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| My job requires me to wear polo shirts. So i went and bought several shirts that are exactly the same, only different colors. Now the funny thing is, that all the light-colored shirts retain my perspiration odor even after laundering, but the dark colors come out just fine. I checked them, and they are all made of the same material, so what gives? I tried using detergent with Febreeze, but that did nothing. I have a HE washer, so i am not sure what additives are safe to use in it. Does anyone know what I can do and why this happens only to the light colors? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Hi Cheesecurlgurl, can't tell you why it's only with the lights, but you could try baking soda and the hottest wash the fabric can stand. HTH, mary |
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- Posted by creek_side (My Page) on Sun, Nov 15, 09 at 21:40
| Must be something to do with the dyes that are used in the clothing. Perhaps you should change polo shirt brands. |
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| Take some plain old white vinegar in a spray bottle and spray into those areas and saturate the fabric. Then, put them into a plastic bag overnight and let sit. In the morning launder as usual and the perspiration odors and/or stains should be removed from those shirts. |
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- Posted by cryptandrus (My Page) on Mon, Nov 16, 09 at 11:41
| Liquid chlorine bleach also removes perspiration odors amazingly well... when used properly, it's generally safe to use on white and pastel-colored cotton shirts as long as they don't contain nylon or spandex. Follow the directions on the Clorox bottle and for your particular washing machine. *Never* combine bleach with vinegar or ammonia. |
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- Posted by kitchenobsessed (My Page) on Mon, Nov 16, 09 at 11:59
| FWIW, I have found that those crystal deodorants eliminate B.O. smell (but not wetness) much, much, much better than standard antiperspirants like Mitchum. |
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| One thing I would recommend is NOT to put any clothes which still have odor in the clothes dryer. Instead, hang them to dry on plastic hangers if you cannot re-wash them immediately. Dryer heat can "bake in" odors (and stains, OT for this thread), thus making it very difficult, if not impossible, to remove them in the next wash. The vinegar tip given above is a very good one. I would also recommend that you use at least a half-cup of baking soda when you wash the light-colored shirts, in warm water, not cold, along with your regular detergent. Let the clothes agitate for a few minutes, then press Pause on the washer to let them soak for at least an hour -- perhaps even overnight. Then press Start on the washer to finish out the wash cycle. White vinegar in the final rinse (about 1/2 - 1 cup per full load) can also help. When the clothes are finished and you cannot detect any odor, you might want to hang them on plastic hangers and hang them outside in the fresh air to dry. Then check to be sure the odor is completely gone. I have done laundry for guys who worked long hours outside in broiling summer heat, and I have had to do these things. They really worked! I hope this helps you. |
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- Posted by czechchick2 (My Page) on Mon, Nov 16, 09 at 23:55
| I would recommend prewash w/extra detergent for every smelier or dirtier load. It works well for us. |
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- Posted by happymomof2kids (My Page) on Tue, Nov 17, 09 at 6:57
| My Hubby is a garbage man. For really stinky uniforms, I soak them with a 1/2 to full dose of laundry detergent in a bucket with warm water. Let them soak for a couple of hours to over night, drain, rinse, and launder as usual. |
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- Posted by sshrivastava (My Page) on Wed, Nov 18, 09 at 15:05
| Wash at 120F or higher and use 1/4 cup of baking soda in the first rinse. |
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| I recommend something easier. Wash in HOT water and Arm & Hammer POWDER detergent ("Clean Burst," if possible. It has baking soda in it. It is wonderful, in my humble opinion. |
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- Posted by Aidan(aidan.a.bradley@gmail.com) onWed, Aug 24, 11 at 4:49
| I'm not messing, I used to soak some of my work clothes in CocaCola before washing. Not only killed odours, but also completely gets rid of grease, oil and anything tough. After seeing what it can do to heavily soiled clothes, I cant bring myself to put inside me any more... |
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| Aidan, how much coke did u use, and for what kind of washer? |
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| If your clothes are smelling, you are not using enough laundry detergent. I tried cutting back one time and my husband's shirts were smelling. I went back to using what the box said, no more problem. I don't understand using things to get rid of smells. Just use more soap. My Dad's clothes always smelled when I ironed them, but there was an excuse for that. Mom had a wringer washer, she washed all of the laundry in one tub of water. When she got a reg. washer no more smells. |
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- Posted by livebetter (My Page) on Wed, Aug 24, 11 at 21:13
| @vala55, the answer for some body odor is not more detergent. Glad that worked for you but it will not work for everyone. Especially those trying to rid special work out wear of odor. Those fabrics hold on to smells and regular detergent can actually make the problem worse. I have neighbors who run iron man and they had a huge problem with odor. When they switched to a special detergent for work out wear the problem went away. |
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| I notice with my work out clothes, especially when I do a grueling work out & I am drenched, odors can be tough to totally remove. For me, I've found it is the anti-perspirant and deodorant that glues itself to the fabric. About 2 weeks ago, we swtiched to the first "natural" deodorant that has ever worked. I mean, we are in the middle of a whole week of 100-105F weather, and NO smells and almost totally dry. Deodorant has no alcohol, aluminium. Herbal Clear. I got mine at Whole Foods, I think about $5/6. Since the Deo is not sticky, it washes out of my workout clothes, just using the Warm wash setting in my Miele. I generally have been using Tide Total Care he, Tide with a Touch of Downy or Method Fresh Air. Hope this helps. |
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| I've had pretty good luck with Tide Sport. The scent isn't overpowering on the dried clothes and it seems to be keeping the stink at bay. |
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- Posted by sshrivastava (My Page) on Thu, Aug 25, 11 at 20:24
| @ larsi What is the brand of deodorant? |
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| SStava... Herbal Clear Sport is the brand and name. It is formulated with Swiss Lichen and Tea Tree Oil (but has NO Tea Tree smell). My, my partner and my BFF are all using it...and we are amazed. We did a Killer 1.15 hour high impact class at the gym today...dripping wet, and NO smell. This stuff is amazing, and so much better for you that all those chemicals smeared under your arms, leaching into our bodies. Too bad, I have used regualar deodorant for like 20 years now! |
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| larsi, is it strictly a deodorant or is it an anitperspirant as well? While no odor is important, I don't like the feel of wetness in my armpits and sweat circles under arms are not pretty! |
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- Posted by livebetter (My Page) on Fri, Aug 26, 11 at 9:30
| @izeve, it would be a deodorant. I doubt there are any natural antiperspirants since aluminum is required to "clog" your pores and temporarily stop sweat. I stared using a natural deodorant about a year ago. I really like it. If it's really hot, I'll still use antiperspirant but I find for a lot of normal days the natural deo is all I need. No smell and it doesn't ruin my bras and shirts - I hate what regular antiperspirants do to my things. The trick is finding a natural product that works for you to control odor. It must be able to control the bacteria that causes the odor. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Herbal Clear Sport
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| @ izeve & livebetter... Herbal Clear makes MANY deodorants, but the SPORT version does help with wetness. There is NO aluminium, yet I am feeling dry all day, even during heavy work outs. Yesterday was about 103F, and at 10:30pm last night, it was still 82F...and I was still dry!! I do not know if it is the Swiss Lichen or Tea Tree, but this is the BEST deodorant and natural anti-perspirant I have ever used. It works better than any other product I have EVER used, including clinical strength products!! |
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| My guess is that the tea tree oil is helping fight the odor, which is caused by bacteria. TTO is an anti-fungal and I remember reading somewhere that during WWII, it was used in some countries on wounds, due to a lack of other antibiotics available. |
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- Posted by timberframe4us (My Page) on Sun, Sep 4, 11 at 18:02
| Generally, antiperspirants cause several laundry problems, so a trial of deodorant could help with the sleuthing. The whole dark vs light thing is very curious. If it were the opposite direction, I would think that you were washing the darks in cold and the lights in hot. (Is there any reason you're doing the opposite??) Borax is really good for odors and is a laundry booster. |
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