Problem Odours?

The Japanese Maple looks lovely when the sun shines through it at this time of year


Today I spent unpacking from the weekend, tidying up and catching up with the laundry. My walking boots got wet and muddy on Sunday and sat festering in a bag for two nights. When I finally got around to unpacking them, they literally stank the place out! I took them outside and washed them off thoroughly, but the lining still smelt rank. I tried spraying Febreze in them. Big mistake. Now they smelt even worse, a sickly sweetness overlying the mustiness.

A quick trawl of the internet came up with a few tips: I sprinkled some bicarbonate of soda inside and left it in there while the boots hung out on the line in the sunshine. Still smelly. I hoovered them out and tried putting a few drops of tea tree oil on tea bags and left two of these in each boot for a few hours. Slight improvement. I made up a spray of surgical spirit and distilled white vinegar and used that to spray the inside. Again, a slight improvement, although the vinegar smell lingers. Next off came half a lemon in each boot, left overnight. To be honest, I still don't really want them in the house. The final suggestion, which I haven't tried yet, is to seal them in a plastic bag and leave them in a freezer overnight. Our freezer is tiny and generally crammed full, but due for defrosting and cleaning soon so I might try this once I've used up all the provisions.

If you know a sure-fire cure for smelly boots (short of burning them), please don't hesitate to fill in the comments box to let me know!