I did a dumb thing. I need to save some underpants. Pls help.

March 31, 2016 12:45 AM

I have some expensive underwear that got really smelly. Gross I know. I really want to salvage them. I desperately need your magic odour-destroying solutions!

So I have two pairs of these "menstruation" undies - they are really great, I love them. They are not cheap. Convert $34 to Aussie $ plus postage and you can see I've invested a good $90 on them.

After they get all full of blood I soak them in water before putting them in the wash. (And then I put the bloody water on the plants, cos, you know, nutrients...)

Anyway last time I put them in a bucket outside and sort of forgot about them for about 2 weeks, and then when I found them to wash them they smelt DISGUSTING and there were some crawly grubs in there (just 2 or 3, I promise, not a whole colony) anyway I guess they were maggots, so there you go. Maggot panties.

So I got rid of the maggots and washed them and the undies still stink. I have tried soaking them in vinegar, as well as soda bi carb and no difference.

If they were ordinary undies I would just chuck them, but since they are so 'spensive... I really want to try everything to salvage them!

If you have any ideas about how to kill really intense odours in clothing, please tell me what they are.

Try not to judge me! :)

posted by beccyjoe to Home & Garden (56 answers total)

Peroxide or sun. Or a protein breaking down liquid normally used for blood stains. Woolies have them in three packs. No judgement. Xx
posted by taff at 12:51 AM on March 31, 2016

Response by poster: haha thanks @taff - what is the Woolies product called?
posted by beccyjoe at 12:57 AM on March 31, 2016

Okay, so, I haven't seen this specific kind of situation (yet) [also, to be clear, I am a guy, even if I do my share of combined laundry here...] but...

I have recurring problems getting basement funk out of my t-shirts (when the weather here hasn't been dry enough for getting them dry fast), and even that is hard, requires several washings and drying the shirts in full sunlight etc..
What you describe seems however simply insurmountable. Most importantly, a rotten-to-the-degree-of-attracting-maggots-type-of-funkiness is likely just really NOT anything you want to be wearing close to sensitive body parts (or elsewhere), even, say, after nuking it in boiling bleach or something similar. If Vinegar or soda bi carb didn't do the job, it would be "sorry but no" for me.

You just did try everything to salvage them by asking this question. So, now just toss them, please.
posted by Namlit at 1:01 AM on March 31, 2016 [10 favorites]

Best answer: Heya. Just checked my laundry and the three different coloured bottles (green red and blue) come together and are called Stain Remover 1 2 and 3. They come in deodorant sized bottles. Usually near nappisan. (Could also try that.) there's no website on the bottle I have but it says The Kelly Company.

Good luck and let us know how you go!

(Diva cup if you can't save them though.)

Edited to add a linklink!
posted by taff at 1:02 AM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Have you tried Canesten laundry rinse? I used it on a load of laundry we forgot in the washing machine before leaving town for a week. It took a few rinses but eventually the clothes became stink-free. You can get it at Coles or Woolies, white bottle with a yellow top.
posted by third word on a random page at 1:11 AM on March 31, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: So these are made of cotton and a nylon/spandex blend. Synthetics, such as nylon, are notorious for holding on to stink. You might have luck with detergents designed for sports gear since biking jerseys and technical gear are often made of synthetic blends.

That said, I urge you toss these and chalk it up to a lesson learned in the interest of your health. Even after washing, I'd be terrified of exposing myself to some sort of bacteria that could very quickly throw my whole system out of whack. Please, please, please toss these with extreme prejudice.
posted by mochapickle at 1:15 AM on March 31, 2016 [22 favorites]

Response by poster: thank you peeps.

I'll tell you straight up I'm going to try everything before I dispose of these garments! I am the kind of person who errs on the side of disregard when it comes to "health" "risks", eating food that's on the brink, etc, and you know, I am in robust health most of the time... so I'll continue to do what I do...

I promise I won't wear them until I rid them of stink tho.

Will try all suggested products and report back :)
posted by beccyjoe at 1:23 AM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: oh and @taff - I used a cup for years, but then I began to find it too uncomfortable and stopped... maybe I should give it another go.
posted by beccyjoe at 1:24 AM on March 31, 2016

How much does a Doctors appointment cost? My answer to almost every "can I eat it" question is, "I would totally eat that" but this is your "intimate area" we're talking about. I would not risk any kind of infection down there for the sake for $34.
posted by missmagenta at 2:23 AM on March 31, 2016 [10 favorites]

My next step would be bleach. There is not really a risk of ruining them anyway, since I would consider them pre-ruined; if bleach helps, then good. (It will also kill bacteria quite nicely.) If it doesn't, you're no worse off.

Bleach, and then sun. And of course, if nothing helps, tossing them is always an option. But I see no good reason not to try this.
posted by Too-Ticky at 2:29 AM on March 31, 2016 [8 favorites]

The odor is a signal that there is likely bacteria present. However, it is likely possible to eliminate odor and still have un-smelly bacteria present, no? Just... don't focus only on odor.

If it were me, I'd probably try soaking them for a day or two in rubbing alcohol.
posted by amtho at 2:48 AM on March 31, 2016

Bacteria is killed by extreme heat or cold generally. I'd totally do everything to save them too. Oil of cloves kills mound as well, according to Shannon Lush of Spotless fame.

And for the person up thread asking...we have socialised health in Australia. For now. It's possible for every (permanent) resident and citizen to see a doctor for no cost. It's funded by taxes and if you can find a doctor that accepts the rebate, it's "free".

Save the undies!
posted by taff at 3:04 AM on March 31, 2016 [8 favorites]

No judgment here, but hoo boy those undies are gone. I understand the desire to save your investment, but your crotch deserves better. Even if you get the stink out, whatever caused the stink (and whatever ends up killing it) may have compromised the fabric's absorbency.
posted by Metroid Baby at 3:33 AM on March 31, 2016 [25 favorites]

I also strongly urge you to throw them out. I seem to have lots of bacteria (symptomless) on and off and it's no problem but when I'm pregnant those bacterias worry my doctors because of womb infections and preterm labor. I'm a little more careful now about what I expose myself to. It's not something that is commonly understood or anything... But my point is that weird bacterias you're not even aware of can actually be hard to get rid of and impact your life.

Anyway, I would at least put those undies in a bowl of steaming hot water with a sanitizing effervescent tablet like you put babies bottles in.
posted by catspajammies at 4:26 AM on March 31, 2016 [2 favorites]

The thought of wasting the money gives me the willies, but: yeah, toss 'em in the trash. The thing is, those "just 2 or 3" grubs you saw? It's extremely unlikely that that's all there were: the rest were smaller or still eggs..... it's like bugs in your house: if you see one you've got to assume there are hundreds more hidden.

I wouldn't wear those even after they'd been literally boiled for an hour.
posted by easily confused at 4:51 AM on March 31, 2016 [9 favorites]

I would try boiling them (unless they have a PUL lining that could melt) and/or a good soak with Dr Bronner's Tea Tree oil soap or a couple drops of tea tree oil. This would be my go-to strategy for stinky cloth diapers, which is not too far off from what you've got.
posted by Violet Femme at 4:52 AM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

If I were trying to save a piece of fabric that has sat in bloody water for two weeks and had insects lay eggs in it, I would take a four-step approach:

1. Soak in Star-San for a good hour

2. Vigourous and violent hand scrubbing to try and break down any macroscopic material (like insect eggs) embedded or encrusted in the fabric.

3. Soak in chlorine bleach for a couple of hours.

4. Boil vigourously for at least fifteen minutes

But I can't imagine a scenario where I would try to save this fabric. Even if you do all this and can be pretty close to certain that all the bacteria and yeasts and molds are dead, you still can't be sure you've eliminated the toxic byproducts they may have left behind.

If you found a pair of very expensive panties in your size sitting in a pile of garbage on the street with maggots crawling on them, would you fish them out and try to salvage them? Because we're talking about a pretty equal level of gross here, since the fact that insects were laying eggs in them kind of trumps the question of whose butt was in them previously.
posted by 256 at 4:54 AM on March 31, 2016 [18 favorites]

If you're throwing everything at this, throw enzyme cleaners in the mix too. They work well on animal leakage type problems (plus you can make them yourself if you're extra keen, but that takes some time).

pretty sure Maggot Panties are playing at the Tote next weekend...
posted by Trivia Newton John at 4:58 AM on March 31, 2016 [4 favorites]

Ew, ew, ew. That said, after you did all the above, you could freeze your panties. It's something I have heard of for odour reduction.
And then, throw them away.
posted by LoonyLovegood at 5:10 AM on March 31, 2016 [5 favorites]

All the stuff you might try is also pretty likely to damage the absorbency of the underwear. Imagine you scrub the hell out of it, seems good as new, you wear them out of the house, and, oh hey, now you're covered in blood because it turns out the absorbent parts can't take infinite damage.
posted by showbiz_liz at 5:17 AM on March 31, 2016 [19 favorites]

This is disturbingly close to a nightmare I once had and that I've now spent much of the morning trying not to think about. I'm definitely in the "please just throw these away" camp, but if you must persist, maybe try contacting the manufacturer to ask about 'extreme' methods for cleaning them? They might at least be able to tell you if some of the things you might otherwise try would ruin the absorbency and cause a problem like showbiz_liz mentions.
posted by DingoMutt at 5:22 AM on March 31, 2016 [4 favorites]

Came in to suggest freezing them, which is sometimes suggested for smelly synthetics. Good luck!
posted by bunderful at 5:25 AM on March 31, 2016

Please bin these pants and write to the manufacturer telling them what happened. They might at least send you a coupon if not a replacement pair!
posted by veids at 5:28 AM on March 31, 2016 [5 favorites]

Canestan is amazing and should be all you need. I'm actually jealous that you get to use it. And frankly, if Canestan doesn't do the trick don't bother with all the boiling and whatever because that will just destroy your underpants without doing anything better than the Canestan was anyway.
posted by shelleycat at 5:53 AM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

I am one of the few voices apparently on Team Salvage! I personally would try dilute bleach (about 10 to 1), soak for 5 minutes then rinse, allow to dry thoroughly in the sun, then a round with an enzyme cleaner of the sort designed to eliminate pet stains and odors. I think the Nature's Miracle brand is available in Australia. Soak thoroughly, allow to dry without rinsing, then wash.

After what they've been through I would not expect them to last as long, as both the long bad soak and bleach is hard on fabric. But for gods sake, people, santization is an actual thing that kills bacteria.
posted by drlith at 6:03 AM on March 31, 2016 [5 favorites]

Soak at least over night in Napisan or oxyclean. Wash twice, then hang on the line in the direct sun.
posted by wwax at 6:18 AM on March 31, 2016

I also advocate boiling. I would boil for a long time. At least 15 minutes.
I have experience soaking fibers for a long time (on purpose) and you have made bacteria stew.
I'd also bleach them, freeze them overnight, and put them in the microwave for extra fun.
Maybe even saturate them with something like Lysol before boiling?

All the germ killing ideas you can think of.
And then I would have a scientist culture it up to see what I hadn't killed. And I'd read up on MSRA and get a huge bottle of Cipro.
posted by littlewater at 6:21 AM on March 31, 2016 [2 favorites]

My sister used to have the smelliest sneakers in all the land, and the odor would go away after we started leaving them in the freezer every night. So I'd try freezing these puppies for a week or so if nothing else works.
posted by sallybrown at 6:39 AM on March 31, 2016

Mod note: Folks, we're not taking a vote here: please address the question as presented. I get the impulse but simply saying "no just chuck them" is not an answer.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane (staff) at 6:41 AM on March 31, 2016

Oh goodness. For some perspective: This situation is basically the equivalent of wanting to salvage clothing worn by a dead body as it putrefied for two weeks. Fabric soaked in body fluids + water for extra juiciness + bugs = sludge that most folks wouldn't want to get anywhere near. ANYHOO since you're a resourceful and practical kinda person: I'd suggest putting in a bucket about 3 bottles of hydrogen peroxide (they're about $1 at the pharmacy), about 1/2 cup baking soda, and a few tablespoons of dish soap. Add panties, and enough water to make sure the liquid covers them. Let them soak for a day or two. Rinse and wash, check for stinkiness. (This recipe is a more peroxide-y version of this homemade pet stain remover that I've used very successfully for various stinky protein stains in fabrics & carpet. Peroxide is a great cleaner and disinfectant for menstrual things -- in fact I clean my diva cup each month by keeping it in a glass of peroxide.) It'd be worth trying, but I'm afraid even this may not be fully effective especially if there are any natural fibers in that fabric: As the proteins in the blood broke down and fermented, they surely broke down the cotton to some degree -- cotton does break down and rot (that's why historical clothing doesn't survive over the centuries). If it were me though, I'd chalk it up to lesson learned & get new ones. Good luck!
posted by cuddles.mcsnuggy at 6:52 AM on March 31, 2016 [6 favorites]

How long has it been since you purchased them? As horrifying as this might sound, Thinx has 60 day no questions asked return/exchange policy. And even if it has been more than 60 days, I might ask - I talked to their customer service last week with a question about an order, and they were super supportive and helpful.
posted by superlibby at 7:03 AM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

Follow the WHO procedure for clothing, here, then wash regularly.
http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/ebola/whoemcesr982sec5-6.pdf
Bacteria are not magic.
posted by mercredi at 7:06 AM on March 31, 2016 [7 favorites]

If you do manage to salvage them, and do try and wear them again, please do not try them on a day when you are out of the house, and not able to change out of them. I find clothes that were stinky, and that smell clean, can take on that previous smell ... so test run first!
posted by Ftsqg at 7:08 AM on March 31, 2016 [10 favorites]

bacteria are things that can die, these are not, like, robocop maggots or anything. Just as hospitals re-use their sheets, just as the kitchen sponge can be cleaned, just as surgeons re-use their bloody scrubs, these can be cleaned too. If you have a microwave, i would put a vinegar-water solution on em and nuke them for a few minutes. This will kill any bacteria and i suspect it will nuke the smell. other ideas that get them up to a boiling point are all equally good.

incidentally, some credit cards have insurance on them, if you bought them less than 3 months ago and they get lost or stolen or ruined. you might just think about that too? in case the other ways don't work.
posted by andreapandrea at 7:08 AM on March 31, 2016 [5 favorites]

I'm pretty much the second coming of Billy Mays with how I evangelize OxiClean. It's how I deal with blood and pit stains and IME it not only removes the stain but also the odor. So that's what I'd try. OxiClean (oxygen bleach) breaks down into H2O2 so this is consistent with all the suggestions to use hydrogen peroxide, but there are other ingredients in the Oxi that would make that my go-to, plus you should get it to have on hand anyway.
posted by mama casserole at 7:56 AM on March 31, 2016

Just tossing in a +1 on the Canestan. After my mother died, my father lived by himself for a couple of years before my wife and I moved in to care for him. We weren't entirely aware of just how poor some aspects of his self-care had become, and I won't share the specifics of some of the laundry issues I dealt with over that first couple of weeks; suffice it to say, Canestan saved a number of items I'd been washing with a full expectation of disposal.
posted by not the fingers, not the fingers at 8:05 AM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

I use OxyClean now, but only because I can't get Canastan. The latter really is superior to everything else suggested (I've used for all kinds of old blood and animal waste stains, including rumen contents which is notoriously difficult to de-stink). It's also relatively mild on the fabric so try it first at least.
posted by shelleycat at 8:49 AM on March 31, 2016

For what it's worth, my dermatologist told me at my latest appointment that she's about to publish a peer-reviewed journal article about how Canestan wash irritates sensitive skin eg genitals... and according to her, canestan wash stays in the seams of clothing for at least 5 subsequent washings.

So, maybe don't use canestan wash on something that's going near your vulva...
posted by Year of meteors at 9:05 AM on March 31, 2016 [2 favorites]

Can you cut open the absorbent part, clean it and dry it, and then sew it back together? That would help eradicate bacteria, bug eggs, or maggots trapped between the layers.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 9:58 AM on March 31, 2016

I'm a cloth diaper veteran, and I've seen similar horror stories of diapers left in wetbags for a month before they are remembered, and they're similarly covered in maggots. The advice to those people is boil, boil, boil, then wash as usual (which for cloth diapers is usually soak, heavy duty wash, then extra rinse) with added bleach.
posted by gatorae at 9:58 AM on March 31, 2016 [4 favorites]

Soak in carbonated water, the cheapest bubbly soda water at the dollar store , the CO2 may help breakdown the odors , works for cat pee on carpet .
posted by hortense at 10:57 AM on March 31, 2016

I have no solution to offer, but this would be right up Jolie Kerr's (of Ask a Clean Person) alley. Tweet her at @jolieKerr and I bet she would answer you!
posted by JennyJupiter at 12:37 PM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

Just a thought: most synthetics aren't going to survive boiling.
posted by gingerest at 1:19 PM on March 31, 2016 [5 favorites]

I vote science experiment! Cut open one pair and see if there is mold/maggots growing between fabric layers. If yes, throw both out. If no, disinfect the second pair! I'd go with boiling.
posted by JacksonandFinch at 1:46 PM on March 31, 2016

I would go with the above recommendation re contacting thinx to ask if there's a possibility for replacement... If nothing else they may have suggestions for washing....
posted by noonday at 3:17 PM on March 31, 2016

I microwaved underwear once and the plastic in the elastic melted: proceed with caution!
posted by jrobin276 at 3:20 PM on March 31, 2016

I agree with the crowd. Best throw that thing out.

BUT - if I were trying to save them, I'd add laundry detergent, borax, baking soda (like a cup each of the last two), and a dropper full of tea tree oil on the highest heat setting. Let it agitate for 10 min or so, then leave it for at least 30 minutes. Then, add about two cups of apple cider vinegar, reset the wash timer, and run it like a normal load. Then, into the dryer on the highest setting. But I'm pretty sure all that heat would ruin your undies.

On a different note, I'd never heard of those panties before, and they sound kinda rad. They have a referral link, where if a person buys, they get $10 off and you get $10. I'm seriously thinking about buying a pair, so if you hit my memail up with a referral link, that's at least a partial discount for you towards a new pair. Hell of a marketing strategy thinking about a bloody bucket of maggots. Yuck.
posted by slipthought at 3:51 PM on March 31, 2016 [1 favorite]

I also would buy these, if you send me a referral link I will be happy to contribute another $10 towards your next pair.

That said, I want to first emphasize: not only no shame, but I am ovaries-to-the-wall impressed with you at having the intestinal fortitude not to anonymize this.

If you're interested in saving, I suggest soaking them for about six hours in a tub full of OxyClean, then both boil and freeze. Bacteria are not magic. You can kill them.
posted by corb at 5:52 PM on March 31, 2016 [4 favorites]

A third request for a referral link! I've been wanting to try them and would be happy to help finance some new ones for you.

I'd boil the old ones and then throw them away, along with the pot they were boiled in. Yech. But seconding the recommendation to ask Jolie Kerr.
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 6:39 PM on March 31, 2016

I'm nthing bleach. Bleach kills bacteria and viruses. I would consider maggot panties already ruined/a biohazard, so worst case scenario of bleach discoloration is not a huge deal. Soak them in diluted bleach water, then wash like normal, and see how they come out.

I would not think vinegar, baking soda, or any particular brand of detergent on its own is strong enough to truly clean maggot panties, ie something that would go on your nether regions of all places, but maybe that's just me. All sorts of nasty stuff can survive the wash. So bleach, then wash. I would NOT risk wearing these underpants without a bleach soak.
posted by atinna at 9:15 PM on March 31, 2016

BTW you probably know this, but just in case you feel like trying multiple solutions at the same time: don't combine bleach with anything else (like vinegar, anything acidic). This can result in toxic chemicals.
posted by atinna at 9:23 PM on March 31, 2016 [2 favorites]

Home brewers use iodine to sanitize. While it can stain, if the underwear are a darker color it probably wouldn't show. The bottles will have instructions about how to dilute with water. Worth a try in the overall mix of cleaning efforts, maybe?
posted by bloggerwench at 9:59 PM on March 31, 2016

Since the question is about odor... Vodka? Maybe that's not as strong as the soak in chlorine or burn it approach, but it seems to work for stage people.
posted by RaRa-SpaceRobot at 10:03 PM on March 31, 2016

^^ Oh, good idea! Rubbing alcohol does the same thing as vodka, and it's stronger and cheaper.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 12:30 PM on April 3, 2016

Response by poster: Wow I'm just checking in here to write a follow-up and I see there are so many more comments! Thanks so much everyone who weighed in.

NOW for your update: So I kept meaning to buy the products people suggested, but I kept not getting around to it, and meanwhile I left the stinky undies hanging on the line... we've had a very sunny autumn, so they got heaps of hot Aussie sun. After about 2.5 weeks the smell was significantly reduced. Then I just washed them with normal washing powder plus scented fabric softener and voila! SMELL TOTALLY GONE. I promise you they are 100% odour-free. No sign of any bacteria or other unwanted life. It is amazing. THey are like new. I am using them again.

So... haters gonna hate... but guys I saved my maggot panties. Frugal perseverance til the end.
posted by beccyjoe at 12:32 AM on May 10, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Proud of my fellow scabby Aussie chick. Noice.
Careful that they don't get pongy when hot. My active wear (mwhaha) gets reactivated whiffiness sometimes.

But hell yeah, great outcome.

Hardcore all the way. High five!
posted by taff at 12:49 AM on May 10, 2016