By Rick Schultz, MBA, DBA
Rating: 4.75/5.0
https://www.odorklenz.com/sport/
Price MSRP (currently on sale from OdorKlenz website):
15 Load: $17.99 $14.99
30 Load: $27.99 $24.99
Source: OdorKlenz
Features: A Sport Laundry ‘Booster’
How obtained: Sample from OdorKlenz
Other Products: I counted 28 different “Odor Eliminator” products in 5 different categories; Sport, Laundry, Pets, Household Odors, Air
Summary: Surprised at the findings
HOT!
- A little goes a long way
- Works with your favorite laundry detergent to boost its odor removing qualities
- For best results, I ran the 2-hour soak cycle first, followed by the 2-hour wash cycle.
- OdorKlenz has offered a 15% discount to this readership, read through the article to the end
NOT!
- Some might think the ‘per load’ price is a little high
OdorKlenz is designed to be used as a “booster” and in conjunction with your favorite laundry detergent. It promises to “neutralize and remove sweat & body odors from workout clothes that laundry detergents leave behind.”
I think we’ve all experienced cycling clothes that smell, especially after a long 3-4-hour ride on a hot summer day. By the time you get home, the stench of your cycling kit has completely taken over the inside of your car.
The problem then is deciding (a) do I burn these clothes or (b) which laundry detergent works best to remove the odors? Most of us choose the latter. Everyone has their favorite detergent so I won’t discuss these, but, I will say that the OdorKlenz Sport Laundry Additive works with both types of detergents I use – powder and liquid.
How Does it Work?
Once the sample additive came from OdorKlenz, I made sure to pick my “smelliest” kit to wear on the next Saturday ride. It is one of those kits that no matter what you have washed it with, the smell is still there. After a 2.5-hour hard ride, I placed the kit in the little plastic hamper waiting there until after Sunday’s ride — when I would next wash the cycling clothes.
I decided to use the soak setting on my washer first. Soak is a 2-hour light agitation cycle. Next, I placed the selector to warm, another 2-hour cycle. I wanted to give the OdorKlenz booster a head start on getting the smell out.
After 4 hours, the buzzer went off and I removed the clothing. Finding the jerseys, they weren’t really too bad. The booster removed about half of the smell.
For the next weeks’ rides, I decided to wear the same kits and test again. Starting with about half the smell as before and two rides later, I followed the same process as above. Next wash, half the odor again was removed – so now I’m down to about a quarter of what they were originally. Great!
I spoke with OdorKlenz and they said that to maximize effectiveness, “we actually recommend using a high agitation cycle with the product which helps to maximize the contact our earth minerals have with the odor source.”
Summary
Each time I wash my kits, they come out fresher and fresher.
So, don’t expect miracles the first time you wash your kits, but, after several times, you will be pleasantly surprised as to how well this stuff works. I know I sure am.
Note: OdorKlenz has sent me a coupon to share with my followers, a 15% off coupon, and for those that read my articles all the way through, please use Bike15 for your 15% off an already discounted price! This makes it a very affordable product to use. So, coupling this generous offer with the already reduced sale price, pick up half-a-dozen bottles, you will be glad you did.
No doubt. Way too expensive! Plus, how would detergent alone work if you did a two hour(!) presoak every time? Pretty well I bet.
H-m-m. in Germany I’m using a sport detergent that costs 2.15 EUR for 26 loads – and does not require any odor eliminator.
Problems are that cycling clothing should be washed on delicate washer setting. Assos gear even comes with a special bag to put the clothing in to prevent it from rubbing against other items. Second problem is that no mention of the primary detergent was made. Detergents like Tide or Gain should never be used on cycling clothing . They have what is know as brighteners in them that will clog the pores of the material. There are several very good detergents designed expressly for athletic clothing that perform very well and are less expensive.
I’ve used a product called Defunkify for a couple of years — with excellent results. It’s a powder detergent (nothing else needed) made specifically for washing workout clothes. I use it in a modern HE washing machine and always wash on the “active wear” (delicate) cycle.
(As I wrote in RBR a couple years ago: The product uses “green chemistry,” and contains “only non-toxic, sustainable, plant-based ingredients and enzymes, minerals and biodegradable synthetic ingredients listed on the EPA Safer Choice Chemical Ingredient List.”)
It sells on Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/Defunkify-ACTIVE-WASH-Laundry-Detergent/dp/B06Y3ZB43J – and other places for as little as 24 cents a load.
Enzymes just eat away at the odors and do nothing to neutralize them. The product reviewed states that it neutralizes the odors “better stated we would hope that since it is neutralized it would no return” and based on the ingredients it looks as green as one could get! I am going to purchase a bottle and thank you for teh review. For those complaining about pricing, I see it this way I have over 2,000 in fitness clothes that I can not wear because of the state of the odors. If I could get 1/3 of those back to wearable condition, I would gladly pay the $40 for this product
I also use Defunkify, after reading John’s review which you can find on the site with a search. I have had very good luck with it, although I didn’t have a lot of problems with permanently stinky clothes before.
Before investing in fantasy sports detergents I suggest folks try baking soda as a pre-soak. You can also add white vinegar to the pre-soak. There is lots of information on the Www on how to do so. I personally get my riding clothes soaking as soon after the ride as possible. I also air dry my pricy bib shorts.
Undone by auto correct once again as “fancy” becomes “fantasy”. My apologies to sports detergent makers everywhere.
I just throw some white vinegar in with the detergent. It works very well. I do an extra rinse to get the vinegar smell out, but that’s all I need.to do to keep things fresh.
Here’s a little detergent chemistry that might be useful. Most odors come from organic molecules that stink, or from bacteria that use those molecules for food, and the metabolites stink. Most commercial detergents are made of anionic surfactants. Those are cleaning agents that are “ionic” or charged species that consist of a positively charged “cation” like sodium or potassium, and a negatively charged “anion”, like a linear alkyl benzene sulfonate, the oil and bacterium extracting part of the detergent. That part of the ionic material captures the oil and renders it water soluble, to be rinsed away. Problem is, ionic surfactants don’t rinse away completely from synthetic fabrics like polyester and nylon. They remain as a carbon source (food) for residual bacteria. Thus, odors develop. There are also detergents made of non-ionic surfactants, which are molecules without an ionic charge. They bond with and water-solubilize oils and bacteria that are responsible for odors. The nonionic surfactants supposedly rinse better from polyester and nylon and remove traces of bacteria and their food sources like skin oil and sweat. Kirkland brand unscented HE detergent used to be made of Tween 80, an effective nonionic surfactant, and thus a great detergent for athletic wear. The package now says it is made of ionic or nonionic surfactants, so is it still made using only nonionics? I hope so. It is what I use to best remove odors from sports apparel. Charlie’s Soap is also made of nonionic based detergents, supposedly linear alkyl benzene ethoxylates. Tide, Cheer, and many other common detergents are based on anionic surfactants and will contribute more to odors. Always buy unscented detergents, as the scent molecules also act as a food source for bacteria.