Everyone wants a fresh, pleasant smell in their home. The scent of a house is often the first thing we notice when we walk in the door – whether it’s good or bad! Even clean, tidy homes can sometimes start to smell a little stale or unpleasant. Fortunately, there are plenty of hacks to keep your house smelling fresh all the time.
1. Scented Cleaning Products
The first step to having a pleasant-smelling home is a regular cleaning schedule. Many cleaning products are scented, so it’s easy to choose a scent you like, and your house will smell pleasant after you’ve finished cleaning.
If you use a DIY cleaning product that contains vinegar, you might find the scent of vinegar somewhat overpowering after you’ve cleaned. If so, try adding fifteen to twenty drops of a scented essential oil to the cleaning mixture.
Related : 20 Habits of Women Who Have Clean Homes
2. Remove Bad Odors
Blocked drains, old food in the refrigerator, and smelly carpets can all contribute to an otherwise clean and tidy house smelling unpleasant. There are a few things you can do to prevent this:
- Take out the trash regularly. An overflowing garbage can will make a kitchen look and smell unpleasant. Try storing recycling outside, if you can.
- Use a drain cleaner to get rid of bad smells. If you don’t want to use a commercial drain cleaner, there are DIY products that you can make yourself.
- Regularly empty your fridge of out-of-date foods. It’s surprisingly easy to lose track of what we have in there! If you notice an unpleasant smell every time you open the fridge door, it’s probably time to clean out your refrigerator. This can go a long way to making a kitchen smell fresh.
- Use a mixture of baking soda and a few drops of essential oil on your carpets to get rid of bad scents. Let it sit for a few hours. To quickly refresh carpet, sprinkle baking soda on rugs or carpets before vacuuming.
3. Use Natural Air Fresheners
There are plenty of commercial air fresheners available. There are basic scented sprays, as well as plug-in options that gently release scent around your home.
However, some people don’t want to spray unnecessary chemicals around their homes. These air fresheners can also be problematic for those with allergies or breathing problems.
Fortunately, there are plenty of DIY alternatives available.
A good way of getting rid of unpleasant kitchen smells (say you’ve been cooking fish, for example) is to use a Simmering Potpourri recipe.
You can add a combination of dried fruits, herbs, or even a few drops of essential oils to a pan of water, and let it simmer on the stove. This fills your house with a crisp, refreshing scent of your choice, and there are a huge variety of recipes to choose from.
Related : Baseboard Cleaning Hacks
4. Using Plants and Flowers
One of the simplest ways to quickly freshen up your home is to add a bouquet of freshly cut herbs or flowers. House plants can also make a home smell fresher, and are known to purify the air. A vase of flowers also makes a pleasant addition to a room’s décor.
For a more traditional way of freshening pantries and cupboards, try using a Pomander Ball. This is a dried, cured orange, studded with cloves and hung up.
5. Scented Candles and/or Reed Diffusers
Scented candles are another popular aromatherapy choice. A milder alternative to chemical sprays and plug-ins, scented candles will fit in well with a room’s décor, and provide a gentle, continual pleasant scent. There are a huge variety of scents and sizes to choose from, and it’s very easy to choose a candle that goes well with the room.
A scented candle, somewhat like a roaring fireplace, gives a room a cozy feel. However, you can still use your candles during the warmer months. Lights scents, such as citrus and florals, work well in the summer and spring, whereas spicy and woody scents are perfect for winter. Regularly changing the scents you use means that you and your family won’t get used to the smell of your house, and guests will always be pleasantly surprised.
If you have small children, candles or wax melts may not be the best idea. You can also use reed diffusers, which work by placing long wooden sticks, or “reeds” in a small pot of scented oil. The oil creeps up the reeds, infusing the room with a pleasant scent.
Like scented candles, there are a variety of scents and designs available. While reed diffusers are often not as vibrantly scented as candles, they still provide a pleasant scent to a room.
Related : 10 Easy Steps to a Clean Bathroom
6. Air Out the House Regularly
The air in a house can quickly become stale, trapping odors. This is especially true in the cold winter months, when we’re less inclined to keep windows open.
A quick way of freshening up a house is simply to open the windows. Leave the windows open for a few hours to let in fresh, clean air. This is a good way to get rid of burning smells from the kitchen, as well as lingering cooking smells.
Farah Zeb is a mother of five, including two children with special needs. She shares practical parenting tips and resources to help other families navigate daily challenges and create supportive, nurturing environments.
