Find the best upholstery cleaners in our guide. Simply vacuuming them once a week will really help, but the occasional clean with a good quality upholstery cleaner will make all the difference, too. Just like carpets, fabrics will absorb smells and cling on to them. So, wiping over lightbulbs every week or two as part of your cleaning routine will keep the room fresher. And when you switch on the lights, they'll warm up that greasy combo and it will smell. But if you're cooking nearby or if you live with a smoker, it's worth knowing that the grease, dust and smoke in the air will cling to every surface and not just upholstery, carpets and curtains, but to lightbulbs, too. Find out all our carpet cleaning tricks and hacks in our dedicated feature. The quickest odour-removing route is to sprinkle it with bicarbonate of soda, leave for an hour, then vacuum. If you've got carpet, it's important to clean them hard once a week. Which means it's probably victim to some lingering odours. The living room is where you, your kids and your pets spend lots of time and, if the room is an open plan space combined with the kitchen and dining area, it's likely you all spend nearly all your waking hours at home there. Replace as soon as the scent fades.Įssential oils: combine with warm water in a spray bottle and spritz just before guests arrive (avoid spritzing over furniture). This works well for freshening microwaves, too – just swap the pan for a bowl.ĭried herbs and flowers: lavender, rose petals, herbs, whether home-grown or shop-bought can be crumbled into a sweet-smelling pot pourri. Lemons: cut up a couple, pop them in a saucepan, cover with water and boil. You've probably already got these ingredients, so if you need fresh air in a hurry, try these quick, natural recipes: Find our pick of the very best air fresheners at the best prices. It's worth saying that air fresheners only mask smells and don't get rid of them, but it never hurts to have one in your hallway. Find more ways to clean up after your dog in our handy feature. It's worth knowing that you can buy activated charcoal (opens in new tab) to supplement dogs' diets, too, to cut down on those gassy emissions. But if that time-consuming task isn't working for you, putting activated charcoal (opens in new tab) near their beds will absorb those odours. Obviously, washing and drying pet beds regularly will keep them smelling fresh – and they'll be more hygienic, too. Leave them overnight, shake them out, and they'll be odour free.
Eggy smell in house how to#
If you're not sure about how to choose the best dehumidifier (opens in new tab), then check out our guide.ĭo your gym trainers or the kids' shoes sit in the hallway adding to the general air of mugginess? A quick fix is to have a tub of bicarbonate of soda handy (that helps with dank air caused by wet coats, too), and to sprinkle it into the shoes when you take them off. The same goes for drying washing – allowing air to circulate or taking steps to remove damp air will make your home smell fresher. Or, you could put a dehumidifier where it can't be seen (there is such a thing as a cupboard dehumidifier (opens in new tab)). Washing and thoroughly drying coats regularly will help, as will opening a window, and whack up the hallway heating up once a day to allow coats to dry. If yours never quite dry out before you head out in the rain again, it's likely that your hallway smells a bit dank. The hallway can be prey to nasty smells that you don't want to inhale when you come home – and that you definitely don't want your guests sniffing when they step over the threshold. (Image credit: Hoover) 4 ways to freshen up a smelly hallway Enough said – other than that we've got tons of house plant help and indoor garden inspo too to help in that area! It's officially our favourite natural deodoriser – sprinkle it on carpets for an hour before vacuuming, place it in a cup in a dank-smelling airing cupboard (pssst! Find more laundry hacks like this in our guide), mix it with white vinegar to wipe out a smelly fridge. Remember the olden days when people used to take their rugs outside and beat them, or hang their duvets out of their bedroom windows? They did it for a good reason – getting rid of house dust (er, that's probably mostly your dead skin, people) cuts down on household smells and allowing damp, dank or sweaty fabrics to dry right out prevents whiffy mould and mildew forming. Pollutants in the air cling to house dust and smells cling to fabrics, so it makes sense to empty bins more than once a week, to mop up spills and cooking mess after eating and to vacuum once a week with one that has a HEPA filter (the best vacuums for pet hair will do the trick).