Claudine Henry

My Handy-Dandy Mildew Remover

Cleaning Tips· Domestically Impaired· Front page

I confess…it is not an uncommon thing for me to leave wet clothes in the washing machine for extended periods of time. 

I do it often, probably weekly. I usually leave clothes in there for just for a day or two, but on at least one occasion I’ve left a load as long as two weeks. Phew!

Before I discovered my handy-dandy smell remover, I would often wash and wash and wash and still not be able to get rid of the smell.  (This is why my husband likes to wash his own clothes.)

On occasion, after multiple washings I would think I had triumphed over the mildew smell only to discover it again while I was wearing the garment!!! (Am I freaking you out yet?) A few times I have ended up just throwing the offending item away.

A few years ago, a friend commented on Facebook about not being able to get their husband’s gym socks to stop smelling.  Another friend suggested she try a mix of baking soda and vinegar. “It works like magic,” she told her.

It was a light-bulb moment. Since mildewy clothes smell like old gym socks…maybe it would work on my long-forgotten laundry?

I had the opportunity to try it the very next day. I didn’t have an exact ratio. There was no recipe. I just winged it.

Here is what I did (not that you would ever leave your wet clothes to mildew).

  • Fill the washing machine with hot water using the oversized load setting.
  • Add your normal amount of laundry detergent.
  • Add two handfuls of baking soda. (I think this is slightly over 1 cup.)
  • Add white vinegar to the bleach dispenser on the machine. (If you don’t have a bleach dispenser it is okay to add directly to the hot water.) I fill my dispenser twice so I would estimate it is about 1 cup of vinegar.
  • Add the offending mildewy laundry to the washer. Yes, mildewy is a word and so is washer (at least if you are from Oklahoma).
  • Wash as usual.
  • DO NOT DRY until you have smelled it.  If it still stinks, repeat with the handy-dandy smell remover.
  • Dry as usual. 

This works every time. I’ve never had to do more than three back-to-back washes even for the worst smells.  (Sadly, I have been known to do a smell-remover load and then forget it for a day or two. No fun starting over.)

I won’t tell you why I thought to write this post today. Instead, I’ll just go put the laundry in the dryer.

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Comments

  1. Interesting you mentioned this. I have just been trying out a paste of baking soda & water on a carpet stain; spray with vinegar; let dry then vacuum. It works beautifully. I might add don’t be sparing with the paste. I am just about to try the same on mildew around the bathtub (impossible stuff). Hope that also works. Nice to know about laundry too. Could this be God’s miracle cleaner? Thanks Claudine.

    • I’ve never used it on carpet but I have used it in the tub — the paste stuff. It works. I’ve also mixed some Dawn with it if it was really stubborn. I’ll have to try the carpet thing. (If I ever see my carpet…it is covered by laundry at the moment.)

  2. Thanks Claudine! Great tip!! I also use it on my carpet for pet smells, as well as stains. I hadn’t tried it in the laundry though.