Secondhand clothes shopping ticks all of the boxes: unique finds, budget-friendly, and planet-friendly. There’s just one stinker — literally. What’s that chemical fragrance smell on all of the clothes? And how do you get rid of it?
You spot it from across the rack — the perfect vintage blazer, the silk blouse that looks like it costs triple what you paid, the vintage Levi’s in exactly the right wash. You get it home. Then the smell hits: that chemical intensity hovering somewhere between Febreze and a forgotten storage unit, having followed the garment right through your front door. Secondhand shopping still wins on every count — for your wallet, for the planet, and for the quality of what you actually find. But the smell question deserves a real answer, and the solution is more nuanced than a single wash cycle.
The Febreze situation is more complicated than it looks. No major thrift chain has publicly confirmed what products, if any, they apply to donated garments, but the anecdotal record from shoppers and former employees points consistently to something Febreze-adjacent — an industrial deodorizing spray applied to donations before they hit the floor. Because most secondhand stores, including Goodwill, don’t launder items before selling them, a deodorizing spray is the quickest, most cost-effective way to manage inventory that may have been sitting in someone’s closet or garage for years. Higher-end resale shops like The RealReal tend to go further, using steamers or dry-cleaning methods that address odors at the fiber level rather than on the surface. The most important thing to know about sprays like Febreze: they don’t remove odors, they encapsulate them. The smell is still in the fabric — just temporarily suppressed, which explains why the thrift store cloud reappears a few hours after you get home.
The other smell — the one that longtime secondhand shoppers recognize as distinctly vintage — turns out to have a documented chemical profile. Cleaning expert Jolie Kerr had secondhand garments analyzed at Procter & Gamble’s labs for The New York Times in 2018, and the findings were illuminating. Twelve of 18 key malodor molecules contributing to the vintage smell were derived from body soils — skin, sweat, and oils, sometimes as old as the garment itself. The remaining six compounds were environmental contaminants: car exhaust, gasoline, dry-cleaning solvents, food, and perfume. The lab’s odor descriptors for those compounds read: “Sweet, sour, oily, herbal. Fatty. Whiskey, nutty, cheesy, sweaty. Stinky feet. Fermented. Bready.” “Distressing!” Kerr wrote in The New York Times.
It explains, at the very least, why secondhand stores are so liberal with the air freshener. And if all of this makes new clothes seem suddenly appealing, consider: textiles with wrinkle-resistant or permanent-press finishes commonly contain formaldehyde, and research has documented the presence of VOCs, including toluene, benzene, and xylene in new garments as well. Secondhand still wins. You just have to deal with the smell strategically.
Before reaching for any cleaning product, it helps to know what you’re working with. Polyester is the worst offender by far: its hydrophobic structure attracts the fatty acids in sweat, which promote bacterial growth and embed odors deep into the fiber. A 2018 textile study found the approximate decreasing order of odor intensity runs from wool at the low end, up through cotton, viscose, and linen, to polyester and polyamide at the highest. A vintage polyester blouse is going to require considerably more effort than a cotton shirt from the same era. Silk falls somewhere in the middle but demands more careful handling throughout.
How to get the smell out
Start with the simplest approach: hang the clothes outside on a sunny, breezy day. Sunlight functions as a natural disinfectant — UV rays help eliminate bacteria — while fresh air handles the odor molecules themselves. This alone resolves milder thrift store smells without any product at all.
For a first-pass treatment before laundering, baking soda absorbs odors effectively. Lay the garment flat, sprinkle a light layer over the fabric, let it sit for a few hours, then brush it off. For a more thorough treatment, a white vinegar soak works well: submerge the garment in one part white vinegar to four parts water for about an hour, then wash as usual. The vinegar smell dissipates during the cycle, pulling other odors with it.
Steaming is especially effective for structured pieces or anything that shouldn’t be submerged. A garment steamer run over the fabric loosens odor molecules from the fibers; if you don’t own one, hanging the item in a steam-filled bathroom achieves a similar, if milder, result.
For odors that survive these first rounds, activated charcoal is reliable. Seal the garment in a bag or container with activated charcoal for anywhere from 24 hours to a week. One important caution: the charcoal should not touch the fabric directly, as it will stain. A shallow dish of charcoal placed inside the bag, beside the garment, gets the same result without the risk.
When stronger intervention is needed, Kerr points to Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap and Sal Suds as reliably effective across a wide range of odors. “I’ve recommended it for washing everything from hand-me-down baby clothes that smell strongly of perfume to coveralls that got soaked in gasoline, and it has worked every time,” Kerr noted. Sal Suds is formulated with plant-based surfactants and natural fir needle and spruce essential oils — no synthetic fragrance to mask what’s already in the fabric.
A less obvious but genuinely effective option: a diluted alcohol spray. Theater wardrobe professionals have long used vodka or isopropyl alcohol misted onto costumes to neutralize odors between performances, since alcohol breaks down odor-causing bacteria and evaporates without residue. Mix equal parts isopropyl alcohol and water and lightly mist the garment, then let it air dry fully. Test a small area first, and keep the application especially light on silk.
For cigarette smoke, mildew, and other stubborn smells
Cigarette smoke and heavy mildew are in their own category and typically require multiple passes. For smoke, a vinegar pre-soak followed by a hot-water wash at the hottest temperature the care label allows is a strong combination — cotton laundered at 140 degrees Fahrenheit shows 50 percent greater odor reduction compared to cold-water washing. Borax, dissolved in hot water as an overnight soak, handles mildew particularly well, outperforming standard detergents on old, deeply embedded musty odors.
For odors rooted in body soils — the kind Kerr’s research identified as the primary component of the vintage smell — enzyme-based cleaners are the most targeted option. Bio-enzymatic formulas use live enzyme cultures to break down the organic compounds causing the odor rather than covering them, with a 10 percent nuclease enzyme concentration being the strongest available specifically for body odor.
For delicate items that can’t tolerate heat or soaking at all, freezing is a gentle and effective alternative: seal the garment in a plastic bag and freeze it for 48 hours. It kills odor-causing bacteria without any risk to the fabric.
Once everything is fresh, keeping it that way comes down to a few storage habits: a clean, dry space (moisture invites mildew), cedar chips or lavender sachets tucked into the wardrobe, and regular airing out of the closet so odors don’t accumulate between wears. One thing to skip on thrifted pieces is fabric softener — it operates on the same principle as the Febreze in the store. It masks rather than removes, and you’ll be right back where you started before the season is out.
Related on Ethos:
Chemical fragrances, such as those found in products like Febreze used by secondhand stores, can pose various health risks, especially to individuals with sensitivities, allergies, or respiratory conditions. These products often contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs), phthalates, and other chemicals that can act as irritants to the eyes, skin, and throat. Prolonged exposure may exacerbate asthma or lead to other respiratory issues. Some ingredients in fragrance products have been linked to more serious health concerns, including endocrine disruption and potential carcinogenic effects. It’s crucial for consumers to be aware of these risks and consider taking steps to minimize their exposure to these chemicals when bringing secondhand items into their homes.
Yes, there are environmentally friendly alternatives that secondhand stores could consider using to minimize their reliance on chemical deodorizers. These alternatives include using natural odor absorbers like baking soda and activated charcoal, which can effectively neutralize odors without introducing harmful chemicals into the environment. Additionally, stores could invest in air purifiers with HEPA filters to clean the air continuously and use essential oil diffusers to provide a pleasant aroma without the health risks associated with synthetic fragrances. Implementing these alternatives could help stores maintain a fresh environment in a more sustainable and health-conscious manner.
Verifying that a secondhand item has been properly disinfected can be challenging, as visual inspection alone may not reveal the cleanliness of an item. Consumers can start by asking store staff about their disinfection and cleaning processes for incoming merchandise. Stores that use steam cleaning, hot water washing, or professional dry cleaning for appropriate items are likely taking effective steps towards disinfection. Additionally, consumers can look for stores that have clear hygiene standards and practices displayed or communicated. Ultimately, the safest approach for consumers is to assume responsibility for the final disinfection process by cleaning and sanitizing their purchases according to the methods outlined in the article before integrating them into their wardrobes.
