# Removing horrible Febreze smell - HELP



## NorthernPixie

My grandmother knit my dd 4 cute little sweaters. She hand-washed them. Presumably, she then spritzed them with Febreze (shudder), packed up the box, and mailed them to me. They reeked.

So I washed them. Three times. I hung them outside for four days. I took a token picture and then packed them away until they fit her.

So they're about to fit her, 6 months later. And now they may possibly smell worse. I washed them again. The whole load stunk and I had to re-wash the rest of the clothes. I washed the sweaters again, this time using Bac-Out. I soaked them in a sink full of water and baking soda. I soaked them in a sink full of vinegar. I soaked them in a sink with 6 dissolved aspirin (I found this tip online - doesn't work for this).

They still stink. My hands stink if I touch them. I can smell them across the room. I would like to use these sweaters but I can not stand the horrible odour. I hate Febreze.

Any advice? Drycleaning? Some odour-removing laundry products other than Bac-Out?


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## jocelyndale

Febreze is really freakin' hard to remove. I've had luck with a soak using Calgon (the laundry treatment). With as hot water (initially), a soak usually does the job. And then a double wash to remove the smell of the Calgon.

Have you tried milk soak? Water + dry milk powder. I usually use a cup or so dissolved in a bucket of waster.


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## Bleu

Isn't Febreeze vile? I do what you do - repeated washings, vinegar, hanging outside. It will work eventually, but I have to say in all honesty I've washed things _to the point of visible wear_ getting the damn.smell.out. How nuts is that?


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## thriftyqueen

Febreze has got to be the worst smell, IMO! Have you tried baking soda? I have had luck with baking soda getting smells out (not febreze in particular). Maybe just add some vinegar and baking soda to a sink full of water and let it soak. Then rinse it really well and line dry it. Worth a shot. Hope you get the smell out.


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## NorthernPixie

thanks for the ideas! Right now I've got a sink with Calgon, soaking my sweaters. Maybe later I'll hang them outside and let tropical storm Fay blow the stink out!

I did try baking soda...no dice. But FYI, mixing baking soda and vinegar results (in addition to much fun for kids!) just water and salt, and a neutral pH, so you lose the effects of both in the chemical reaction. They have to be used separately...I just wish they would work on febreze! Vinegar works so well on most everything.


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## wendinbill

What about spritzing with vodka? I've heard that can remove odors.


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## meisterfrau

I was also going to suggest baking soda. It seems to suck up odors.


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## Barcino

I hate febreeze too... my MIL uses it and I always think she is using pesticides or horrible hair product when I smell it. I ask and she says... I sprayed Febreeze. Gross... how about cleaning instead if u wanted to smell nice.


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## jocelyndale

Oh, I've stripped with simple green in an effort to remove febreze, too. I think a couple squirts in a hot wash. And dish soap has been tried, though I can't remember how successful it was.

I've stopped shopping at thrift stores because it's become too difficult to remove stink (detergent, fabric softener, febreze) from used clothing. I hate buying new all the time, but I get really sick from stinky clothes and it takes a lot of time and hot water to get rid of the fragrance.


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## Bleu

Quote:


Originally Posted by *jocelyndale* 
I've stopped shopping at thrift stores because it's become too difficult to remove stink (detergent, fabric softener, febreze) from used clothing. I hate buying new all the time, but I get really sick from stinky clothes and it takes a lot of time and hot water to get rid of the fragrance.

I feel exactly the same way. I haven't _quite_ given up on secondhand clothes, but I've been considering it, for that very reason. I find that I'm less and less tolerant of those nasty chemical odors.


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## GamineNoir

Good Luck! That stuff is truly vile.


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## battymama

Urgh i hate the stuff. My Dh used to wear it as deoderant, and use it to spray his clothes and sheets rather than wash them. Pre me of course.


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## NorthernPixie

...an update in case you were wondering...

After doing all of the things in my OP, I took some advice from here and soaked in Calgon and hot water. And then full strength vinegar and hot water. And then washed again in the washing machine. And voila! The horrible odour appears to be banished!


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## consciousma

good to know, i'm going to try that w/ the coat ds got that stinks like moth balls, I've washed at a few time & it seems to get worse. & it was bought new (too bad it got put in the wash before we smelled it - thanks to someone who was "trying" to help). Anyone have experience w/ moth balls?

Febreeze & Fabuloso, my mom loves them, i often have a hard time just walking into her house, until I find the open bottle of fabuloso, close it & open the window. nasty stuff.


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## jocelyndale

Quote:


Originally Posted by *consciousma* 
Anyone have experience w/ moth balls?

You need two things to remove naphthalene from clothing: sunshine and fresh air. The ultraviolet radiation causes the crystals to sublimate, the breeze moves the gas away from your clothing so that it doesn't recrystalize. The stuff is not water soluble.


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## PenelopeJune

I'm glad you got the smell out! I hate the smell of Febreeze, I think I might be allergic to it. It makes my eyes and mouth itch.


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## LoRox

You'd think after all these years that Tide would NOT be using Febreeze in its detergents! Going through h.ll trying to get the smell & itchiness out of 3 weeks of clothes! Grrrrrr! Hating Tide!


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## Ani2

*Febreze stinking fabrics*

I detest the smell of Febreze. We haven't had any success getting the smell of it out of clothing and have tried up to a dozen washings at various temperatures and detergents, baking soda, and then bleach. You can try bagging them in a trash bag with 1-2 Ozium air sanitizers or . That has a fragrance that smells like it will bother one, but it seems to take any smell we have used it against and as soon as you remove the sanitizers, there is no smell. I haven't tried it on Febreze yet as I no longer buy used clothing or fabrics on Ebay any more because it seems like everyone is using it these days. Whatever 's in the stuff can't be good for one, if you can wash something over 12 times and the smell can't be removed.


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## Ihatefabreze1!

NorthernPixie said:


> My grandmother knit my dd 4 cute little sweaters. She handwashed them. Presumably she then spritzed them with Febreze (shudder), packed up the box, and mailed them to me. They reeked.
> 
> So I washed them. Three times. I hung them outside for four days. I took a token picture and then packed them away until they fit her.
> 
> So they're about to fit her, 6 months later. And now they may possibly smell worse. I washed them again. The whole load stunk and I had to re-wash the rest of the clothes. I washed the sweaters again, this time using Bac-Out. I soaked them in a sink full of water and baking soda. I soaked them in a sink full of vinegar. I soaked them in a sink with 6 dissolved aspirin (I found this tip online - doesn't work for this).
> 
> They still stink. My hands stink if I touch them. I can smell them across the room. I would like to use these sweaters but I can not stand the horrible odour. I hate Febreze.
> 
> Any advice? Drycleaning? Some odour-removing laundry product other than Bac Out?


I hate fabreze!!!!!!!!!! My Mother loved it and over used it. It's been almost 2 years since she passed and I still come across things polluted with fabreze. All pictures smell like fabreze. My late Aunt made two beautiful blankets, one for my Mother and one for me. I was just going to put them in my cedar chest, but both reek of Fabreze. I'm going to try to wash them, but I will probably have to give them away. I wish they would outlaw the making of fabeze!!!!!!!!!!!!
:frown:


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## Suziecollector

Just bought a beautiful vintage purse soaked in Frebeze !! I may just return it. I am terribly allergic. It should be outlawed. Got my mother-in-law helpers to quit using it and Lysol. She is very frail. Her asthma improved a lot. Thanks for your comments.


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## Rchrispmcd

it's as if there are two types of humans. those who use and actually enjoy chemicals cleaners and chemical fragrances and those who are physically repulsed by them. It could have something to do with immune systems. I would say that is most likely. Fabreeze, air fresheners, fabric softener, all make me physically ill to the point of my immune system beginning to shut down. I recently bought a brand new/ used faux suede office chair. The kind that goes for between four and $500 new. A great deal for $75. Unfortunately the smell of Febreze is so strong I couldn't have it in the house. It has been sitting outside for nine days now. I have washed it heavily with white vinegar. And that helped a bit but still I can't bring it in the house. Some people would not find that chemical odor offensive at all. I question whether their immune systems are working correctly.


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## ElvisGirl

Thank you for this opportunity to talk about fragrance sensitivity and Febreze, a product which I hope will one day be outlawed. I also can no longer shop in thrift stores because it's impossible to tell in the store how really saturated with this product an item might be. In the store your senses are soon deadened to the smells. You can buy something that smells alright and discover the truth once you get it home. I use fragrance-free everything in my house and walking down the detergent aisle in the grocery store is impossible now. I can't stand being near someone who is wearing clothes washed in scented detergent or dried with scented dryer sheets. Any perfume makes me sick. 

I am in the middle of attempting to remove chemical smells from a very nice and costly top a friend gave me. She uses plug-ins (something else that should be banned) in every room and I should have known that the top would smell like her house, a place I seldom visit. When I opened the package I could feel a headache coming on. In the past I have had good results removing Febreze and other VOC-laden products with (separately) baking soda soaking, hot water washes with my detergent, and white vinegar soaking. No household should be without white vinegar, After trying all of that, a few days hanging in the sun and fresh air often will do the trick. If not, I have had to throw out the item but that has been rare. What is wrong with us that we have to use all of these chemicals? They are not good for us, our animals, the earth.


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