How to Eliminate Foul Apartment Odors
How to Eliminate Foul Apartment Odors
The sense of smell may be one of the most powerful tools you possess. Bad smells can make life miserable. Scents which linger may come from cooking, pets, dirty diapers, or even your neighbor. Learn how to eliminate foul apartment odors with natural, yet effective weapons.
Blood Hound Nose
The first step is to discover, if possible, what is causing the stench. Think of all the places in your home that the culprit could be lurking. In many cases, it is a simple process to rid your home of the foul smell. Try checking in the most obvious places first.
- Refrigerator
- Trash Bin
- Pet Bedding Area
- Kitchen Drain or Disposal
Obvious Apartment Odors
You probably know or at least have an idea of where the stink originates. Fried fish can linger for days. Litter boxes quickly become overwhelming because cat urine contains a high percentage of ammonia. If you smoke in your apartment, tar accumulates on your walls. Odors then stick to the tar. Consider lighting up outside once you have cleaned the tar off the walls, floors, and counters.
Never Let Go
Even if you are a nonsmoker, you should clean your walls periodically. The kitchen and bathroom are two of the worst places for lingering smells. Grease from cooking traps smells. Steam from showering softens paint and allows aromas to penetrate and settle in. The ideal method is to include wall cleaning on a monthly basis at least in these two rooms.
Other Odor Traps
Curtains can also trap and hold bad odors. Add curtain and bed linen to your monthly to-do list. Don’t forget to run your shower curtain through a hot wash cycle with bleach or vinegar during the process. This eliminates water stains, mineral build-up, and smells. Carpets are another source of stinky scents. Shampooing your carpets can make your entire house smell spring fresh.
The Smell of Danger
There are a handful of smells which could signal dangers from immediate to long term. Keep these in mind when sniffing out the stench. It is helpful to create a list of places to investigate and check them off one by one.
- Sulfur or Spoiled Eggs can indicate a natural gas leak.
- Mold and Mildew can trigger and exacerbate breathing issues.
- Burning wires have been described as smelling fishy.
There are numerous ways to combat bad smells in your apartment. You can create a cleaning recipe book and take the green route. There are also many efficient commercially made products. Keep in mind that most store-bought options can be triggers for individuals suffering from breathing issues. Certain naturally made cleans can also be triggers.
Clean & Simple
You can make a simple all-purpose cleaner by combining equal parts of distilled vinegar and water. Add half as much lemon juice for an extra cleaning boost. You can drop in a bit of essential oil to replace bad scents with pleasant aromatics. Pour all ingredients into a clean spray bottle. None of the first three ingredients are harmful. Be careful as some essential oils can be toxic. Happy hunting.