Ok, I use a newly washed washcloth every morning to wipe up the kids after breakfast, always rinsing it out with hot water, then I try and use that same washcloth for the day, but by dinner time it stinks so bad, if you even touch it, your hand smells awful. What's up with that?? Anyone have a solution?
Get the funk out
Get lots of them
I use those little washcloths left over from when the kids were little. I may go through 10-12 a day. I can get quite a pile of dish towels and washcloths by the end of the day. My wife wonders why the dish towel she got out fresh just the night before is with the pile of dirties. She never can seem to believe how much it gets used while she is at work.
More details
Ok, I guess I should have given more details. I do have more than one washcloth...lol. What my problem is that after it gets used once or twice, it gets that moldy, stinky smell, and it may only be a couple hours after it was just brought out and used for the first time. It doesn't smell the first time its used, or even the second time at lunch or snacktime, but by dinner, its really bad. So, I don't think its a matter of them not getting clean in the wash, because they are fine at first. Cliff, you really go through 10-12 a day???? Wow, I was kinda trying to avoid that and just use one a day, but it doesn't sound like that's a common practice. Maybe wipes are a better idea.
ongoing battle
I'm glad you posted this question because this has been an ongoing battle for years and it is only the towels. There is nothing like taking out a fresh towel after a shower and drying off to the smell of stanky funk. I don't know why it was only a few towels and most of the wash cloths, they all get washed together. I've always wash the towels in hot water, used oxiclean, cloroxII, and it didn't matter if the watersoftner was on or off. I've tried different fabric softners and we started to use Suavitel. It seems to help. I don't like the smell on my cloths but the wife likes the smell. So the boss gets everything else washed in it but my cloths.
Good luck on finding a solution.
Properly Drying Helps
We have found that if you hang the washcloth properly between use, the stink stays away longer. Make sure after use that you hang the washcloth either unfolded, or folded in half only. We hang ours on the middle partition in the sink. This allows the washcloth to dry quickly, without allowing a environment for bacteria to grow as fast (since they cause the stink). When you lay a wet washcloth bunched up, then it creates a wet non drying environment for those nasty bacteria.
Doing this method allows us to use only one washcloth a day without the stink. Trust me, I know it is easier to just throw the washcloth down, but hanging this way saves you time folding more later.
Mr. Dad said it all
I hang mine and da funk stays away.... ( I do believe that the type of water has to do with it also...ie. hard or soft....
On a different note, I put dryer sheets under the backseat of my truck to take away da funk there too..
Chef Kev
a b c f g h i j klmnop thv wx 123
JPhillip said it, therefor it is, Chef= C=Caring, H=Helpful, E=Excellent, F=Fubar
I just hand wash them right away.
It may be anal, but I do. Wipe the kid down, wash the washcloth. Doesn't take but a minute to do by hand anyway. Hang it up to dry for the next go around.
-Will
gamingwithbaby.com | all your diapers are belong to us
my flickr
I vote for tons of washcloths
Tiny little washcloths barely make a dent in the laundry load and they're so satisfying to lay out all neat and square in a squat fortress-like tower that the little one can knock over and roll in.
On a related bacterial note.. great tip I got for dish sponges: get them damp and then microwave them (~1 minute per). The water boils in the sponge and disinfects wonderfully. They come out awfully hot, but not a problem if you use gloves to wash.
Cheers,
Steve
(This message courtesy of a temporarily distracted baby girl.)
I read somewhere that the
I read somewhere that the best way to sanitize sponges was in the microwave, so I figure it might be worth a shot with the washcloth. Don't remember what they recommended for time, I think a minute would be a good place to start.
Hanging up the washcloth to dry definitely does make a difference. I can't get my wife to do this so I just gave up and use recycled paper towels. Probably bad for the environment but I can't stand using those smelly washcloths. Hope this helps.
Joe Hanafee
Microwaves
Sure, you can nuke those sponges, just remember that they're going to be hot when you take 'em out. Better yet, microwaving sponges or a wet rag for a minute is a good way to get the gunk moistened and loosened off the microwave walls. Just wipe it out with a new rag.
As for funky laundry smells, seriously, I make a white load with sponges, rags, towels, and kids' skivvies (skidmarks not allowed in this house).
Lots of Cheer. Lots of bleach. A bit of softener. And hot, hot water. Never have any funk.... except when stuff gets balled up or left in the sink too long between washes. I just can't stand that mildew smell.
So, I dunno. Maybe there is something about the water, but this is not a problem for SAHDs in Kansas. Of course, I am the only one I know in town. :)
Joined: 2008-05-26
Dad Points: 42