My Clothes Smell Like Old People Clothes, Part II - and Another Yucky Smell Conquered

My dad e-mailed me a suggestion to run a wash cycle with bleach and that seems to have cleared the problem up.  I hope that this doesn't mean my washer will break soon, though!  Thrift store appliances have a very limited life-span, I know, but I'm hoping to get at least a year out of this particular one...

So my other yucky smell is my couch, and I knew going into this that I was going to have to work for a nice smelling one!  I posted a few months ago about how yucky our new (free!) couch smelled.  I worked had on it and it smells fifty times better than it did before, but the odors that the wood had absorbed are rearing their ugly heads.

Today, I pulled the couch out from the wall and soaked it (literally) with vinegar and water.  I really wanted to saturate the wood frame, which I know could be a potentially dangerous move (but it was free and I'd rather experiment on something free than something I paid for, wouldn't you?).  I then sprayed it with rubbing alcohol and water to kill any bacteria that may want to take up residence.  Next, I sprinkled baking soda over the surface area to help absorb the yucky smells.

Last, in a completely pointless step, I sprayed Fabreeze meant to help with pet odors.  Really, this stuff is the most useless cleaning product I've ever bought.  It makes the air smell like some kind of gross, overpowering perfume and doesn't even help clean up the couch at all.  Never bother spending your money on this!  If you can get rid of the source of the initial yuckiness, your home's naturally beautiful scent will take over.  =)

I wouldn't have thought to use vinegar, but my chemist husband says it works, and it does seem to so far.  I haven't had any trouble with my fabric fading or anything like that.  I recommend this method!