Clothing
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You are currently reading a thread in /trv/ - Travel
You are currently reading a thread in /trv/ - Travel
My travel/backpacking clothes tend to start stinking after a few weeks out on the road. I know everyone recommends merino wool but it is both expensive and too heavy in terms of packing weight and hotness in the heat. Polyesters/Nylons are cooling, lightweight, and dry fast but they start smelling like absolute death.
Cotton is completely shunned by the travel community but I wonder if I took a bunch of solid white cotton t-shirts I could just bleach them in the sink every few days to avoid the stink and get rid of stains?
Does this sound like a good idea?
Cotton a shit, wool a best. Look for lightweight merino t-shirts. Merino blends have acceptable smell resistance.
Or you could, you know, wash the clothes. Don't they make a detergent concentrate?
>>1114773
I do wash them, they smell regardless
I mainly use cotton/poly blends. If I go full poly they smell like absolute death even after washing.
Merino is great but at $40/pop it's a hard pill to swallow. Also, wool wears out pretty fast, especially with a backpack on and you've got to wash it like the baby jesus
>>1114771
Cotton isn't smartly shunned as travel clothing entirely, it just doesn't help against hypothermia when wet/damp if that is an issue for your travels ("death picks cotton"). It's comfortable, breathable and healthy on the skin so it has its purpose, and is alright in a wool blend, but it can take more than overnight if airdrying.
It's the poly and non-gortex nylon that smells, because I think down on the microscopic level it's pretty porous with little exchange like the plumping that happens with natural stuff, so soap doesn't really wash it out..memory. It's why they dry fast too, though.
Try a brand called Ibex or look to Patagonia. You could also pack some of the Sport Tide or a washing bag that scrubs the hell out of it. Or just pay for some hotel laundry, and skip the sink and air dry. Heat drying kills bacteria too, and resets those fibers and wrinkles.
>>1114774
Yeah, wool wears out fast. That's why merino blends are better for higher wear applications.
Surely there's some sort of detergent concentrate you can bring?
>>1114793
I wash my clothes regularly, but they will still start to stink
>>1114797
You're not washing them right then.
>>1114797
Washed clothes stink if it takes too long to dry too.
In places where it takes too much time to dry naturally (mainly really humid areas), use a drier or tumble drier.
>>1114797
Use actual laundry detergent and wash them properly. Get some old lady to show you how to properly hand wash. Use a machine every week or two when you get the chance. Hostels almost always have washing machines.
I had your problem, I solved it without changing my travel clothes.
>>1114771
Avoid dorms with Australians, they're putting your clothes in the toilet while you sleep.
>>1114938
It's true, I do it all the time.
