And when you fold your laundry, you might put it away with other clothes, leaving it slightly damp. This dampness becomes a ground that harbours mildew. Too Much Fabric Softener or Detergent: A build-up of fabric softener or laundry detergent can also cause your towels to get mildew on them.
Hang 'em High and Dry
A balled-up towel won't dry properly, meaning its more prone to developing mildew. To keep your towels fresher, hang them flat after each use.
Remember, leaving damp towels in a dark environment is just asking for mold, mildew, and odors, and a dirty washing machine only adds to the problem. Don't let damp towels pile up and if you aren't going to wash damp towels right away, hang them to dry to minimize bacteria and mildew smells.
If the mildew is very bad, consider doing a Clorox® Disinfecting Bleach soak: use ¼ cup Clorox® Disinfecting Bleach per gallon of cool water; soak 5 minutes, then wash in hot water with detergent + ⅓ cup Clorox® Disinfecting Bleach.
A good rule of thumb is to avoid leaving clothes in the washer for more than 8 to 12 hours. However, Murphy says there's more to think about than just timing to prevent your clothes from smelling and mildewing, especially if you're prone to letting your laundry sit for hours at a time.
Mold generally looks slimy or fuzzy, tends to have a raised texture, and can come in a rainbow of colors, including deep green and black. Mildew is powdery, looks white or gray, always appears flat, and grows on surfaces.
Exposure to damp and moldy environments may cause a variety of health effects, or none at all. Some people are sensitive to molds. For these people, exposure to molds can lead to symptoms such as stuffy nose, wheezing, and red or itchy eyes, or skin.
You can try washing them again, but once mildew smells penetrate the fabric, it usually takes more than a regular wash cycle to remove them. This is a serious problem since mildew smells aren't only unpleasant, they wreak havoc on your sinuses and allergies.
If your sheets look dingy, stripping will help remove buildup and restore brightness. Note: the stripping recipe of Borax, washing soda, and detergent is not a bleach. If your sheets or towels smell musty even after washing, stripping will help remove trapped odors and freshen them.
Nothing smells worse than musty, damp laundry. But OxiClean™ Odor Blasters™ Powder or Liquid can help you get musty smells out of clothes, towels and other fabric.
Ultimately, though, when a towel's threads begin to pull—or you notice a lingering odor, despite a careful wash—it's time to toss it; you can expect body and hand towels to last between two to five years depending on their quality. Wash cloths, on the other hand, should be replaced every one or two years, notes Winch.
This powerful, natural cleaning agent can also break down any laundry detergent or fabric softener build-up that may be leaving towels feeling rough and scratchy. Similar to cleaning with lemon juice, white vinegar can also leave dull towels looking brighter, so you can maintain a fresh white color for longer.
If your towels seem less absorbent than they used to be or have stubborn odors, skip the bleach and use vinegar instead. Use 1/2 cup of 5 percent white vinegar during your wash cycle.
Karina Toner recommends putting one to two cups of white vinegar directly into the washing machine drum regardless of your washing machine type and running it on a hot cycle. 'This will help to remove any soap, limescale build-up, or odors from your machine,' she says.
However, vinegar in laundry shouldn't be a routine addition because it can cause damage to washing machines. In addition, certain fabrics should not be overly exposed to vinegar, and there are laundry products it shouldn't be combined with.
"We recommend cleaning your washing machine about once a month or about every 30 cycles to prevent buildup and soils," advises Martinez. "Without cleaning your washing machine, you may experience buildup of detergent or soils that cause clothing to smell," she adds.
Bleach. A very strong chemical, bleach can be very effective at killing mould and removing mildew stains. However, it will also fade any colours, so use bleach only on whites, or test your garment first on an inconspicuous part of your clothing (such as the inside hem).
Removing Mildew Stains
Fill a sink, bucket or bowl with warm water and add half a scoop of Tide Powder Detergent. Mix up the solution by hand until the detergent completely dissolves. Add your mildew stained garments to the solution and leave to soak for two hours.
Mold exists everywhere — in the air, in the dirt, in our homes and yes, in our washing machines. Mold spores travel great distances, hitchhiking on a breeze or a soft cashmere sweater. When they settle on something damp, they start to grow. It's nearly impossible to get rid of mold.
Use undiluted white vinegar on hard surfaces in kitchens and baths. A bleach solution also works to kill mold. Mix one cup of bleach in a gallon of water, apply to the surface and don't rinse. Mix a 50/50 solution of ammonia and water.
Exposure to a large number of mold spores may cause allergic symptoms such as watery eyes, runny nose, sneezing, itching, coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing, headache, and fatigue.
If you have asthma, COPD, or if you are immune-compromised you should not stay in a moldy home, or even be there while it is being cleaned. Spend less time in your home. Stay with friends or relatives as much as you can until your home is dried and cleaned up. If you can, shower and wash your hair at their home.
Mildew refers to certain kinds of mold or fungus. The term mildew is often used generically to refer to mold growth, usually with a flat growth habit. Molds include all species of microscopic fungi that grow in the form of multicellular filaments, called hyphae.