Some smells can persist in the home. Despite intense ventilation, a musty smell spreads that does not want to disappear. We show you what tips you can use to prevent unpleasant odours from getting stuck and how to remove bad odours.
1. Remove bad odours as quickly as possible
The longer you take time to neutralize odours, the longer they have the opportunity to get deeply stuck in textiles, walls or even furniture.
Therefore, be sure to ventilate regularly and act quickly in case of strong odour development.
In general, you should first use classic cleaning tipsbefore using special home remedies to remove odours. In many cases, unpleasant smells are quickly a thing of the past if you follow these tips:
- Air at least 2 times (if you are present best 4 times) a day.
- Suck dust regularly (depending on usage, this makes sense every 2 days)
- Wipe all smooth floors at least every 2 weeks. If you have pets, cleaning should take place about 2 times a week.
- Clean the windows and do not forget to wipe the frames (this is especially true in the kitchen, as it is easy to deposit leftover fat there).
- Bring the garbage outside and don’t leave a bag in front of you for days in the apartment. Especially meat or fish residues as well as spoiled fruits and vegetables provide a strong smell.
- Wipe the fridge with vinegar when odour develops. In this way, the glass surfaces disinfect at the same time.
Unfortunately, a rotten, biting or musty smell can’t always be avoided even if you use these tips. However, you should always proceed in turn and not start putting up bowls with cat litter if the soil has not been freshly wiped beforehand.
2. Home remedies that you can use to remove odours
Good to know: Humans have a much finer sense of smell than previously thought. According to one study, we are able to detect more than a trillion different scents, which unfortunately also brings disadvantages when it comes to bad odours.
There are different methods to eliminate odors. However, you should always be concerned with neutralising odours and not just covering them up with other means in the short term..
Spraying perfumes, putting up flowers or lighting scented candles is only useful as an immediate and temporary measure if you are expecting a visit and do not have time for a comprehensive cleaning campaign or no longer want to deal with this topic.
In the following sections, we will introduce you to various ideas that are best suited to neutralize odours.
2.1. Cat litter, salt and rice – how to bind odours
Cat litter is not only a sensible option when it comes to catching cat urine and removing the smell.
In general, cat litter binds a lot of water and is thus also able to capture odours in the room air.
However, it is important that you distribute a few bowls of cat litter in the apartment and change them regularly (about once a week).
Alternatively, you can put cat litter in a sock and use the stuffed stocking in fancy shoes to tie the sweat smell. You can also achieve a similarly good effect with salt and rice,as both natural substances bind water and also odours.
Tip: Take a look at the different cat litter varieties. Some variants are also suitable as decorative elements if you cleverly arrange the fine stones.
How to get rid of cat urine smells
2.2. Removing odours from textiles
The faster you act, the easier it is to remove unpleasant odours.
Baking powder and soda have proven to be excellent odour removers for textiles.
However, you should first test the tolerability (at least if you use it with water) in inconspicuous places, as both have a slightly bleaching effect.
This allows you to remove odours even if it needs to work without washing.
Even with a strong garlic smell or nicotine smell after a celebration, a packet of baking powder can work wonders.
It is best to put this with the garment in a sack, shake it neatly, knot it and wait for a few hours.
Afterwards, shake off the baking powder residue and the smell should be gone.
If you have sat by a campfire for a long time, so that a smell of fire has settled in the jacket, it makes sense, alternatively to this method, to spray the jacket with a mixture of vinegar and water and to dry in the fresh air.
2.3. Clean with citric acid
Next time you clean the bathroom, use a little citric acid. 2 to 3 tablespoons are sufficient for about one liter of cold water.
In this way, you disinfect the surfaces by the way and the pleasant lemony fragrance is preserved for a long time.
Alternatively, you can use vinegar. However, the smell is perceived by many people as rather unpleasant.
Citric acid is also particularly suitable for cleaning stinky drains. To do this, add 2 to 3 tablespoons directly into the drain and rinse with a little water. After a period of several hours, rinse the drain thoroughly with water.
3. Create your own fragrance
If you want to not only remove odours, but at the same time provide a pleasant fragrance in the room, you do not have to resort to artificially produced fragrances. With a few herbs or aromatic oils you can easily provide a pleasant fragrance in the house.
Cook some of your favorite spices in the water bath for a few minutes, then put them in a bowl of oil.
In this way, the fragrance slowly spreads out in your apartment.
Carnations and oranges are suitable during the Christmas season, while you can make a rather fresh fragrance with thyme or mint.
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