The Best Way to Get the Stinkies Out

As I mentioned before, I have stinky cats. They are elderly and I think they are not overly fond of the twins - who are equally stinky, if truth be told.  I have cleaned all manner of bodily fluids (yuck) over the last six years.  One thing I have learned is the BEST way to get stink out of fabrics in the washing machine.  This works on poop, puke, pee, musty smell and cigarette smoke!

A few warnings before we start:
- If something is NOT machine washable, you run the risk that it might get thoroughly destroyed.
- Do NOT use bleach. Mixing bleach and vinegar is just not a good idea. If you need to bleach it, try that first, and if the smell is still there, run it again as below with regular detergent. I wouldn't use OxiClean type products, either. (Don't mix chemicals. It can be dangerous at worst and just ineffective at best.)

Method:

• Load your washing machine as usual.
• Put in your laundry detergent of choice. See above for recommendations of what NOT to use.
• Add half a cup to a full cup of Super Washing Soda to your load.  This isn't baking soda; it is a different formula.  If you are running a small load of 1 or 2 items, you could use 1/4 cup. A "normal" load would be about 1/2 cup, and then a large load 1 cup. This goes right on top of your laundry.
• Add plain white vinegar to the rinse cycle/fabric softener area of your machine.  It is not straight into the load - you want to use it separately from the washing soda. I have a top loader, and the vinegar goes into the top of the agitator.  When I had a front loader, there was a cup area specially for fabric softener.
• Wash!
• When you take the clothes out, give them the sniff test. Run it again with more Washing Soda if it is still bad - but honestly, I have never had to run it again!

I have put something in the wash that I had to hold an arm's length from my nose and could still smell, and taken it out, stuck my face into it and taken a big whiff, and said, "gee, I can *kinda* still smell it". And that's a win.

Many places recommend mixing vinegar and baking soda to take out smell.  That just does not work.  Use them separately, and they do - for a regular stinky load, rather than a mega-stinky one - I will throw in baking soda in the wash and the vinegar in the rinse, and it will freshen towels and clothes.