Rubber Rain-boots: Oh, that smell!!
While its mostly raining in our rainy Seattle, the season of rain-boots is officially here. Like most kids, my son L.O.V.E.S jumping in puddles of water. The bigger the splash, the more fun it is. But my-oh-my, do those new rubber rain-boots stink!! With use, yes, it goes away; but those first few days (weeks), gosh!!
While my little guy doesn't seem to mind the smell, his mummy just can't stand it. So, for mamas out there like myself, I thought of sharing my take on some of the famous tricks on how to get rid of that smell fast:
1. Good old baking-soda:
In my experience, while baking-soda is excellent for many other kinds of odors, it is only an average scorer when it comes to rubber-boots. Placing your boots in a bag with a tablespoon of baking-soda, shaking it, and then setting the tied bag aside for a couple of days is said to take care of the foul smell completely. However, after trying that trick, I would say it takes away only part of the smell, and not all. I tried leaving it for a couple of days more, but that didn't seem to make a difference.
2. Nodor spray:
I am not a huge fan of sprays, but because I am also not a fan of rubber-boot smell, I thought of giving it a shot. In my experience, it masked the smell for some time, but didn't take it away. Money and effort wasted!
(Haven't tried the ghost wash/spray that hunters use to eliminate human smell from clothing and shoes, so can't comment on that. Thought of adding it here, in case you want to give it a shot.)
3. Vinegar:
Mixing one part vinegar with four parts water and scrubbing your rubber rain-boots with a rag dipped in this mixture is said to eliminate the rubber smell. Didn't work for this mama.
4. Sunshine:
If you are lucky and find a couple of sunny days in this season AND manage to convince your little one to wear regular shoes for those couple of days, make full use of them by letting the stinky rain-boots soak some sun. Somehow, just pure sun-light helps eliminate odor. Again, not completely, but enough to not bother this mama. Just make sure the boots stay upside-down while they are out, so pets, squirrels, water, leaves, etc. do not enter them. If you have a peg rack, you could use that, or may be, drive a couple of dowels in the ground.
What tricks do you use to eliminate that foul smell?
