[starinyoureye]

Hello,
Recently my mums dryer broke and shes waiting for a part to fix it, so for now we have to dry out clothes by air.
The clothes smell absolutely awful. She always uses Bold washing tablets and the smell wasn't there before she dried them in the dryer. What could be causing this.

Worst of all is that you can still smell it when they're dry, and it reminds me of a urine smell

My mum is a smoker and I cannot believe she can't smell it on the clothes, so as a result she thinks I have something wrong with my nose so she continues to churn out stinking clothes....

[housewife]

Is there a pet in the house?

It could be that the washing machine needs a service wash to clear all of the crap out of it.

For a long time, when I did not use the tumble dryer, my clothes would smell nasty after they had been washed. Once I had done a couple of Service Washes with biological washing tablets at 95ºC, they smelt fine.

This link might be helpful to you:
http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/module...howpage&pid=43

[starinyoureye]

Is there a pet in the house?

Nope

Originally Posted by Oinster

It could be that the washing machine needs a service wash to clear all of the crap out of it.

For a long time, when I did not use the tumble dryer, my clothes would smell nasty after they had been washed. Once I had done a couple of Service Washes with biological washing tablets at 95ºC, they smelt fine.

This link might be helpful to you:
http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/module...howpage&pid=43

Thanks for that. I will show that to my mum when she gets in. I cant face going out of the house selling like this lol.
I've just put it on a boil wash, I'll see if that makes any difference.

[ghostangel]

i think i know what it is. are you hanging them up to dry straight away because if not when you leave them folded or piled up together while wet they start to get that urine smell. that's all i can think it could be.

[starinyoureye]

Originally Posted by ghostangel

i think i know what it is. are you hanging them up to dry straight away because if not when you leave them folded or piled up together while wet they start to get that urine smell. that's all i can think it could be.

Not sure what she does, I'll have to keep an eye out to see what she does lol.

[Mariaella]

I used to find that wet clothes which were left to sit a while before being hung up to dry or tumble dried would smell. I always blamed nasty chemicals in the washing powder developing a pong in damp clothes. My tip - get the clothes dried as quickly as possible.

Edited to state that someone else has suggested similar to me, our posts have crossed, as I hadn't refreshed.

[Lydser05]

Originally Posted by ghostangel

i think i know what it is. are you hanging them up to dry straight away because if not when you leave them folded or piled up together while wet they start to get that urine smell. that's all i can think it could be.

Was going to say this aswell!! And I hate this smell SO MUCH!!! There used to be a guy in the office here, who lived alone, and he smelt this like all the time, used to make me feel like puking all d time!!

[ghostangel]

Originally Posted by Lydser05

Was going to say this aswell!! And I hate this smell SO MUCH!!! There used to be a guy in the office here, who lived alone, and he smelt this like all the time, used to make me feel like puking all d time!!

i'm forever telling my mum not to leave the towels in a pile while she waits to dry them. the smell is horrible. i thinks it might be because the clothes start to dry while they're piled up but there is no air so they start to go musty and smelly

[Lydser05]

Originally Posted by ghostangel

i'm forever telling my mum not to leave the towels in a pile while she waits to dry them. the smell is horrible. i thinks it might be because the clothes start to dry while they're piled up but there is no air so they start to go musty and smelly

Its a horrible musty smell!! YUCK!! Even if clothes are left in the washing machine for to long after the wash has finished they start to smell. Or if it rains when clothes are on the line.
Tumble Dryers are a god send at this time of they year for towels and bed linen!!!

[sancheeez]

If you're drying them indoors (which I guess you will be at this time of year), in an enclosed space with little or no ventilation, they can get pongy as well.

Not to mention the damp caused by the water evaporating from the clothes will also cause mould on the walls.

Next to a radiator, very close to an open window, is your best bet.

[Channel Hopper]

Can you hang them outdoors straight after washing them ?

Even in this weather they will only take a day to dry, with another hour above a radiator.

Tumble dryers are one of the worst environmental appliances in the home.

[RootsFran]

I have one cardi that does this unless I put it straight onto the radiator and dry it ASAP, also Bold has fabric conditioner in it and that makes this cardi smell worse unless rinsed and dried on the radiator

[ns.macd]

Try drying the clothes straight out of the machine & maybe use one of the washing powers with Febreeze in it

[zounds]

Originally Posted by Lydser05

Was going to say this aswell!! And I hate this smell SO MUCH!!! There used to be a guy in the office here, who lived alone, and he smelt this like all the time, used to make me feel like puking all d time!!

I went to the pub once, putting on a clean shirt without realising until later that it stunk of laying in the dryer or maybe being folded damp for a day or so (can't remember exactly), but I agree, it's the worst smell ever and made me so self concious that I had to keep a distance from people all night, it's like you've got a pair of stinky socks wrapped around you.

Obviously your office mate had no sense of smell!

[Cstar2229]

I once used a washing powder that made my clothes smell of sick

[Sam Radford.]

Put crushed garlic in with the clothes and they won't smell musty.

[starinyoureye]

Originally Posted by Cstar2229

I once used a washing powder that made my clothes smell of sick

lmao

[foogirl]

The smell, as has been said will likely be down to not having the clothes dried quickly enough, but is also to do with where and how they are dried. Make sure the drying area is well ventilated to allow moisture to escape, this should allow the clothes to dry quicker and in fresh air. It is also worthwhile hanging them outside to get a good airing once they are almost dry, just to get some freshness into them. Obviously this can be difficult at this time of year with the weather. But as long as it isn't raining, sticking them out for an hour or so will help.

The tip about having the washing machine cleaned is a good one too. Make sure the powder drawer is cleaned too as it tends to get a bit minging from time to time. There will likely be a filter to clear too.

One other thing is to make sure your machine door is left open when it isn't in use. This ensures the drum doesn't stink when you put the washing in - which means it is less likely to stink when you take it out.

[Tizzy]

Originally Posted by Cstar2229

I once used a washing powder that made my clothes smell of sick

You must have been using new Persick or Boke 2 in 1.

[ithisethat]

Tip for cleaning a machine - fill a dosing ball with white vinegar, put it in the machine on its own and place half a cup of soda crystals in the drawer. wash above 60 degrees.