Need a strong odour removing detergent for dress washing

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nsas02

nsas02

Galvanizer
Hi all,

My father has a very strong sweat smell and is a heavy sweating person. I too have inherited this particular gene from him :P I've been using anti-perspirants and all sorts of perfumes/scents. But the problem is, once I open my washing machine post washing my clothes, I can still get my sweat smell. Washing only removes the dirt from my clothes, but not my sweat smell. I've tried pre-soaking in liquid detergent before washing, adding scent softeners like Comfort liquid, have tried soak washing, have tried different powder to liquid detergents. I still haven't got any solution for my problem. My washing machine has been maintained properly, have been run maintenance washes regularly using descale powder, so it is not a machine problem. I've been searching online for a strong odour removing detergent, all I see are U.S based products. Is there anything in India that can help me with this problem?
 
You can try vinegar on the armpits, use a 1:1 dilution with water, spray and let it soak for 15 mins then out it in the washer
 
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SunnyBoi said:
You can try vinegar on the armpits, use a 1:1 dilution with water, spray and let it soak for 15 mins then out it in the washer
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You meant in the dress's armpits right? Let me try that once and see. But, won't vinegar affect the dress material/fabric?
 
nsas02 said:
You meant in the dress's armpits right? Let me try that once and see. But, won't vinegar affect the dress material/fabric?
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if you soak it only for 15 mins it wont affect it. you can dilute even further, like put 2 cap fulls in a bucket and soak overnight
 
nsas02 said:
My father has a very strong sweat smell and is a heavy sweating person. I too have inherited this particular gene from him :p I've been using anti-perspirants and all sorts of perfumes/scents. But the problem is, once I open my washing machine post washing my clothes, I can still get my sweat smell. Washing only removes the dirt from my clothes, but not my sweat smell. I've tried pre-soaking in liquid detergent before washing, adding scent softeners like Comfort liquid, have tried soak washing, have tried different powder to liquid detergents. I still haven't got any solution for my problem. My washing machine has been maintained properly, have been run maintenance washes regularly using descale powder, so it is not a machine problem.
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If you use liquid detergents and that Comfort stuff on a regular basis then i recommend you do a machine clean as detailed here for your washer every month.

The way you're cleaning it descales it. It ain't the best way if you want to 'clean' the machine.

nsas02 said:
I've been searching online for a strong odour removing detergent, all I see are U.S based products. Is there anything in India that can help me with this problem?
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1) Try Dettol Laundry Sanitiser with spring blossom scent. The fresh linen scent smells too chemical for me.

Now the way this works is like fabric softener, in that its added in the last rinse. I put two caps in the fabric softener compartment per load.

Next bit is important. Once that last rinse begins you want it to soak for at least 15-20 minutes.

Regular front loader rinse cycles are too short and empty the water in like 5 minutes.

The reason for 15-20 minutes is its a biocide (quats) and needs time to kill the smell causing bacteria. This is why no detergent you tried earlier will work as it does not contain a biocide.

On my front loader i have a setting called Rinse hold. That stops the machine just before the spin cycle begins.

On recent front loaders i notice this setting has gone missing. Which means you need to pause the machine manually a few minutes into that last rinse cycle begins but obviously before it ends. Wait the required time and then let the wash complete as normal.



2) the second way is to use NaDCC tablets like these Suma D4 tabs. They are used to purify water.

They are a substitute for bleach with the advantage they do not contain sodium hydroxide which is used as a stabilier to prolong shelf life of chlorine bleach like Clorox or Rin.

Use this product as it comes with accurate dosing instructions. Cheaper stuff from other companies that advertise 'chlorine tablets' do not mention dosing.

I use them to deodorise and sanitise kitchen sponges that develop a stink and get dirty. Best part is three months later the sponges still look like new whereas with clorox they would have disintegrated and required to be replaced. So these tabs are gentler on fabric AFAICT.

You will have to experiement with dosing for a given volume of water and do some testing so that you use enough to deodorise but not also bleach your clothes at the same time.

And you will have to pretreat them like soaking them for 15-20 minutes before putting them into the washing machine. More work compared to 1)
 
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nsas02 said:
They're usually dried in broad sunlight :)
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There are some fabrics types that smell even with a very little amount of sweat. I have one shirt from Champion brand. No matter how good you wash it, it starts smelling real bad in just half an hour. Also you may want to try different bathing soap for yourself as the odour is created by the bacterias breeding on our skin.
 
When you wash you're not killing anything unless the wash temp is at least 60 degrees or more and not a lot of items can be washed at that high a temperature.

If its smelling then its harboring bacteria. I get this with towels and that is where the sanitiser comes in.
nsas02 said:
Thanks guys. for now, using this and i'm getting decent results.
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Just masking the odour with perfume. Not removing the source of the problem ;)

Add to which you're creating future trouble with your machine using this ezee fabric conditioner crap

People like you are the reason i wrote that machine cleaning thread

Started with powders, moved to liquids and finally fabric conditioner (!)
 
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blr_p said:
People like you are the reason i wrote that machine cleaning thread
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:confused:
My machine doesn't have temperature control. So its the temperature of water in the water tank.
Soaking in vinegar - I can do this once in a while, but cannot follow regularly.
The one i'm using now - It solves the issue of smell, but does it kill the bacteria? No idea
 
nsas02 said:
My machine doesn't have temperature control. So its the temperature of water in the water tank.
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So its a top loader then. Real recipe for trouble here with low temp washes.
nsas02 said:
The one i'm using now - It solves the issue of smell, but does it kill the bacteria? No idea
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it does not solve the issue or kill the bacteria.

The sanitiser will and you can use that in your top loader. If you can stop the machine for the time mentioned during the last rinse.

Incidentally how much of that ezee stuff do you use per wash ?
 
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Get merino wool shirts. Decathlon is the only seller in India that sells them for a decent price.

The material is odor repellent. While it is made from wool, they are meant for hot and humid weather.

Lastly, they need far fewer washes and dries quickly.
 
pour half teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate along with liquid detergent over the stain, rub with the toothbrush, leave it for 15 mins, then do a regular machine clean.

for sweating, you can use Mitchum antiperspirant to keep the sweating at bay.
 
muzux2 said:
pour half teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate along with liquid detergent over the stain, rub with the toothbrush, leave it for 15 mins, then do a regular machine clean.

for sweating, you can use Mitchum antiperspirant to keep the sweating at bay.
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To be Frank, ive used various antiperspirants. Starting from roll-ons, spray to soap. Everything works for a few days, then its back to square 1.
 
nsas02 said:
Soaking in vinegar - I can do this once in a while, but cannot follow regularly.
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You don't 'soak' in vinegar. Use a cap (60ml) of it in the fabric softener compartment and the machine will discharge it in the last rinse.

Vinegar is milder than laundry sanitiser though.

With sanitiser i use it every other wash and some times only once a month.
 
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