How to Remove Mothball Odor From Stuffed Toys

Though mothballs are slowly being phased out as the best way to protect against moths, their scent still lingers. If you're unpacking your childhood stuffed toys to pass on to your children, chances are they might have a mothball odor that you want to remove.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Laundry detergent
• White vinegar
• Biological odor eliminator

1. Lay stuffed toys outside in the sun to help them air out. Turn them over so all sides are exposed to sunlight. Leave them out in the sun for 2 days if the mothball odor is especially strong, but watch for fading if the sun is strong. This step can remove some of the odor.

2. Separate stuffed toys into those that you can wash in a machine and those that aren't washable. You can wash most stuffed toys, but if they're hand painted, made of leather, especially old or feature delicate embroidery, don't wash them in a machine.

3. Place washable stuffed toys in your machine, making sure they have plenty of space to move around during the cycle. In addition to your regular laundry detergent, add 1 ½ cups white vinegar to the wash. Wash twice if the mothball odor lingers.

4. Dry stuffed toys in the sun both to protect them and to help get rid of additional odors.

5. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 if the stuffed toys retain a mothball odor, or proceed to Step 6 to use a different method to remove the odor.

6. Spray non-washable stuffed toys or stuffed toys with especially stubborn odors with a biological odor eliminator, such as SCOE 10X or Approach Odor Eliminator. Saturate the stuffed toys according to product instructions.

7. Replace mothballs with safe, herbal repellents such as lavender and cedar or lemon peels. The next time you remove the stuffed toys from storage, they'll be fragrant and ready for cuddling.