Why clothes smell after drying

If your machine is brand new , it is likely that the dryer is off-gassing. Sometimes, new dryers need a few rounds to burn off the residue left behind during manufacturing. Sometimes, the plastic components will off-gas when they get hot. Off-gassing should leave after one or two 50 minute rounds. If your laundry continues to smell beyond that point, it is probably something else causing it.

There is lint built up inside the lint trap. Lint will smell like the clothes that it came from. So, if you have lint from a previously smelly item, it will transfer to the rest of the clothes. Clean the lint trap each time you dry a load. There is something stuck on the drum. Chemical smells are usually the result of something plastic getting hot or melting. Inspect the drum to make sure that nothing has become stuck to it.

Stickers and candy wrappers can become stuck to a drum and cause a horrible smell that will take forever to burn off. Most items can be removed with goof-off. Use a soapy cloth to wash away the residue left behind by the goof-off. Elastic items can produce off-gassing. This is it, folks! This is the nasty odor-causing culprit in my clothes.

When I started sniffing items, I eventually reached the underwear. That hair burning chemical smell was coming from the waistbands. The underwear that my boys use is Hanes and Fruit of the Loom. To be fair, the laundry tag symbols show medium dryer heat, and I am sure that these had high heat applied to them at some point.

However, even at the required heat settings they still smell. In fact, the smell is there all the time and only intensifies in the dryer. I can only assume that it is some sort of cheap product that is coming in from a China manufacturing plant. You may also want to check any other items that contain elastic. It is likely that your chemical smell problem is right there. To help with the smell, I found that using the lowest heat setting, removing them as soon as they are dry, and not placing them in the laundry basket with other clothes helps to keep the rest of the laundry from smelling bad.

I guess the whole point of this post is that you can find the source of the problem through the process of elimination and applying the above knowledge.

I hope that I have helped you figure out the cause for your clothes coming out of the dryer smelling bad. If you have discovered anything weird that was causing odors in your clothes, please share it for the rest of us in the comments. Subscribe to my newsletter to get the inside scoop! Rachel is a home improvement expert with more than 20 years of experience in renovations, carpentry, and interior design and has more than 10 years experience in graphic and web design.

She used the combination of her experience and knowledge to start her own digital media publishing company where she shares her knowledge across three different websites. Thank you so much. I was ready to through everything out… It irked me…I decided to check the label of the underwear….. It was indeed the same brand. Thanks so much.

Or you could switch to capsules to make life easier. Choosing a fragranced detergent or adding fabric conditioner will also help to make your clothes smell fresher for longer. If your clothes smell damp after washing, it might just mean you need to take them out of the machine quicker. Wondering how to get that damp smell out of clothes? Make sure you dry them within a few hours. If your laundry smells bad after drying indoors, you might want to invest in a dehumidifier to speed up the process.

Make sure clothes are completely dry before you take them off the line or out of the tumble dryer. Again, this goes back to the need to dry laundry quickly. Hang them rather than fold them, if you can. Do you notice a damp, musky odor on your clothes after removing them from the dryer?

You can run them back through the washing machine, but the odor will likely return unless you identify the cause. Pull out the filter and wipe away any lint covering the surface. While the filter is out, place a vacuum cleaner wand attachment down inside to suck up any remaining lint, fiber or debris. Most dryers work by blowing hot air over the clothes, and then exhausting this hot, humid air outside. If the exhaust duct is blocked with lint, debris, a sock, or anything else, the humid air will linger inside the unit, causing mold to form.

Turn your dryer on and check the outside exhaust vent. You should see and feel the air blowing outside. The next step in eliminating foul dryer odors is to clean the inside of the drum — the basket that holds the clothes. After disconnecting your dryer from the wall outlet, fill a spray bottle with filtered white apple cider vinegar and spray down the inside of the drum.

Let is sit for about minutes, at which point you can wipe it off.