A wardrobe that smells and what it transfers to

Short answer: The smell comes from damp, from the wood or from clothes put away before they were fully dry. Everything in the wardrobe takes it on.

Find the source first

Open the wardrobe in the morning and close your eyes. If it smells musty, there is damp. If it smells sour, laundry was put away not fully dry. If it smells woody, it comes from the furniture. The treatment differs for each.

Damp and clothes

Empty the wardrobe, wipe the shelves, leave it open for a day and put only fully dry clothes back. If there is damp in the wall behind it, the wardrobe has to move away from the external wall. See bamboo clothing for women.

How to keep it away

Never put damp clothes away, keep air between garments and open the wardrobe once a week. See bamboo clothing for men and bamboo bedding.

Frequently asked questions

Can the smell be removed from the clothes

Yes. Wash with a cup of white vinegar and dry all the way through, ideally outdoors.

Do scented sachets help

They mask the smell without removing the cause. Find the source first.

What about bicarbonate of soda

A bowl of bicarbonate in the wardrobe absorbs moisture and odour. Change it every couple of months.