To ask how you get your house to smell nice?

[SomeOtherUser]

Posting here for traffic!

As you all probably know, every house has a certain smell. It's hard to perceive your own home's signature scent, but I suspect ours isn't great. We're not the cleanest or tidiest; we have kids and a cat; we have (not very clean!) carpets; we have a washing machine that insists on smelling like stale bog when running for some reason. I'm making it my mission this spring to get our house smelling nice.

Aside from the obvious (i.e. regular and thorough cleaning), I would welcome any tips to give a house (and laundry) a long-lasting pleasant smell.

Stop overdosing your washing machine with vile fabric softener. Dont use it every time. It makes washing machines stink. Read the handbook & empty the sump. Dry the door seal. Wash out the drawer.

Hire a carpet cleaner.
Wash animals bedding regularly.
Vacuum and dust regularly.
Put cheesy trainers in the washing machine. Chuck out old filthy ones. Store all shoes in a cupboard but not wardrobe. Shoes make wardrobes & clothing stink.
Change bedding regularly. Check pillows and duvets for stains. Use pillow & mattress protectors.
Apply yourself to clearing clutter. Start small, aim for a clutter free home.

*Open windows every day for a short while.
I open my landing window & leave bedroom doors open so the entire upstairs gets aired.

*I open lounge window at front & kitchen at back so air flows right through the house, just for a short while, all year round whatever the weather. Sometimes slightly, other times wide. Try it.

Basically this ^^

Get your carpets cleaned.
Run a service wash to clean your washing machine and ditch laundry liquid. Just use washing powder

There’s no cheat or quick fix - you just need to keep a clean house. Everything else just masks the smell and you end up with artificial smelling dirt.

Exactly.
Using scents to mask the smells is a waste of time. Everything needs to be clean in the first place.

Set a 6 monthly reminder to use a washing machine cleaner, or more often if necessary. Invest in a good pet hair vacuum, we had a Dyson but replaced it with a gtech because it was better and cheaper, Shark are great too. Also invest in a home carpet cleaner and use it once a month, or rent a rug doctor. It makes a huge difference to actually deep clean the carpets. I also open windows to air the home in the morning, and when people are coming over I put on pet odour neutralising scented candles from TK Maxx. Zoflora is your best friend! I damp dust and do all my surfaces with fresh linen or midnight blossom, and mop all my hard floors with it.

You’ve had good advice. I’ll just add that the at home carpet cleaners can sometimes soak the underlay and make matters worse - if you can afford to get the professionals in I would always do that. If doing it yourself choose a week later in spring/summer where you can have all doors and windows open all day to help the carpet fully dry. Sofas and soft furnishings really hold smells - have curtains and sofas cleaned too. I know there’s a real hatred on here for artificial scents but I love the M&S fabric spray - it’s actually lavender which would be the last scent I’d ever pick but this just smells so fresh and clean and not overpowering at all https://www.ocado.com/products/m-s-french-lavender-peony-fabric-freshener-spray/620038011?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=21042714229&utm_content=non-brand&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21039389918&gbraid=0AAAAADi6iHmzUksTmtBMVNHd3cVaJAcBA&gclid=Cj0KCQiA2bTNBhDjARIsAK89wlE0PXpupCFfuvUaIj70A54zgDpLOUwAiLWdW-zm67ZtXhwoMEQMKJYaAqIkEALw_wcB#reviews-title

Ooh also, having washable throws over soft furnishings means you protect them from pet hair, but can also wash them regularly and have a lovely smelling sofa and chairs.

Edit to add: febreeze antibac spray is also great for freshening things up in between washes, and also kills bacteria so isn't just masking (test it somewhere not visible first though!)

It really is just cleaning, washing and fresh air.
Fake scents are just internal air pollution and a bit like putting make up on a dirty face.

Open windows in every room, every single day, for at least an hour. Clean regularly. Don't have pets.

Why do you say ‘don’t use scented cleaning products’?

I think shoes and pets are the worst culprits for a house smelling rank . Sinks and rubbish bins add to it too. I leave the plug in the kitchen sink as food gets trapped and can cause smells . I made my husband leave his work shoes in the garage . I have noticed the house smells so much better . Airing the house everyday makes a difference too.

For washing machine I throw soda crystals in the empty drum and put on a hot cycle I do this every 2 weeks, You may need to do it on a couple of cycles initially if it is pongy.

Shoe cabinet so smelly shoes not lying about- trainers should be washed.

like pp said clean carpets and removable throws for washing.and Room airing.

i find wiping down the skirting boards with diluted pine disinfectant gives a nice fresh subtle scent.

I also think cooking makes a difference. DH cooks a lot of bacon etc and I always feel our house just smells a bit ‘greasy’

I'm assuming and hoping that my flat doesn't smell bad but I don't aim for it to smell nice as such, just not smell at all I suppose!

I don't have pets, fitted carpets or heavy upholstered furniture and have windows open whenever possible; my bedroom window is open a couple of inches 24/7. When cooking I have the window open and extractor fan on.

Very hot water with a squirt of bleach, clean cloths, wash down almost everything. Skirting boards, walls, hard furniture, doors, shelving, window frames.

You dont need bleach for basic cleaning. Hot soapy water does a great job.

Thanks everyone, some nice tips here!

I guess I should have been clearer with "aside from the obvious" - yes, step one will be ensuring that the house is clean throughout.

I've used a Rug Doctor a few times but last time it saturated one of the carpets and it smelled horrific for weeks - I prefer to get them professionally cleaned. However, the main problem is that they are simply very old and need replacing. We've not bothered whilst having small kids (same with replacing our ancient sofa) but we will be doing so in the next couple of years. 😊 We've gotten rid of some of our carpets already and the rest were cleaned recently.

The washing machine pipes may indeed need need attention, a thought that fills me with dread. I'll try hot washes and cleaning agents first and cross my fingers!

To clarify, I am not aiming to mask bad smells nor pump the house full of eye-watering artificial scents, but scent sachets, potpurri and such can be quite nice as an added touch in a clean house. A nice-smelling house is not simply a house devoid of any scent, in my opinion - it's usually a fresh-smelling house with some added light scents.

Dirt and grease smell. Cleaning is the basic solution.

Run washing machine empty on hottest wash possible with a hefty glug of bleach. Pull out and clean the detergent tray and its housing with bleach. Clean out washing machine filter.

Clean all your carpets with a Rug Doctor machine and use some of their solution for pet smells. Or throw out carpets and replace with hard floors/vinyl. Check (smell) your curtains too, they may need washing or dry cleaning, especially if you have curtains in a room which is open plan to the kitchen.

Deep clean kitchen including oven, wash down all walls and cupboards inside and out (including tops) with a strong detergent (I find Flash liquid best).

Go through all drawers and wardrobes, clean them inside, make sure all clothes in them are clean, with no festering pockets of smelly socks etc. Take the opportunity to have a good clear-out of outgrown/worn out clothes.

Whenever practical, leave windows cracked open on ventilate setting, if it's warm, open them wide.

Is zoflora a good idea. My DD got some once and I threw it away with all the warnings on it.

I don't recommend getting rid of your pets, but I noticed a huge difference in how my house smelt after my dog passed away. Unfortunately animals (even clean, well groomed ones) are a bit smelly. Other than that, if you want your house to smell nice, you have to keep it clean and air it out daily with open windows. Pay particular attention to soft furnishings, as they hold on to smells.

I agree with pp: fesh air. There is no substitute for it.
Make sure your window ventilators are kept open and open windows as much as possible.

Ooh, I've never thought of pushing extractor fan grilles in the dishwasher! Are they all dishwasher safe? they don't buckle or anything? I wash mine by hand but despite a few changes of water there's always a faint whiff of grease on them even after cleaning.

Just to note, there are fewer choices now when it comes to washing powder and we've had to switch to the liqui tab things for colour fast stuff. Since then I've noticed our washing machine gets gunked up easier.

I hate that washing detergent manufacturers are switching over to liquid gradually, it creates so much more environmental waste in those plastic bottles. How many millions of those are thrown out every year now, instead of cardboard boxes from powder (which you get so many more washes out of than a bottleo f liquid)

I don't use softener either.

Your house must always have a faint smell of bleach. And surely you risk discolouring your furniture/ paintwork.

Apart from the obvious keeping a clean house and open windows regularly I like having fresh flowers in the house, at this time of year we always have daffodils in a vase on the sideboard in the hallway and you get a whiff of them every time you walk through the house which is lovely. I also have nice solid soaps in the bathrooms because they scent the room nicely. The only 'room' that has diffuser is the cloakroom because it's full of the husband and teenagers' smelly trainers and something is needed to disguise that smell.

A clean house and regular airing are the best solutions.

I don't like artificial, chemical type home fragrances. I sometimes buy natural ingredients wax melts but generally use some pure essential oils if I want to add a scent to our home.

I also recommend having a dehumidifier in whatever room you tend to dry clothes in. Helps get the drier quicker and avoid musty smells and condensation etc.

I must’ve done it 100s of times and they’ve been fine. I tried hand washing them and it doesn’t work half as well.