How To Get Strong Scents Out Of Your Clothes
Brand new clothes, secondhand or thrifted clothes, and even your own clothes can all have unpleasant smells from time to time. Whether it’s the smell of the clothing factory, a previous owner’s fabric softener, or your very own body odor, knowing how to get the stink out of clothes is a good skill to have in your back pocket.
Most Common Scents Stuck in Clothes
There are a handful of common complaints people have when they are dealing with smelly clothes. Most common smells can be reduced or removed entirely with the right treatment.
Good tools to always have in your arsenal include:
- a soaking bucket or container
- white vinegar
- baking soda
- washing soda
- borax
- a drying rack
- somewhere to hang clothes outside in the sun – the general rule of thumb is that sunshine and clean air will help dissipate odors caught in clothes as they dry, while a tumble dryer can actually bake the smells into the threads and make them worse. Assume “Dry in the sun if possible” is the last step in every method listed below unless otherwise specified.
Occasionally, you’ll need stronger products for specific smells, which we will cover.
The most common contaminating smells for clothes are:
- “New” Smell and Chemical Smells
- Sweat and B.O.
- Urine
- Feces
- Vomit
- Perfume
- Cigarette Smoke
- Detergent, Fabric Softener, and Other Fragrances
- Mold & Mildew
- Food Smells (Grease, spices, etc)
- Gasoline and Motor Oil
Read on to find out how to get strong smells out of your clothes!
Dealing with the many different kinds of stink found in clothing can feel overwhelming. | Image by wayhomestudio on Freepik
“New” Smell and Chemical Smells
Sometimes, new clothes or other fabric items like bedding can come with a distinct chemical smell straight out of the package. Regardless of how they smell, you should wash new items before wearing them because, in the case of clothes from a store, they have likely been tried on by dozens of other people before you bought it (ew) and in the case of packaged items, they might have preservatives like formaldehyde on them. These chemicals are sprayed on new fabric items to ensure they won’t grow mold before being sold.
Most chemical smells from new clothes will go away after a typical wash or two. But if not, here’s what you can do:
Method 1 – Vinegar + Baking Soda:
Soak the item in diluted white vinegar and the warmest water the fabric can tolerate for one hour (you can do this in the drum of your washing machine to make things easier). Then, add a cup of baking soda to the water and a small amount of laundry detergent and run the washing cycle.
Method 2 – Peroxide + Washing Soda:
If that still doesn’t work, soak the item in warm water with a cup of Sodium Percarbonate (the active ingredient in OxiClean) or a cup of liquid hydrogen peroxide and a cup of washing soda for one hour before running it through the laundry again.
How It Works:
Vinegar, baking soda, sodium percarbonate, hydrogen peroxide, and washing soda are all chemicals that are good at breaking down other chemicals. The sun further causes lingering substances to break down, and the fresh air helps blow away residue while infusing cleaner air into the drying threads.
Sweat and B.O.
Body odor smells are tricky. Sometimes, you might put on a shirt that smells perfectly fine, only for the hidden B.O. smell to erupt suddenly an hour later. It can be even worse if you’re wearing something thrifted or secondhand, because sometimes when our sweat mixes with someone else’s, the stink is far worse than either could ever be on their own.
The most common items of clothing for this to happen to are shirts that fit snugly in the armpits, athletic tops, and tight athletic bottoms (leggings). It can happen with synthetic clothes and natural materials, but the most common microbe to cause this lingering odor, Micrococcus bacteria, particularly thrives in synthetic fibers. This bacteria (as others, and even some microscopic fungi) can “rebloom” even after washing and drying, as soon as they come in contact with moisture, like your armpits. This is why clothes you thought were clean can have you stinking in a matter of minutes.
If you smell a funk on an article of clothing at any time, whether it’s freshly dirty, clean and dry, or only after you put it on, you’ll need to treat the source of the issue: lingering bacteria and/or fungi finding a home in some residual body oil aka biofilm. Both bacteria and fungi abound in nature; they’re important parts of the global ecosystem and you can’t escape them. Usually, they don’t cause an issue or are even beneficial; it’s only when there is overgrowth that a problem arises… and sometimes that overgrowth lives in the armpits of your thrifted t-shirt.
Method 1:
You can follow the Vinegar + Baking Soda Method and/or the Peroxide + Washing Soda Method.
Method 1.5:
If the odor persists, try the Vinegar + Baking Soda Method again, where you soak the item in vinegar water. Then, take the item out and wring the extra water out. Apply baking soda to the smelly parts and rub the fabric together or use a scrubby brush to really work the baking soda into the fibers. A little elbow grease is a great way to combat residual build-up and stubborn bacteria. You can also just try this method first to be safe.
Method 2 – Borax:
For tougher smells, soak the clothes in warm water and add a tablespoon of dissolved Borax per gallon of water. Then, wash the clothes normally with detergent.
Method 3 – Enzymatic Cleaner:
Still struggling? Use a laundry detergent booster or spot cleaner with enzymes. Some good, non-toxic, biodegradable options are Rockin’ Green Active Wear Platinum Detergent (vegan & cruelty-free, comes in a plastic pouch), HEX Stain & Stink Remover (claims vegan, cruelty-free, comes in a plastic bottle), and Sport Suds (cruelty-free & vegan, comes in a plastic tub or pouch).
How It Works: Vinegar is supremely effective at killing all sorts of microbes and de-smellifying at the same time. The baking soda helps lift out any body oil residue harboring the microbes, so they no longer have a safe place to stay. Borax is a disinfectant that kills microbes, a great grease-fighter, and it even inhibits microbes from coming back so easily in the future. Enzymatic laundry products contain enzymes (of course) which are proteins that specifically target other substances and break them down on a molecular level, for example, the body oils that makeup biofilm.
To prevent smells from happening in the first place, always allow your sweaty clothes to dry out completely if you’re not immediately washing them after use. Wash the clothes within the next day or two if possible to prevent further bacteria growth. You can wash your gym clothes with a cup of vinegar added to the water each time to prevent them from getting even a hint of a smell!
Urine, Feces, Vomit (Bio-Contaminates)
First of all, if your item of clothing is beyond help, it’s best to just let it go. If it’s contaminated with an infectious microbe, it may be better to just bag it up and throw it out, lest it re-infect you or your household. But, if you’re able and willing to wash the items, proceed with care, so you don’t cross-contaminate your laundry room or home!
The most important things to remember when dealing with bodily fluids that may spread infection are:
- HOT water (above 160 degrees F for at least 25 minutes)
- Chlorine bleach (water can be at 71 to 77 degrees F with a 125-part-per-million (ppm) chlorine bleach)
You will want to sanitize the items, which will likely also get rid of the smell.
Also, sometimes these things get on clothes without an infectious disease being involved. While still gross to handle, and you should still use care to not spread any substances around the house, you can breathe a little more easily since the stakes are lower.
In any case, the first thing to do is rinse as much of the offending substance out with cool water, then warm water. Using a bathtub or wash basin is a better choice than the washing machine for this step. Follow this sanitization method first before tackling any lingering smells with this guide. (And be sure to sanitize your washing machine after.)
Method 1:
Your first and best bet with most odors caused by bodily fluids is to go with an enzyme cleaner, so follow the Enzymatic Cleaner Method.
Method 2:
If there is still a little smell left after using enzymes, use the Vinegar + Baking Soda Method and/or the Borax Method.
How It Works:
Lingering odors from body fluids are caused by a few things. Urine’s odor typically comes from microscopic uric acid crystals that leech VOCs (volatile organic compounds) into the air over time. VOCs are not typically water-soluble, so they don’t wash away, and uric acid crystals are jagged, so they get stuck in threads easily. It’s a perfect storm for a lingering stink. Other bodily fluid odors are usually caused by bacteria. Sanitizing with hot water and/or bleach usually does a pretty good job of breaking down any remaining physical substances, including uric acid crystals, and killing bacteria. (That’s why hospitals and hotels have all-white sheets and towels, by the way.)
Anything not eliminated through sanitizing needs another method to help break it down. Vinegar and baking soda are the famous duo because they can typically break down and lift out just about anything. Borax, enzymes, and Sodium Percarbonate/peroxide + washing soda are also effective at this method of eliminating odors, so they can typically pick up anything baking soda + vinegar couldn’t get.
If you’ve tackled the smell problem but are still struggling with stains, check out this guide for getting out stains.
Perfume
Most perfume smells will be eliminated after a regular wash, since perfume molecules are rather delicate and are typically water-soluble. But sometimes there are just too many scent molecules, so try this method to reduce or eliminate odors caused by “eau de toilette” and “eau de parfum.”
Method 1 – Perfume Smell Reduction:
Hang the stinky items up in as large a space as possible, preferably outside. You want to allow the perfume to naturally dissipate as much as possible. If indoors, blow fans on the item if you can, and open the windows in the room so the stink doesn’t stick to your walls and furniture. Natural sunlight and live plants can also help draw the scent out of the clothing and/or destroy the scent molecules.
Then, soak the item in water with dissolved baking soda in it overnight. The next day, generously add vinegar to the water and allow it to sit for an hour. Launder with cool water and unscented laundry detergent.
Dry the clothes on low-heat tumble or air dry.
Method 2 – Alcohol:
In a well-ventilated area, spritz cheap vodka or isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol in a fine mist all over the clothes and allow them to air dry.
For non-oily, non-greasy, non-filmy perfume smells, these methods should do the trick.
Keep a box of baking soda in your closet with the hung-up garment to suck up any lingering perfume smells (and other smells) afterward.
How It Works:
Perfumes that are not combined with oil are meant to dissipate at a constant, rapid rate (they’re meant to emit all day so you and others can smell your perfume in an unaltered state throughout the day). Perfume manufacturers don’t want the smell to stick and linger because a) the smell changes over time, and the changed smell is not their signature scent and they don’t want you to think that it is and b) if the smell stuck around forever, you could spray your shirt with a free sample at Sephora once and be set for life.
That’s why regular laundering and baking soda + vinegar should be enough to eliminate most perfume smells.
Most perfumes have an alcohol base because alcohol evaporates quickly at room temperature, sending scent particles into the air with it. When you add more alcohol, the evaporating alcohol can carry away more scent particles, helping to get the smell out.
Detergent, Fabric Softener, and Other Fragrances
These scents are different from perfume because they are meant to stick around as long as possible. Laundry detergent, fabric softener, and scent bead manufacturers know that people will wash their laundry when it’s dirty, even if they can still smell the detergent from the last wash. So why not keep the smell on your clothes as long as possible as an invisible, free advertisement for their product?
These scents are mixed with oil-like substances that stick them to your clothes, coating them in a thin film of chemical fragrance. Inheriting clothes reeking of synthetic fragrance is a nightmare for those of us with sensitive skin and noses and those of us trying to reduce the amount of toxins we encounter each day.
In this previous article from Angie, she talks about her struggle to get rid of the strong smell from thrifted clothes. Here are the basic methods for reducing (and maybe even eliminating) stink from scented laundry products.
Method 1:
Follow the Perfume Smell Reduction Method. If you’re lucky, the scented laundry product is not strongly bound to the fabric and will air out and wash out.
Method 2:
In any order, try the Borax Method and/or Peroxide + Washing Soda Method. Use as much elbow grease as you safely can without damaging the material to physically scrub off the filmy (and often intangible) residue.
Method 3 – Try Again:
If it’s still stubborn, repeat a soak in baking soda water as hot as the material will allow. When it’s cooled off enough to handle, scrub the material together or use a gentle brush to physically scrape off the filmy residue as much as you can.
Method 4 – Strip Your Laundry:
This is an intense method that should only be followed in severe cases because it can damage fabrics. Follow this great guide on laundry stripping to help get rid of the build-up of laundry film and hopefully eliminate the scent.
Method 5 – Wait It Out:
Unfortunately, what many people find is that it takes multiple washes to reduce the smell, no matter what method they use. So, if you can stand it, simply wear the clothes and wash them as normal and eventually, they will start to smell like your regular clothes.
You can keep washing them separately until the smell is reduced to tolerable levels, and then wash them in with your other clothes. You can cover up the offending odor with your own scent.
For extra sensitive people, sometimes the best solution is to just get rid of the clothing. Give it to a friend, give it away on Marketplace, or give it back to the thrift shop. Someone with fewer sensitivities may be able to rehab it.
How It Works:
Scented laundry detergent, fabric softener liquid and sheets, and laundry scent beads/booster (like Downy Unstoppables) work by sticking artificial fragrances to clothes with a waxy, oily substance. This substance typically “melts” with heat but is water-resistant, which is why you need to weaken it with heat and a cleaning agent like baking soda or borax and then physically scrub it away, so it can be rinsed away with the water.
Scented laundry products are a huge pain, a water-contaminate, and typically a skin irritant, allergen, or even a carcinogen. They damage clothing and your washer and dryer. Avoid using these superfluous products whenever possible.
Cigarette Smoke, Cigar Smoke, and Wood Smoke
Even many smokers cannot stand the smell of stale tobacco smoke on their clothes, so being able to remove smoky smells is important for anyone to know.
Method 1:
Follow the Perfume Smell Reduction Method. If the amount of smoke residue isn’t too much, this may be enough to get rid of the smell.
Method 2 – Hot Water + Detergent:
Use a little more detergent than you normally would and wash the garment by itself (or with other smoky clothes) on the hottest setting it can handle.
Method 3:
Utilize the Borax Method and/or Peroxide + Washing Soda Method to eliminate the most stubborn smoke smells.
How It Works:
Cigarettes and cigars contain a lot of sticky substances. The tobacco plant itself has a lot of naturally occurring plant lipids (waxy or oily substances) including nicotine. Tar and other sticky, resinous substances are added to most cigarettes. All of these sticky substances get airborne with the smoke, land on a surface, and solidify there. They glomp together with other sticky particles, and if they are exposed over and over again (for example, with chain smoking), then there are layers and layers of these substances coating the surface.
A similar, but far less sticky, effect can happen with many other plants, which is why campfire smoke can also linger in clothing.
These sticky substances can be broken up with heat and effective solvents like laundry detergent, borax, and washing soda. Soaking them for a long time in hot water allows the detergent to break down the smoke residue and trap it in the water.
Mold & Mildew
This category also comes with a caveat: if your clothes are infested with mold, just throw it away. It’s not worth possibly spreading mold to your other things (trust me). Else, enlist the help of a mold-removal specialist to advise you on how to best handle getting rid of the invasion. Different types of mold require different treatments.
Mildew and mild mold spots are common occurrences, especially for clothing kept in storage, in basements or attics, or in a closet with an exterior wall. If you find moldy clothes, be sure to check around to find where the mold is coming from so you can eliminate it.
Lots of different kinds of mold can live together in your clothes. | Photo by Michael Schiffer on Unsplash
Method 1:
For mildew and very mild mold cases, the good old Vinegar + Baking Soda Method should do the trick. To be extra safe, you can follow it up with a Peroxide + Washing Soda Method.
Method 2:
If it’s still smelling a little musty, follow the Perfume Smell Reduction Method.
Method 3:
For more intense mold, you must enclose your clothes in an airtight container or rent a storage unit for a few days and keep them there while you use a mold fogger or fabric-safe mold remover spray according to the package instructions. Then, launder the clothes separately with warm/hot water and detergent to get the anti-mold chemicals out.
How It Works:
Mold and mildew thrive in dark, damp, cool spaces. Mild cases of mold and mildew can be handled with vinegar, which kills microbes including most molds. Peroxide also kills mold, so it’s a good step 2 to add to your mold treatment routine (in fact, if you’re cleaning mold out of your home, these are the two steps you’ll definitely want to take). Do not mix vinegar and peroxide, though! This can create a harmful liquid/gas. Always allow the clothing to dry completely in between steps.
Not all molds can be completely eliminated with these steps, however, which is when you’ll need to resort to the anti-mold foggers and sprays. You’ll also need to eliminate the source of the mold, if there is one, like leaky pipes and temperature fluctuations that cause condensation. Always be sure to completely dry any clothes before they go into storage, and add a moisture-absorber to your storage areas.
Food Smells (Grease, spices, etc)
Like cigarette smoke, food smells linger because they’re trapped in sticky grease particles that are stuck to the clothing in a fine layer. So, treating food smells is similar to treating smoke smells. If your clothes smell because you work at a restaurant, you’ll have to make peace with them always having a little bit of a smell because of how much exposure to grease and food smells they have. Always wash these separately from your other clothes. You can use these methods to reduce the smell, but they may always have a little tinge of grease scent (and they’ll just get dirty again on your next shift anyway).
Method 1:
First, try the Perfume Smell Reduction Method, followed by the Borax Method and/or Peroxide + Washing Soda Method, if needed.
Method 2 – Coffee Refresh:
Dry ground coffee is a great way to absorb unwanted odors while replacing them with a better one – coffee! (Unless you hate the smell of coffee…)
Put the clean but stinky clothes in a plastic bag or container big enough so you can pour a few spoonfuls to half a cup (depending on the amount of clothing you’re treating) of freshly ground coffee beans and shake it around to evenly coat the clothes as much as possible. Allow the clothes to sit for at least 6 hours, then wash (or wear if you don’t mind smelling of string coffee).
How It Works:
Since food smells are typically caused by the oily grease particles stuck in clothing, you need to break down the grease to get rid of the smell. All the methods mentioned here are good at getting grease out of fabric. The coffee grounds method is a way to get rid of a little bit of scent, but mostly it’s to mask lingering smells.
Gasoline and Motor Oil
Not only do these substances stain the heck out of clothing, they often leave a strong smell behind for a long time. It’s best to begin treating these stains and smells as soon as possible. The longer they sit, the harder they are to remove.
No matter what method you go with, be sure to blot as much of the oil or gas out of the material with paper towels and/or a dedicated work rag as soon as possible.
Method 1 – Gasoline Smell Removal:
After blotting, sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda and a little bit of water to make a paste on the stained area and rub it in with your hands or a brush. Allow to sit for about 24 hours. Rinse with plain water.
Then, pre-treat the area with a solvent-based cleaner or Nok-Out, ensuring to completely soak the area. Allow to sit for 24 hours.
Then, hand rinse your clothes in a bucket of warm water. Do not put gasoline-soaked clothing in the washing machine or dryer!
If you can’t get all the gasoline out of an article of clothing, you’ll need to exclusively handwash and air dry it from now on. This is because it can be a fire hazard, and you don’t want your laundry appliances to explode.
Hand wash the item well and hang it up to dry.
Method 2 – Ammonia:
Typically, we want to only use non-toxic products, but gasoline is such a harsh chemical that it sometimes needs an exception. If you still have a lot of gasoline smell in your item, soak it in a bucket of warm water with about 1 cup of cleaning ammonia for at least 3 hours and no more than 8. Be sure to cover the container well so the ammonia gas doesn’t pervade your home.
Rinse the item well in warm, clean water. Hand wash in the hottest water possible (you might want to use a tool instead of your hands so you can use hotter water) with detergent. Allow the garment to air dry.
If there is no visible evidence or lingering smell of gasoline, you can wash the item in the washing machine next time. Avoid the dryer for a few more washes though, just to be safe.
What’s Your Experience?
Have you tried any of these methods? Do you have any other tips and tricks not mentioned here? Please share your experience with us so we can provide even better information to you and our other readers!