De-stinkify me

September 24, 2007 4:38 PM

I got some bleach on my mattress and it stinks. How can I de-stinkify it?

While I was cleaning some mold off of the ceiling (another story) with bleach some of it dripped on to my mattress. I thought, "hey no big deal, my mattress is white". However, a couple of days later the smell has changed from bleachy/chlorine-ey to some vaguely bad smell (I thought the smell might fade - it hasn't). I need to get rid of it!

The standard procedure for stink related things seems to be something baking soda related. What does this mean? I just leave the baking soda on the mattress? For how long? I need to go to sleep every night, so I can't leave it there for days.

Your thoughts mefites?

posted by jourman2 to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

You should follow instructions for upholstery cleaning, such as these. But you must be aware of the potential of stinky mildew when you get something like your mattress wet. I would recommend blowdrying the mattress as you clean to try and keep it dry. Also, don't put any sheets on it for a few days so it can air out. Perhaps put a fan in the room with it and keep the window open.

I think you can also probably rent an upholstery-cleaner machine from your local giant chain grocery store, if the old fashioned methods aren't cutting it.

Also, after the mattress has aired out, and you are ready to put your sheets back on it, try putting a layer of fabric softener sheets between it and the bedsheet. It will provide freshness.
posted by waywardgirl at 7:27 PM on September 24, 2007

I've had a lot of success with white vinegar for combating odor, though I confess to being perplexed as to what bleach would have morphed into.

And by the way, you WERE using a weak bleach-water mixture for that ceiling, yes? You shouldn't be using straight bleach.
posted by phearlez at 7:04 AM on September 25, 2007

Chlorine normally evaporates and dissipates. Maybe the smell is something else?
posted by Area Control at 12:35 PM on September 25, 2007