Thursday, November 26, 2009

The Daily Grind: Moldy Clothes -- AGAIN?

I recently found the best way to remove that nasty moldy smell from the wet clothes left in the washing machine.

Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this???

Those of you who know me well enough, know I abhor laundry. I don't mind washing it but I really do not like folding it nor like putting it away. If left up to me, I'd have us living out of laundry baskets. I don't know why this is. My momma loves to do laundry, so it's not something inherent. I've really tried hard to develop a love for laundry: buying nicely scented laundry detergent or even dryer sheets. But alas, I still do not love this chore. Inevitably, I'll start a load of laundry and get sidetracked (probably subconsciously doing it on purpose but just ignoring myself). Then when my husband asks where his work shirts are (yes, I have to launder his uniforms, they don't offer a cleaning service for this at his work or I'd be totally taking advantage of this service) I remember -- the shirts are still in the washing machine! Dreading opening the lid, I plug my nose, knowing the smell I am about to encounter - that nasty moldy, mildewy odor. Yuck! Until now, I would just re-wash the clothes. Sometimes they would come out smelling okay but other times they would smell sour or just terrible.

Over the weekend, I found a book about how to frugally use everyday products in our pantry and fridge for household problems. I was very surprised to find this very problem with the moldy smelling clothes listed.

The Solution:

Pour 1 cup of white vinegar into the wash and start the machine. After the 1st cycle of washing and draining, turn the machine off and start over with your regular laundry detergent.

Sure enough, I used this today and the clothes came out smelling fresher than ever! If you are the perfect wife and mother, this post will probably not appeal to you, but if you are like me and struggle with laundry, then I hope this information has helped you!


You may purchase the book "Salt, Lemons, Vinegar, and Baking Soda" through Amazon.com.

Enjoy!
_______________________________________________________
 
"The Daily Grind" are posts referring to my career as wife, mother, bookkeeper, seamstress, chauffeur, teacher, baker & cook and whatever else life throws my way. (Proverbs 31)

This post has been linked to:

1 comment:

Carrie said...

Girl, I do laundry for 7 people (soon to be 8!) so don't talk to me about laundry. LOL! I have to do 4 loads a day just to keep up. One thing that helps me is to set a timer - I use the timer on my oven. I set it for 45 minutes (the amount of time it takes for a load to wash), and when it goes off I know it's time to "reboot" the laundry. The washer and dryer are down in the basement and if I didn't do this it would be "out of sight, out of mind".

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails