How to Get The Musty Smell Out of Your Clean Towels

Dry your towels to help neutralize mold.

Musty odors serve as an indication of active mold or mildew. If you notice a musty or sour odor coming from your clean towels, then the towels are not as clean as you think. The odor comes from fumes, called mVOCs (microbial volatile organic compounds) given off by mold spores. The odor can only linger for as long as mold continues to produce new fumes, but you can remove the spores, and the odor, from your towels, if you understand mold's weaknesses.

Things You'll Need

• Laundry detergent
• Salt
• Lemon juice
• Bleach
• Scrubbing brush
• Sponges
• Rubber gloves

Instructions

1. Wash the towels in a washing machine with detergent, if you have not already done so. Even if you have already washed and dried the towels, place them outdoors in the sun to dry completely. The presence of active mold indicates that the towels must have some degree of moisture clinging to them, because mold needs moisture to breed. Let the towels dry completely.

2. Scrub the dried towels with a firm brush to remove the loose spores. Make sure to do this while still outdoors, as you do not want to spread the spores around your home. Even dormant and neutralized spores can regenerate at a later time.

3. Scrub the dried towels with a deodorizing solution. For a powerful impact, you can use household bleach. Mix 2 tbsp. of bleach with a quart of water and apply the mixture to your towels with a sponge. For a softer and more natural approach, mix salt and lemon juice into a light paste and sponge over the towels. Place towels in the sun and wait at least 15 minutes before proceeding.

4. Rinse your towels thoroughly with clean water to remove the deodorizing solution. Allow the towels to remain in the sun until they dry completely. If necessary, you can machine-wash them again, but do not put them away until you get them completely dry.

Tips & Warnings

• To prevent mold and mildew from growing on your towels, hang them up and spread them out. This will prevent bunching, which prevents moisture from lingering. Also, wash your used towels regularly and wash excessively wet towels immediately.

• When handling chlorine bleach, wear rubber gloves for your own safety. Bleach is a corrosive compound and can irritate skin severely.

References

• Environmental Protection Agency: Mold Remediation in Schools and Commercial Buildings
• Good Housekeeping: Get Rid of Mildew -- Fast
• University of Missouri Extension; How to Prevent and Remove Mildew -- Home Methods; Wanda Eubank and Betty Feather; April 1998