Damp towels confined in hampers or left crumpled on the floor are a breeding ground for mildew and bacteria. Even properly hung towels in a bathroom with poor ventilation may not dry thoroughly, leading to mildew growth and that musty, nose-wrinkling smell.
A Mildew-Fighting Hack
The mildew smell that often riddles towels can be hard to get rid of, so much so that you might consider throwing away the towel and starting fresh. Fortunately, that won’t be necessary, because there’s a simple and cost-effective laundry hack that requires only three ingredients — two of which you almost surely have at home.
The solution is straightforward: Run the towels through a hot-water rinse cycle with your regular detergent, adding one scoop of borax (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup) to the drum to enhance your machine’s cleaning power and fight odors.
Borax, aka sodium borate, is commonly used as a laundry booster and cleaning agent. You can purchase borax in powder or liquid form, but it’s usually sold as a powder for laundry purposes. Some detergents, such as Tide Free & Gentle and Persil Free & Sensitive, already contain sodium bicarbonate, as it contributes to their stain- and odor-fighting abilities. No matter which detergent you use, you can still benefit from an additional scoop of borax powder.
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How To Prevent Smelly Towels
To prevent that mildew smell on your towels in the first place, consider using quick-drying or microfiber materials, or hanging them outside of the bathroom. When they’re hung in a well-ventilated area with low humidity, they have a better chance of drying thoroughly. However, laundering your towels regularly is the best preventative measure. You should wash your towels after three to five uses, or after each use if the mildew smell persists.
Summer is an especially important time to wash towels more frequently since humidity promotes mildew growth. A simple way to avoid smelly pool or beach towels is to lay them flat in the sun. The sunscreen smell is way more tolerable than mildew.
