it on the blog.
Buy Ariel and add it to your regular laundry. My husband used this on his stinky oil smelling uniforms and it worked wonderful. It is usually in some of the little Mexican shops, however I have occasionally seen it in some bigger stores. I didn't check but you are probably near a Jewel or Roundy's. Perhaps they have it.
It is a powder and just a little helps.
If you have a top loader washing machine. Start the water and add the detergent. Add some bleach. I used a half cup to a cup depending on the colors and fabrics. Then let the water continue to fill. When it starts agitating add the blankets one at a time. The bleach should be so diluted that it won't put bleach spots on them but it might.
Bleach kills the germs and odors deep in the fibers.
If it's a front loader then put the blankets in and start the machine. Add the detergent and fabric softener and then, in the other dispenser put it about half full of bleach then add a little water to it. This helps the bleach disburse in the washer better.
