I'm getting back into packing now that my son is old enough and showing some interest. I really haven't done any real trips since Boyscouts. My dad was active in the troop. Anyway... He gave me his old external frame Jansport. It's very comfortable and I plan to use it for a while. The only problem is that he put it in an oversized garbage bag and sealed it up for a couple years. It has a "sour" smell to it that gets worse with humidity. I don't want my gear (or myself) to smell like this. How can I get that smell out? Could I take it off the frame and wash it in the machine on delicate? What else can I do?

Well, if it comes off the frame easily I don't see why washing would hurt it. I'd use cold water and the gentle cycle and let it air dry.

You might just spray it with some Febreze Fabric refreshener and odor remover. That stuff works pretty good.

Or you could put it in a new plastic bag with a box of baking soda for a few days to see how that works. Baking soda works pretty good at sucking the nasty smells out of a lot of things. I think I'd try this first and work my way to washing as a last resort since it's an older bag.

But I've never had to deal with that problem, so others here may have better advice.

You should be able to remove the bag from frame and try to soak it--perhaps in baking soda or vinegar or bleach or...

My fear is that sour smell is failing urethane coating on the pack cloth. It's a common problem in old waterproof gear. If the surface feels sticky or if it's separating or sloughing off, the bag may be shot.

Good luck!

I would try airing it out for a bit and if that doesn't succeed, hand wash it gently. The waterproof coating is probably shot, but the bag can still be used- after all, when you pull off the coating, it will be slightly lighter and jsut as strong.

If the bag ends up being shot, you can still use the frame and suspension. All you need to do is either buy a bunch of large stuff sacks, or sew your own, and attach them to the frame.

I think Rick was right on the money about it being the urethane coating. It actually did have sort of a sticky feeling to it. Here's the GOOD NEWS... I figured I didn't have much to lose and considering that it was sticky... after work today I took it off the frame and washed it in the front loader on delicate using Febreeze enhanced laundry detergent. I put it back on the frame and it's already dried out. The smell is gone. It was surely the coating on the interior of the pack. After the wash, the coating inside was flaking off. I took the shop vac and pulled most of the loose stuff off. The fabric itself is just fine. I'll check it again in a few days to see if the smell returns but I think I got it.I'm not concerned about it not being waterproof. I was plannign to get a rain cover anyway. Out of curiousity, I checked out the popular web auction site and found the exact samepack up for auction for $65. It's listed as a "Professional" model.

Off topic but you might not want to rely on a external pack cover to keep things dry. A lot of rainwater can go down your back also. I would line the inside of the pack with a plastic bag (contractors bags and trash compacter bags work best because they are thicker)to keep everything nice and dry, even from your own sweat or dropping the pack in that stream you are trying to cross.

To reinforce what OldScout said, making a pack out of waterproof fabric doesn't make for a waterproof pack. There are too many ways for water to get in. A pack cover doesn't really do what it is supposed to do, either, because it necessarily has a huge hole that faces your back.

A waterproof liner for a pack is the most sensible solution, and generally can be done cheaply in terms of both cost and weight. Trash compactor bags are quite popular for this. You can find them in the same section with leaf bags and other trash bags.

Just avoid scented bags--rather difficult these days with trash compactor bags. If you can't find unscented ones, you can get contractor trash bags (also of 2 mil plastic) and trim them to the size of your pack.