How to get rid of the musty smell of clothes: effective methods, the use of folk methods and the use of household chemicals

Tell me, how often does the freshly washed laundry that was well dried and ironed does not lie in a chest of drawers or a closet, fragrant, but exudes an unpleasant amber? When a specific “aroma” appears, many housewives seek to bring it out, using for this purpose both household chemicals and various folk methods. However, removing the nasty smell from things is not always possible the first time. How to get rid of the musty smell of clothes? Let's talk about it right now!

Causes of bad smell

Before we talk about how to remove a musty smell in a closet with clothes, we recommend establishing the cause of the smell. Here are the main reasons why an unpleasant aroma occurs:

1. Not enough drying. Any laundered laundry must be thoroughly dried before placing it on the shelves. Even a seemingly insignificant amount of moisture can provoke the development of a fungus, which is the cause of an unpleasant odor.
2. Things were folded right after ironing. Experts say: any item of clothing or home textiles must be given time to cool. Only when things have completely cooled down can they be folded or hung on “shoulders” and placed in a closet.
3. Storage in one place of clean and laundry. For this reason, fresh fragrant linen acquires an unpleasant odor, eventually turning into a musty.
4. The clothes are locked up for too long. Periodically air those things that lie in the chest of drawers or on the shelves of the cabinet. Otherwise, getting rid of the unpleasant “aroma” will not be easy.
5. The house has a broken ventilation system. Unpleasant smell often things start in those houses where the ventilation system can not cope with a high level of humidity.
6. The cabinet was infected with a fungus. For example, you could inherit a piece of furniture with a fungus, which, of course, “bloomed”.

But what to do if absolutely all recommendations for washing, drying and storing wardrobe items were followed, but there is an unpleasant musty smell on things? Pay attention to the piece of furniture in which textiles are stored: most likely, the reason for the specific smell lies in it!

Odor Control: Table Vinegar

To remove the musty smell from clothing, it is completely optional to purchase expensive fresheners or cleaners. Sometimes simple remedies that can be found in any kitchen will help get rid of the nasty “aroma”. For example, the most common table vinegar. How to remove a musty smell from clothes with its help? It should be understood that even a weak remedy, for example, 9 percent, can affect the structure of the tissue negatively - destroy it. It is possible to avoid this, just dilute the vinegar with water. One part of vinegar will need to take three parts of cool water. The procedure should be as follows:

1. It is necessary to pour the composition into the spray bottle.
2. Vinegar mixed with water must be carefully applied to the fabric.
3. After that, the thing should be left for ten minutes.
4. The next step is washing with laundry soap or baby powder.

Baking soda

No less effective home remedy can be called soda. It is capable of removing traces of grease or oil, various juices, fumes and even the smell of smoke from any surface. How to get rid of the musty smell of clothes with soda? Experts say: it is quite simple. It is necessary to boil one liter of water, add five teaspoons of soda to it. In the event that there are a lot of clothes that smell bad, the amount of the product can be doubled. It is very important to mix the soda thoroughly so that it is completely dissolved in water. After this, the product should be removed from the fire, pour clothing on it and leave it for half an hour. Then you will need to wash things manually or using a washing machine, dry thoroughly. By the way, if the use of vinegar and soda separately from each other did not help eliminate the musty smell from things, you can combine these components. Use this composition instead of powder in the washing machine. True, it should be understood that such a washing method is suitable only for open centrifugal apparatuses. In no case do not use vinegar and soda when washing the foul-smelling laundry in an automatic machine.

Ammonia

This tool, according to experts, is able to effectively eliminate any unpleasant odors from things, even very persistent. To do this, you need to prepare a solution of ammonia. For ten liters of water you will need one tablespoon of alcohol. This solution must be sprayed on a fabric that has an unpleasant odor. Leave items of clothing or home textiles for 5 - 6 hours (if they do not smell very strongly, 3 hours is enough). Then rinse your clothes.

Hydrogen peroxide

How to get rid of the musty smell of things at home? Perhaps this can be done using a tool such as hydrogen peroxide. It perfectly removes all “aromas” of organic origin, such as sweat, dampness and fungus. In addition, this tool is able to remove old stains from the tissue - blood, juice and others. It will be necessary to combine a liter of water and 100 milliliters of a three percent solution of a pharmacy product. However, if you are thinking about how to remove the musty smell from cotton clothes, you can use undiluted peroxide. Soak the fabric in this tool can be no more than 10 minutes.

Ammonia

Before using this product to remove unpleasant odors, make sure that the room in which you will wash unpleasant smelling things is well ventilated. The fact is that the toxic smell of ammonia is dangerous for the lungs. You will need to wash clothes twice in the machine - the first time with ammonia, the second with gel or powder.

Never use ammonia at the same time as bleaching agents. If you breathe this means and feel dizzy, be sure to call an ambulance!

Salt

Salt is simply indispensable if you want to remove bad breath in clothes. There are several ways to use:

1. You can just dampen the cloth and rub abundantly with salt. After half an hour, you should wash the items, after soaking them in any washing gel.
2. Another way is to combine three tablespoons of salt with a liter of water. After complete dissolution, you need to soak the clothes in the composition and leave it for half an hour.

Natural coffe

Thinking about how to get rid of the musty smell of things lying in the closet? Take a small container, such as a jar, fill it with coffee beans and place it on the lower shelf. This method will not only remove all unnecessary aromas, but also give the clothes a light pleasant smell.

Soap

By the way, instead of coffee beans, you can use ordinary toilet soap. Suitable as a bar purchased in the store, and soap made on their own. It must be wrapped in cloth and placed in a chest of drawers or on a cabinet shelf. After that, your linen will smell fresh, and there will be no trace of the smell of dampness or mold. Of course, the soap will periodically have to be changed, because it stores the smell for no more than a month and a half.

Herbs in bags

You can purchase special sachets filled with herbs, or you can make them yourself. To do this, you will need small fabric bags made from natural fabrics. They need to be filled with any aromatic herbs. Melissa, mint, lavender are perfect. They must be dried, put in bags and sewn or tied. Instead of herbs, you can put zest of any citrus in bags.

Onion

A home remedy like onion juice will help you in the fight against any odors. It is only necessary to grind the onion with a blender or meat grinder, squeeze and process a foul-smelling tissue. After this, do not forget to rinse the product thoroughly.

Boiling

If your things have a pronounced smell of musty, do not rush to throw them away! Just boil them. Experts note that this method is suitable only for towels and rugs. Any products from delicate fabrics simply will not tolerate such a procedure. For boiling, you will need a sufficiently large pot so that there is enough water for all things with an unpleasant odor. It will need to boil water. Then in another container, for example, a basin, it is necessary to fold the textile products and leave them for five minutes filled with boiling water. After that, it is necessary to wash things and dry them.

Whitening

How to get rid of the musty smell of white clothing? Use bleach! This tool quickly and reliably destroys mold spores, which is the source of disgusting amber. Do not forget to use rubber gloves and glasses. For half a glass of bleach you need to take four liters of water. In such a solution, the clothes will need to be held for about 20 to 30 minutes, and then wash it as usual.

Dry clean

How to remove a musty smell from things for which only dry cleaning is acceptable, for example, from a jacket or coat? Look for household chemicals that will not require rinsing after use. Such a tool will clean the surface of the product without damaging the fibers of the fabric. One measuring cup will need to be diluted in several liters of water (according to the instructions) and sprayed on clothes with a spray bottle. After this, hang clothes in a sunny place so that they dry well. If necessary, the procedure can be repeated.

If you do not want to purchase expensive products, use ordinary vodka. How to get rid of the musty smell of clothing with its help? This alcoholic drink needs to be poured into a spray bottle and things must be handled carefully. After that, they will need to be dried.

Prevention of musty odor

In order to prevent mold from appearing in your wardrobe or in the chest of drawers where you store bedding and towels, and therefore an unpleasant smell, you should use an iodine alcohol solution. This tool will need to be poured into a jar with a very narrow neck, which will need to be put on the lower shelf. It is important to exclude the absorption of iodine vapor into the tissue. To do this, plug the neck of the bottle with a cotton ball.

Another good tip: always dry your clean laundry well. Best of all other means, the sun and fresh air fights with mustiness. Do not leave laundry on the street at night. Experts recommend periodically ventilating all chests of drawers and cabinets, once a season general cleaning should be carried out on the shelves, the laundry should be sorted out and all contaminants removed. A procedure such as quartzing all surfaces of furniture designed to store fabrics is very useful.