7 Easy Ways to Eliminate Odors at Home
Ever had that lingering odor even after mopping, cleaning, and scrubbing? It’s normal in an everyday household where you always cook or make a mess. Fortunately, you can remove the odor at home using these easy tricks.
7 Easy Ways to Eliminate Odors at Home
Each part of your house needs a different approach to cleaning. To make the most out of your time cleaning, you should know the tips and tricks for cleaning your home to get rid of any bad odors efficiently.
Refrigerator
The refrigerator houses your food and sometimes it stays there for too long. Some foods also have a distinct smell to them that can stick to the refrigerator for a long time like the smell of a fish.
Here’s how you can eliminate odor from your refrigerator:
Clean out the shelves and drawers of the refrigerator.
Scrub all the shelves with a mixture of warm water and baking soda.
Wipe it off with a mixture of white vinegar and warm water.
If you want to prevent odor from building up inside your refrigerator, keep a box of baking soda open on a shelf in the back of the fridge and on the freezer too. Replace it monthly to keep it working.
You can also soak a couple of cotton balls in vanilla extract and place them on the back of your refrigerator. Remember to put it on a small plate to avoid stains.
Dishwasher
If you’re not cleaning your dishwasher once a month, then you better start doing so. Your dishwasher can house harmful bacteria and dirt. Dishwashers get it from pieces of food that accumulate in the filter and cause odor over time.
Here’s how you can get rid of the odor from your dishwasher:
Remove all food particles from the bottom of the machine.
Also, remove the filter and rinse it.
Pour two cups of distilled white vinegar into the machine.
Run the machine in hot water cycle.
Pause the cycle around the 15-20 minutes mark to let the mixture break down any detergent residue.
Finish the cycle.
Microwave
You should consider remodeling your kitchen so your microwave doesn’t get exposed to dirt and gunk too much. The microwave is where you mostly heat or cook your food so it should not always have a lingering odor on it.
You can remove any smell on your microwave by boiling one quart of water with lemon slices for a couple of minutes. Wipe off any dirt, gunk, or food particles in your microwave and let the door open to air it out.
Toilet
The toilet should always be clean and odor-free. Clean your toilet with a toilet bowl cleaner so it looks clean and shiny. Use some toilet-specific cleaning products to get rid of smells and stains.
Afterward, pour ½ cup of bleach into a bucket of water and clean the toilet using the mixture. Your toilet should smell good and look good. Use some toilet freshener gel to add a pleasant fragrance.
Mattress
A mattress can start to smell after a few years of use. It may be time to change it or use some traditional method to save you some money. Here’s how you can keep your old mattress fresh:
Sprinkle baking soda on the mattress. Let it sit for 30 minutes to an hour and vacuum it up. You can also use fabric spray to add a pleasant odor.
Closet
The closet can house odor because it traps moisture in such a close space. If you can, try opening your closet from time to time and do a thorough cleaning.
Use closet dehumidifiers that will help absorb moisture from the air so your closet won’t produce a smell. If your closet smells it will also give its smell to your clothes.
Carpet
Among the things on your house, the carpet will absorb odor the most. Remove the smell by sprinkling baking soda all over the carpet. Let it sit for a couple of hours and then vacuum.
Your carpet should smell good after. Have your carpet clean or use some carpet cleaning products to keep your carpet looking new and smelling fresh.
Conclusion
These are some of the easiest ways you can keep odor away from your home. No one wants to live in a house that has a foul smell. When in doubt, baking soda and vinegar are your friends for driving away smell.
Guest Contributor: Hayley Banks