- Maintain ventilation while cooking to prevent food odors, and wash dirty dishes immediately to prevent odors from spreading.
- Always make sure to dry towels completely after use to prevent odors.
- Open windows for 30 minutes a day to let in fresh air to keep odors away.
I Cleaned The House But I Still Felt Embarrassed
Reha was very proud of her clean house. The floor was shining, the curtains were shining. Everything looked nice and clean in its place. But then one day her friend Faryal came.
Faryal's nose wrinkled as the door opened.
Faryal immediately said, "Reha, everything looks clean, but there's a strange smell coming from inside!"
Reha felt embarrassed.
For the first time, she thought - "Is it enough for a house to look clean? Or is it also important to smell good?"
That same night, Reha looked back at her routine.
Wet towels, dishes left overnight, closed windows, dirty sheets from the pet cat and old shoes.
All these were small habits that together were making her clean house stink.
From the next day, she not only cleaned but also started paying attention to the "smell".
Now whenever someone comes, all he says is:
"How does your house smell!"
Reha started to be happy to hear this.
Have you also lost the smell of your house like Reha?
Let's know the six habits that are silently creating bad odors in your house, and their easy solutions.
The real cause of everyday odors in the home is often the little habits we don’t pay attention to. If you’re bothered by such smells, take a look at the reasons below — you might be part of one of them.
Keep reading to learn more about these six common but powerful habits that can affect the smell of your home, as well as get some helpful tips that will help you reduce the unpleasant odors emanating from your space.
- Robin Murphy is the president of Maid Brigade.
- Steve Evans is the owner of Memphis Maids.
Not Cleaning Pet Beds
Changing and washing your bed sheets is a daily habit, but have you ever considered that your pet’s bedding deserves the same attention?
“Pet bedding absorbs odors from their fur, saliva, and outdoor activities, which over time become like a stinky sponge and spread their scent throughout the room,” says Robin Murphy, president of Med Brigade.
Make it a habit to wash your pet’s bedding at the same time as you wash your sheets and pillows, so their sleeping space stays fresh and smelling fresh all the time.”
Leaving Dishes in the Sink Too Long
It often seems like the dishes will be done the next morning, especially when there’s no one to clean. But a few days of dirty dishes can leave your kitchen and home smelling strange and unpleasant.
“Food particles left on wet dishes become a buffet for bacteria, which releases a sour, musty smell that can leave your kitchen smelling fresher than you might think,” Murphy explains.
The sooner you clean your dishes, the better it is for you to keep your kitchen a little more organized and avoid unnecessary odors.
Cooking Without Ventilation
Whether you cook three meals a day or turn on the stove a few times a week, you know how powerful the smell of cooking can be—whether pleasant or unpleasant. That’s why it’s important to have proper ventilation in your home so that cooking smells don’t linger, Murphy advises. After all, cooking smells are so strong that they can permeate your entire home.
"If your home isn't properly ventilated, food smells can linger in walls, cupboards and soft furnishings like your sofa or cushions - so the smell of food you made on Monday could linger in your cushions until Thursday" she says.
Spicy foods in particular can linger. That's why it's important to open windows or turn on an exhaust fan after cooking. Otherwise, your home will become a 'kitchen cabin'. And if guests arrive unannounced, the smell of cooking in your home can be immediately noticeable, which can sometimes be embarrassing.
Not Letting Wet Towels Dry
We’ve all smelled wet towels at some point, and we know how unpleasant they can be. Not only is the smell bad, but these damp towels also attract mold and bacteria due to their moisture, as Murphy explains.
Don’t forget to dry yourself off thoroughly before hanging your towels up again in the bathroom. This little act not only keeps your towels from getting wet, but it also keeps your bathroom smelling fresh.
Not Allowing for Proper Airflow
Steve Evans, owner of Memphis Maids, explains that when there is poor airflow in a home, it starts to absorb all the odors around it, such as sweat, food odors, and other unpleasant odors, and then releases them outside.
Luckily, the solution is simple — Evans recommends opening the windows in every room in the house for 30 minutes a day to help reduce any odors. A little fresh air can do wonders for a home’s air quality.
Smoking Inside of the House
Smoking indoors leaves an odor that is not only unpleasant for others but also difficult to remove.
Evans says that nicotine is absorbed into walls and furniture in a way that normal cleaning won't remove—you'll need a professional cleaning service to remove the odor.
It's best to smoke outside so that the walls and furniture can retain their original scent and freshness.
When buying secondhand furniture for your home, it's wise to check before you buy whether it came from a smoking home. Because a chair that looks nice in a picture online could actually end up in your living room and cause a nuisance—especially if you're not used to the smell of smoke.