How do you get rid of sweat smells in the armpits of shirts?
My work shirts are constantly washed yet I’m still convinced I can smell the sweat in the armpits of the shirts. How can I remove the stench for good?
Oh sorry. I guess I should tell you the shirts are all red.
Often times the smell in the pits and stains are not only caused by bacteria, but also a build up of the waxes and fats used in making the deodorants we use. One sure fire way that works every single time is to just take some household ammonia and put into a spray bottle. Spray the pits of your shirts with this and then roll up and put in a plastic bag overnight (so it can do it’s work). Then launder as usual. This not only will kill the bacteria, but ammonia also breaks down the waxes and fats in common deodorant formulary. I have used this technique for many years and it truly works. I have suggested this many times to people with this problem and everyone is amazed at how well it works.
One thing I always keep on hand is a homemade solution of 1 cup liquid laundry detergent, 1 cup vinegar and 1 cup household ammonia added to 2 cups water. This is an excellent homemade stain remover that not only will work on smelly pit stains but also on other stains in the laundry to pre treat. I just keep this solution handy in a spray bottle near the washer. This solution will work even better (on protein type stains like eggs, etc. if you use a biological washing liquid with enzymes like Tide, Era, Gain, etc. Non bio would be something like All, Arm & Hammer, Sun, etc. )
You can also use bleach (but not with ammonia, it will create toxic fumes) but.. This only works if you are washing a white or light colored top. Also, fiber content will only allow this on cotton or some cotton poly blends. NEVER use bleach with wool or silk as it will break down the proteins in those fibers and weaken them. Also, bleach will only take care of the odor problem but not remove any build up of fats & waxes in the pits which is holding the bacteria there. The problem will surely return if you don’t get to the root of the issue which is build up in the fibers.
The same goes for just straight vinegar in the wash. It will remove the odors but will not address the issue of the fatty waxy build up in the fibers which holds and traps the pit stains and odors.
You could spray the armpits specifically with stain remover. See if that works.
Try mixing bleach in the water in the washer. Just make sure its very diluted before you put the shirts in.
Or put stain remover on the armpits and let it soak before you wash them.
make a paste with baking soda and water…scrub it in good then pour vinegar over them. simple sicnece class there…lol. but when your go to wash the garment the vinegar smell (and armpit)should be gone
If they are white, wash with bleach.
use soap nuts. They are a naturally soaping organic nut that is ideal for removing odors.
Don’t bother with all that scrubbing, just put a cup of white vinegar in the machine with the detergent on a normal wash cycle.
add vinegar to the first cycle