In the summer season, the question often arises: how to get rid of the smell of sweat on clothes? It is not always possible to wash the item immediately, and clothes that have been lying around for a day absorb sweat. It is not always removed with regular washing, in which case the item should be subjected to other types of treatment. It is worth noting that not all methods are acceptable for outerwear.
Effective ways
The most common means for processing things were, are and remain:
- Baking soda;
- Vinegar 9%;
- Freezing;
- Table salt;
- Citric acid;
- Alcohol (ethyl and ammonia solution) and other agents.
The method should be chosen depending on:
- The fabric from which the clothes are made;
- Availability of funds;
- Level of unpleasant odor.
Dry
Dry methods are recommended when there is no possibility to wash the item after treatment. Using such methods, you will be able to remove the smell of sweat from clothes in the shortest possible time.
Ammonia+salt+water
One of these methods is treating fabrics with an ammonia solution. Dissolve 2 teaspoons of regular table salt in 5 tablespoons of water. When the salt dissolves, add 5 tablespoons of ammonia solution to the mixture. Pour this spray for clothes into a spray bottle, and then treat the sweat-soaked areas with it. After lightly moistening the fabric, it must be dried in the sun. The sun should hit the areas of the clothing that are moistened with alcohol. After drying, the item can be worn.
Alcohol
In addition to ammonia solution, medical alcohol is also used to remove the smell of sweat. If there is no alcohol and it is impossible to get it, you can use vodka. It is advisable to apply alcohol from a spray bottle or a spray bottle. The item treated with alcohol should be left until it dries completely. When there is no time to wait for drying, the area moistened with alcohol should be ironed. The alcohol will evaporate, and the smell will disappear with it.
Freezing
The smell of sweat can be eliminated with the help of cold. In fact, it is not the sweat itself that smells, but the waste products of bacteria that lived on the skin. Combining with sweat, they leave an unpleasant smell. You can get rid of it if you kill the bacteria. They are afraid of cold. After placing the item in the cold, the problem will disappear.
If it is winter outside, it is permissible to hang the item on the balcony or outside. After bringing it indoors, it will defrost and there will be no trace of the smell. At positive temperatures, you can use the freezer. You just need to fold the item several times and place it in a clean plastic bag. You can use a container (lunchbox). In this form, the item is placed in the freezer until it freezes completely and left there for at least a day. After removing the clothes from the freezer, the unpleasant smell will disappear.
Iron + vinegar
Ironing with vinegar is a good way to get rid of all odors. When ironing a garment, moisten it with a small amount of vinegar solution from a spray bottle. You can iron garments through a vinegar iron. The more delicate the fabric, the thicker the iron should be. The vinegar will evaporate, and all odors will disappear with it. Moreover, this method helps to get rid of germs that could be on the clothes.
With washing
Methods that involve subsequent washing are more popular and there are many more of them. Most fabrics will not be harmed by an additional wash or rinse. Soaking can remove even the most persistent odors.
Laundry soap
One of the first methods is to try washing things with laundry soap. Do not be afraid of its smell - after subsequent washing in the machine or by hand with powder, the stench of laundry soap will disappear completely. The clothes should be treated from the inside out. Turn the item inside out, the place where there are sweat stains and a strong smell should be soaped. This method is best suited for treating white fabrics. Laundry soap is a very strong agent, it can even remove color from fading fabrics. Laundry soaped clothes should be left for about half an hour. After this period, the item is washed as usual without preliminary rinsing.
Citric acid
If you need to get rid of the smell on a woolen item, it is recommended to use citric acid. To do this, prepare a solution in which the dirty item is soaked. Use 4 full tablespoons of citric acid per liter of water. The solution should be enough to soak the fabric well. Particular attention should be paid to soaking the area where the smell is present. Items are left in the solution for 3-4 hours. After that, it should be washed in a machine or using hand washing powder.
Vinegar
To remove a particularly persistent odor, use a vinegar solution. Add 250 ml of vinegar to 10 liters of water. Soak the item in this solution for 10-12 hours. You can leave it overnight. After this treatment, put the wrung-out clothes in the washing machine. Add two tablespoons of soda to the powder. Wash the item in the usual way. When the wash is finished, the unpleasant odor will disappear.
Salt
A salt solution is used only in particularly severe cases. It should be used when other methods of eliminating the smell have not worked. To prepare the solution, you need two glasses of warm water. Three tablespoons of regular table salt are added to it. The areas soaked with sweat should be soaked in the salt solution and washed by hand. The washed items are left soaking for about 2 hours. Then the item should be washed again in this solution, and then rinsed twice in clean water. The salt will remove the smell of sweat.
Shampoo or dishwashing gel
You can remove the smell of sweat from clothes with either dishwashing liquid, such as gel, or shampoo. Apply a thick layer of this liquid (or one) to the affected area of the clothes. Leave the item coated with gel or shampoo for half an hour. Rinse out the remaining detergent and dry the clothes, preferably in the sun. If you choose a shampoo to remove odor, it is best to use one that is designed for oily hair types.
Soda
You can use baking soda powder. Places where sweat has soaked into clothes should be slightly wetted with water, sprinkled with soda and try to rub it in a little. In this state, the washed item should be left for 20 minutes. After this, the soda should be shaken off, and the remaining stains should be removed by rinsing the clothes in water. The effect of this procedure will be enhanced if you wash the item after it.
Soda + hydrogen peroxide
Soda and hydrogen peroxide can also help solve the problem. These products are effective when the item is not badly damaged by sweat, but after a regular wash you were unable to get rid of the smell. Add about 1 tablespoon of soda and ¼ of a small bottle of hydrogen peroxide to a basin of water, where there is about 5-7 liters of water. Leave the item in this solution for 1 hour. Then rinse it in clean water.
Treatment of outerwear
Getting rid of the ingrained smell of sweat from the armpits is much more difficult on outerwear than on a regular T-shirt or sweater. Coats and jackets should be treated with other methods. The best way to avoid this problem is to never put outerwear directly on a T-shirt or tank top. It is advisable to have special sweat pads in areas where there is excessive sweating.
If you cannot avoid the appearance of sweat-smelling stains and need to remove them, there are three options for getting rid of this problem:
- Freezing;
- Newspapers;
- Ammonia solution.
How to remove the smell of sweat from clothes using frosty air: if the temperature outside is below zero, it is permissible to simply hang the item outside for two or three days.
Frosty air helps to get rid of odors from clothes, including unpleasant ones. A thing that has been hanging outside for several days will completely get rid of the odor and will smell of frosty freshness.
After bringing it into the house and heating it to room temperature, the fabric will smell pleasantly fresh. Regular newspapers will also get rid of the smell of sweat. However, you need quite a lot of them for the effect to be good. The paper of the newspaper is such that it easily absorbs the smell. You need to completely stuff the jacket or coat, or any other damaged clothing with crumpled newspapers. Then you should completely wrap the already stuffed jacket in the same newspapers. It is advisable to store the item in this form for several days. The newspapers will absorb the unpleasant smell, after which they can be thrown away.
How to remove sweat odor from clothes using ammonia solution? This process is slightly different from the one described above, which is intended for treating regular items without washing. When treating outerwear, you can prepare a mixture of ammonia solution and water in proportions of 1:10. Only a pinch of "Extra" salt is added to this mixture. The areas that are especially soaked with sweat are treated using a cotton pad soaked in ammonia solution. Only the inner lining can be treated in this way. The item should be left until completely dry. It should be hung to dry in the sun. When it dries, it will no longer smell of sweat.
How to Prevent Stains and Odor
It is not as difficult to prevent the appearance of sweat odor on clothes as it is to get rid of it. You can prevent the appearance of unpleasant odor by using sweat pads.
There are several simple but very effective methods of preventing the appearance of sweat odor. One of the most effective is to dry things in the sun. Drying in the sun helps to get rid of the smell and prevents the appearance of new ingrained stains. The use of antiperspirants is a good preventative for the appearance of sweat odor. They should be applied daily to a clean body. Winter is no exception. In frosty weather, sweat is also released, absorbed into sweaters and shirts and leaves a foul-smelling trail. Perfume will not mask, but only aggravate the situation, so a solid antiperspirant is an excellent option.
As can be seen from the information described in this article, you can get rid of the unpleasant smell using many improvised means. Of course, it is much easier to prevent a problem than to look for ways to solve it. The main rules of prevention remain personal hygiene and regular washing of things. It is recommended to pay special attention to the above procedures in the summer.
Video
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