onlygirlsmom, have you dried the shirts in a dryer with the deodorant odor still in them? If so, the dryer heat may have 'baked' it in, making it very difficult to remove. If a shirt comes out of the wash still odorous, I would recommend hanging it to dry on a plastic hanger. It could be even more effective to hang it to dry outside in the fresh air, weather permitting. Then you can attack the odor when it's washed again without the odor having been 'baked' in. Heloise recommends pouring ammonia on the shirts' underarms, then letting them dry before washing. The main thing that has helped me when I've washed stinky clothes for guys has been to soak them in the washer in the hottest water appropriate for the fabric, along with the regular dosage of detergent plus a heaping cup of baking soda (added to the washer drum before adding laundry). I've ordinarily soaked them overnight by pausing the washer, then re-starting the washer to finish the wash cycle the next day. Using white vinegar for fabric softener seems to help, too.

Thanks to everyone who posted replies! I live in an area with very hard water, and have made my own laundry soap a few times, using Fels Naptha, Borax & Arm & Hammer washing soda. We replaced our TL Maytag (which was working, but very annoying in that it wanted to take a walk around the laundry room with increasing frequency) with a Whirlpool FL machine a couple of years ago. I had plenty of regrets with this machine from the beginning, but that's another topic! I originally used a store bought detergent (probably All free & Clear?) and then decided to make my own detergent again. It was sooo cheap, by golly! And though it was very gradual, I noticed in the last few months that all my clothes and towels were getting dingier than ever. I also noticed that sweat smells remained after washing, resulting in clothes being tossed out. To top it all off, my washer started to stink (along with my clothes and especially towels) and I have mildew or mold on the rubber gasket (eew!). I eventually switched back to a store-bought detergent from Costco, but the damage to my family's clothes is done. I have to use a bunch of spray (Shout) to pre-treat any and all stains if I want to have any hope of getting them out. I really couldn't figure out why; I knew that hard water was a large part of the problem, but I never bothered to research it until now. I am really sick of my clothing and linens looking old and tired long before their time. Anyway, I appreciate everyone taking the time to post this enlightening info- thanks a bunch!

Three decades ago when liquid soap for home use was "new", I would save bar soap slivers and small hotel soaps and make them into liquid hand soap. Now it's less expensive, and less mess, to purchase gallon jugs of liquid soap (Sam's Club and Big Lots are good sources). For foam dispensers I use a 1:3 mixture of liquid soap and water, so we use all foam dispensers for even more savings. The recipe I used is very similar.... Homemade Hand Soap 11 c. water 1 bar soap (or enough slivers to equal the same amount) 1 T. glycerin optional - 10 drops essential oil Grate soap on a box grater, microplane, or in a food processor. Bring 4 cups water to a boil. Add grated soap and stir to a boil. Add grated soap and stir until it melts. Add glycerin. Add remaining water. Once cooled, add essential oils. Let mixture sit overnight. Place 2-cups (at a time) in a blender. Mix well. If you want thicker add 2 more T. glycerin and allow to sit for a few hours. To use in a foam pump dispenser, add 1/4 c. homemade liquid soap and water to fill the bottle. You can add tea tree oil or grapefruit seed extract, or other essential oils like Four Thieves for additional anti-bacterial protection. HOMEMADE BODY WASH 1 c. Suave Shampoo ("flavor" of choice) 1/2 c. water 3 T. table salt or Epsom salts Whisk until frothy. \-Grainlady

Making soap from fats and lye is a very rewarding, but very exacting, process, Zeke. There are hundreds of recipes, but you should start off with a very basic one. Read, read, read... the instructions and warnings about the lye and proper utensils before you start. You should understand every step BEFORE you start making your first batch. You need all the containers, thermometers, etc. gathered before you start. Don't allow any children or pets around you as the lye can badly burn! Allow yourself a whole afternoon (preferably a whole day!) for your first batch. Your public library will have books on basic soapmaking. Additionally, there are many, many sites on the Internet with recipes. There used to be (and probably still is) a basic recipe on the Red Devil Lye container! Here is a link to one basic recipe... Good luck and let us know how it goes! Here is a link that might be useful: Basic Recipe at the Luxury Lane Site