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rondelynjones

Caring for Elderly Parent

rondelynjones
7 years ago

how do you get feces odor out of linen and clothes

Comments (7)

  • mamapinky0
    7 years ago

    A cool prewash and lots of extra hot water for the main wash along with a TOL detergent. As George says you may want to try Borax but extra rinsing is required as it like carbonates can be a troublemaker.

  • Pat Z5or6 SEMich
    7 years ago

    mama, I think you should share your example(s) of a TOL detergent in this case. If rondelyn is anything like me, your expertise will be very invaluable.

  • mamapinky0
    7 years ago

    Aww Thank You Pat.

    Well..all of the US Persils on the market are fantastic. Tide is equally good. These two are considered heavy duty detergent, and they do live up to that reputation. Lets not forget Dreft **powder** P&G touts it as being a baby detergent and what do babies have a never ending supply of...poop.. These are the three easily found in the US that IMO will solve your problem. As George says add Borax it really will help with odor removal.

    Rondelyn, can you use scented detergents? If not than I'd say Tide F&G powder.

    Let us know what you think.

  • PRO
    Anglophilia
    7 years ago

    If linens and clothes are white and have no synthetics, a bit of Clorox is always good - it will kill bacteria. And HOT, HOT water.

  • wekick
    7 years ago

    We deal with this issue in our business. You might need several washes or just a couple depending on the level of soiling and the type of machine you have. It is important to get all organic matter removed. The surfactants will help do this but enzymes are very important. Adding some sodium tripolyphosphate will help too.

    I would want >>>

    protease-removes protein based stains

    amylase-removes starch based stains

    lipase-removed fat based stains, many odors are carried in oils/fats

    mannanase-other food based stains

    Persil Pro clean power pearls have these. The Persil 2/1 is also a great detergent but it is unclear if the lipase is in there, some places say it is while others say it isn't. I use it at home for heavy duty cleaning and it works well. It has a strong smell coming out of the washer but as long as it is well rinsed, the smell is gone when it comes out of the dryer

    In the last wash I would add some Oxiclean. There is some oxygen bleach in the Persil pearls but a little more would be good. It takes a little hotter water to dissolve it. I would do a double warm rinse if you can.



  • xhappyx
    7 years ago

    I have an elderly parent and sometimes there are accidents. Poop is a protein stain so I fill the washer with cold water and let it soak with the addition of vinegar to kill the odors. Then after soaking overnight, I let the cycle continue and then wash as usual. If it is a load of whites, it gets some bleach and hot water and if it is color, I launder as usual. You don't want to put poop stains in hot water until you have soaked out the poop stains or it will set them in, just like blood stains. If it is a really really bad stain with a lot of poo, try adding some pine sol to the load and that will take it all out and remove odors. We don't have any issues using this method here.