View Full Version : Hammock cleaning help needed
Ok, So I just purchased a hammock and it was my bad for not asking if it came from a smoke-free home... :scared:
Now I am trying to clean the hammock... I have also most likely broke some un-written rules about the care and maintenance of the hammock.
This is for a Dutch Half-Wit.
I have tried:
leaving it out in the rain overnight = smells became more pronounced
soaking it in a bucket = still did not remove the smells
and washing it on 'delicate' in an agitator-less washer with soap nuts (couldnt think of anything less harsh)
Before placing it in the washer i did remove the ties, lines and such.
It is still not working...
I noticed that the water was pooling from the hammock in the bucket - so two thumbs up on water resistance.
Anyone have a solution to remove smells?
I have no idear if this will work......
Other tricks include spraying the garment with a 50:50 solution of vodka and water. The alcohol will evaporate along with the smell.
If you want to remove old smoke smells from clothes hanging in small, confined areas like closets or boxes, set an open bowl of used, dried coffee grounds in with clothes for a few days. The coffee will absorb odours from the air.
Woody Woodpecker
01-10-2018, 14:28
Use Tent wash or Woolite (1 cap in a 5 gal bucket) and let it sit for 24 hours. You may need to repeat 3-4 times to release the tar that is binding the smell into the fabric. I wouldn't recommend any polar solvent unless tried on a test swatch of fabric beforehand. It'll eventually clean up, be patient. Good luck!
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I have no idear if this will work......
Other tricks include spraying the garment with a 50:50 solution of vodka and water. The alcohol will evaporate along with the smell.
If you want to remove old smoke smells from clothes hanging in small, confined areas like closets or boxes, set an open bowl of used, dried coffee grounds in with clothes for a few days. The coffee will absorb odours from the air.
I will hold off on the vodka but i will try to do the coffee grounds this weekend... not much of a coffee drinker, so maybe i can snag some from work.
TrailSlug
01-10-2018, 14:30
Soak it in vinegar in the tub for a few hours and then rinse. This should work.
Use Tent wash or Woolite (1 cap in a 5 gal bucket) and let it sit for 24 hours. You may need to repeat 3-4 times to release the tar that is binding the smell into the fabric. I wouldn't recommend any polar solvent unless tried on a test swatch of fabric beforehand. It'll eventually clean up, be patient. Good luck!
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Any particular brand of tent wash?
Soak it in vinegar in the tub for a few hours and then rinse. This should work.
white vinegar or apple vinegar... does it matter which? I do have a big jug of white vinegar at home
sunsetkayaker
01-10-2018, 14:34
I soak in vinegar then wash in the washer with a mild detergent and baking soda. The baking soda reacts with the left over vinegar to remove the last of the smells.
TrailSlug
01-10-2018, 14:46
white vinegar or apple vinegar... does it matter which? I do have a big jug of white vinegar at home
White.
cneill13
01-10-2018, 14:48
Soak it in vinegar in the tub for a few hours and then rinse. This should work.
+1 on the above by TrailSlug. White vinegar in hot water for a few hours. Rinse and hang outside and the slight vinegar smell will go away.
I have used this on both hammocks and down quilts with favorable results.
+1 on the above by TrailSlug. White vinegar in hot water for a few hours. Rinse and hang outside and the slight vinegar smell will go away.
I have used this on both hammocks and down quilts with favorable results.
thanks. i was afraid to use hot. but i can do hot tap water (like hot shower water). I will try this tonight or tomorrow night and let you all know of my results
I just strip the lines off and was in the same detergent I use on my hunting clothes, then reattach the suspension and hang outside to dry. I do this every spring.
I just soaked it in a mix of White Vinegar and Hot/Warm water and left it in a bucket in the tub last night. this morning the smell seems to have been greatly reduced :) Tonight after work, I will do the baking soda wash or see if i can get some of the organic odor remover detergent that i saw at Sam's Club. But overall, it is a ton better.
Also I have to say that the 1.0 material does a great job of shedding water :)
popalain
01-11-2018, 10:10
Another vote for vinegar.
If that doesn't work, I often have success soaking gear in MiraZyme - but I think that's mostly for organic smells, like from bacteria. No idea how that works on smokey smells.
slugbait
01-11-2018, 11:30
Hanging outdoors in sunshine and breeze helps too- it may take several days.
<-Pointer
01-11-2018, 17:39
Hot water and Tide for me. Let it soak for 24 hours and give it a good swish periodically. Then rinse it off and air dry. Never tried getting rid of cigarette smoke but it works on AT funk.
Did you ask Dutch?
no i was looking through the forums if it had been asked before and so just ended up asking. and you never know what the collective experiences come up with :)
TrailSlug
01-12-2018, 16:45
So is the smell gone? If so what was the best solution or was it a combination of repeated washings?
So is the smell gone? If so what was the best solution or was it a combination of repeated washings?
Yes. The smell is gone.
To recap - leaving it out in the rain outside did not work. Soaking it in cold water did not work.
I soaked it overnight in shower hot water with vinegar - about a 2 water to 1 vinegar estimate. Quick rinse off in the morning and most of the smell was gone with only faint traces left.
Hung to dry
Then I washed it on delicate in cold water with 'Odor Bully' (a plant based biodegradable detergent cleaner)
And now it smells fresh and clean.
I'm not sure if I would have started with the Odor Bully if that would have done it, but the white vinegar really helped a ton and I think even 2 washing of that would have also done the trick.
Hung to dry
TrailSlug
01-13-2018, 10:34
Glad you save the hammock. Now to get out there and get in it. Hanging it in the sun will help refresh it as well.
My conclusion is that the white vinegar wash is most likely the best readily available solution for washing. I think that even with just the one wash and then left to dry in the sun, whatever smell traces would have faded away after a short time.
Paddles Down
01-13-2018, 12:01
White vinegar and warm water!
Being an acid, weak as it is, I would be sure to rinse it very well, if not also deactivate the acid with a baking soda solution.
A lot of vinegar is a petroleum based product. I prefer grain based, it says so on the bottle.
Being an acid, weak as it is, I would be sure to rinse it very well, if not also deactivate the acid with a baking soda solution.
A lot of vinegar is a petroleum based product. I prefer grain based, it says so on the bottle.
thank you. I will make sure to mark that if i ever have to do a wash like this again. As it was after my light rinse i ended up doing a non-agitating washing machine wash.
Muddy Creek
01-14-2018, 07:13
Ok, So I just purchased a hammock and it was my bad for not asking if it came from a smoke-free home... :scared:
No, the "my bad" belongs squarely on the seller for not informing you that the hammock was damaged. A pervasive smell of tobacco smoke is a defect that you should have been made aware of before the seller took your money. I realize that smokers can become immune to the nauseating stench but it is a defect none the less.
I just received a gift of a used down-filled Eddie Bauer parka with a heavy cotton fabric outer shell. I hadn't realized the degree of the tobacco stench until I brought it inside and laid it on my sofa for an hour or so before I could get back to it. By then, that short contact infiltrated the fabric of the sofa and it still reeks 5 days later.
Since likely only the surface of the fabric is infected by the stench, I'll try a Fabreze fabric spray to see if that works. Then perhaps resort to another technique using a heavy dusting of baking soda for some time, then vacuuming it well. I just put the coat through the washer for about the 5th time with full strength laundry detergent and if the smell isn't gone this time, I'll be getting rid of it.
I'm glad you got the smell out of your hammock. This, and the fact that so many hangers have gleefully disclosed that they pee from their hammocks, has caused me to think more than twice about buying anything used.
Wayne
I hope the fragile down survives the washing of the fabric.
OliverHoward
05-16-2021, 00:25
Oh, I had the same issue and I almost gave up to find a solution. Thank you, Urduja, for writing a solution!
cmoulder
05-19-2021, 09:20
Put it in a 2-gallon bucket and soak it in Revivex Odor Eliminator (https://www.evo.com/wetsuit-accessories/gear-aid-revivex-odor-eliminator-10-oz?image=205902/806057/gear-aid-revivex-odor-eliminator-10-oz-.jpg?msclkid=573d651711d41644c99305b20fb35621&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=GSC_Surf_Accessories&utm_term=4581115206781214&utm_content=PLA_Surf_Accessories) (with recommended dilution, of course:rolleyes:)