DS's friends say our house smells

[fruitstick]

I know it does but I'm mortified. DS's friends are also quite a bit wealthier than us with bigger houses etc but I don't want DS to feel he can't bring people round.

We keep the house clean but have a dog and two cats. The cats have litter trays upstairs which don't help.

I blame our hallway as no fucker puts their shoes away (DS & DH) and there are loads of coats (mainly DH's).

I have the next week off work so was planning on a big clean up anyway.

What do I need to be doing.

I know the dog on the sofa means we need to wash the cushions more regularly than we do. I'm not as religious about cleaning as I could be.

But tell me what I need to be doing.

Litter boxes outside. Animals too if possible.

I'm so sorry about your eldest don; if I was in your situation, I don't think I could ever find the motivation to do anything again, least of all clean my house. I really hope you've got a lot of support.

I've got a dog and although I'm constantly vacuuming & grooming him (& he is not allowed on furniture or upstairs), I've started to notice a smell in my sitting room which I've located to my shag-pile rug & it just stinks of dogs! So, I'm about to hire a carpet cleaner to give it a good shampoo. I've also started shampooing my dog Ince a week too. Try not to get too worried about it, you've got a lot more on your mind, I'm sure..

Every now and again I feel like my house smells a bit stale if we don’t keep on top of things. The things that make a difference for me include having the windows open as often as possible, giving the dog a really good wash and brush, washing sofa cushion covers, sprinkling bicarb all over rugs and leaving for a while before vacuuming (I think it deodorises) and mopping all the floors. Also someone else earlier in the thread mentioned coats - definitely wash them more often! Another thing I found that made a big difference was washing the front door and then using furniture polish on it - it creates a pleasant smell as you walk in!

Indoor litter trays. The house will smell. End of.

I don't have dogs but I do have three cats.
I do have litter trays but really they are for emergency use only, as the cats are inside/outside cats,
Litter trays can really honk.
I don't have a cat flap but do have a designated window that's usually open - luckily I live in a safe rural area with observant neighbours, I'm not sure how practical that would be in an urban area.
Most of the day I leave plenty of windows open to air the flat.
Opening windows regularly is so important with pets, just to get the air flowing.
Piles of shoes by the door probably aren't helping, and coats that have got wet and just hung up in a crowded space will probably smell a bit aswell.
Lidded storage boxes are great for shoes, particularly stinky trainers.
I agree with blankets on the sofa that are washed regularly.
And a good hoover - Shark are brilliant for pet hair.

Gosh, people here can be awful haha.

I have three cats and use Ever Clean litter. It is the best, and I've tried them all!!!

I thoroughly scoop every clump twice a day and then a full change weekly.

I have an air purifier on 24/7 in the utility room where the litter tray is kept. I also have a robovac.

My house CAN get whiffy if I don't vacuum or change the litter tray regularly enough.

But the biggest tip I have is get a Lampe Berger. They neutralise all the smells.

So do a thorough clean, get into a good routine and light the lamp twice a day.
That should honestly fix your problems.

But I will say, everyone's house smells to me. Literally everyone. People just aren't used to smells that aren't their own.

Don't stress :)

I have a dog and 2 cats. Before anyone comes round, I fabreeze everywhere.
Change the bin even if it's part way full.
It's surprising what our noses get used to. So, go out for a bit and when you come in, sniff every room. Find those smells.
The littler tray is the absolute worst. You can never get used to litter tray smells imo. My cat(s) only use one if they have stay in (injury etc) and I hate it. I bet that's the main culprit.

I recommend Cats Best cat litter. You can remove the clotted bits straight away and I find there’s virtually no odour.
Personally I don’t like the use of “freshness” sprays etc. to me they only mask (maybe) but also emphasise the fact that there’s something to mask, making the situation worse.

There's a super clumping litter you can get delivered every month called natursan. Scoop it religiously and it really doesn't smell. Our boys helpfully shout to announce they require service which is immediately provided for fear of their wrath.

Your husband is just going to have to start being more reasonable I'm afraid. If his stuff is making the house smell and his answer is simply no, it's not ok. Can you explain to him the horrible situation it is causing your son?

I’d be proud to be as clean as a cat! They are scrupulously clean and fragrant.
Re: febreeze, plug ins etc-BAD idea. They are full of unnecessary chemicals which could poison your kitties.
I have the same issue re smelly house. In mine it’s the combo of lingering cooking smells and DH’s trainers. As many natural substances are harmful to cats inc lots of veg, fruit and essential oils I’m wary of using anything to perfume the house.

Wow it’s amazing what gets turned into a hating dogs thread on mn. I think the problem isn’t your house but your sons friends. When I was a child I was taken by my mother to a lot of homes some smelt too sweet some smelt musky others had just cooked so smelt of food some had animals, some had older relatives that had to be helped in a direction that caused smells. I never mentioned that some were not nice smells as it is rude. Either the children mentioned have been dragged up with little parenting or they’re jealous of your son and want to make him feel awkward. You probably already know which. I don’t think it’s your home that’s the problem here.

Ah OP that’s hard, I can see why this must be very hurtful to hear. Just wait until DS’s friends are older and have their own homes and maybe they’ll understand how hard it is to have them smelling like a bed of roses everyday!

Sorry if this is a basic tip but I’ve found having a spray mop an amazing little investment if you have wood floors. We’ve got wood floors all downstairs and I buy the Method ready mixed floor cleaner and give it a good wipe and spray down every other day. It’s a lovely smell and quite strong too.

Catsan for the litter tray, it's more expensive to buy but lasts longer so works out cheaper. Remove poop asap with a scoop and totally empty the tray of litter every 3 days minimum(if you leave it any longer the ammonia in the wee gets really pungent).

Every time you empty it soak the tray for ten min with boiling water and Zoflora type disinfectant (I use the cheaper Aldi version which is brilliant). Empty down the loo when the water has cooled enough then rinse with clean water before refilling with litter.

I swear this works, the disinfectant makes the house smell nice and whole routine only takes 5 min.

If the cats are weeing outside the tray you need to clean very thoroughly with super hot water then neutralise the area with white vinegar or similar or they will keep returning to wee there. It's possible to get on top of this but you have to be very thorough and persistent, I used to have a cat who would wee behind the sofa, was a nightmare!!

Empty bins regularly especially if you have takeaways - get a bottle of that upholstery cleaner with the brush in it - smells good - freshens up the sofa. Wash floor with nice lavender floor cleaner

Definitely go for the throws on sofas, dunelm have some nice ones. I’ve also seen a sofa cleaning hack, where you get a pan lid and cover it with a microfiber cloth, spray the cloth with some nice smelling product and wipe it over the sofa. You might need to google it to get the idea.

Other sources of pet smell could be the dander/dust of the animals built up in places you don’t normally clean. Eg behind the radiator, skirting boards etc.

Its worth trying the organised mum method which involves daily shorter cleans on a weekly rotation, with deeper room cleans once a week. Can make a huge difference.

If your house smells greasy I suspect this is the problem. Can you give your oven a good clean? Or there are companies who will come and do this for you - I think it costs about £80

A smell comes from bacteria. Just clean the house regularly.
Your husband hoards things, you don’t empty the litter trays often enough, the dog isn’t cleaned often enough, the rug needs a clean, the sofa needs a wash more often, the shoes/coats need put away, etc.

You’ve made a list yourself on this post.

Use the fact people are calling your son smelly as your motivation. Nobody wants to be the smelly kid in the class

Definitely cat crap! I've never understood why dog owners train our dogs to poop outside yet cat owners train cats to shit in a box, usually kept in the kitchen! Also wash all the coats, they will absorb every smell and right by the door is where the smell will be worst

For non-pet people, pets in the home are an obvious smell as soon as you walk in a pet house, generally not very pleasant, even in the most pristine houses with well trained fussy pets.

If you’re from a non pet home the moment you go in someone’s house with dogs or cats you can’t help but smell them. Litter box in the main part of the house smells gross - and I love cats but it stinks

The poo in the litter tray needs to be disposed of as soon as it's dumped. And cat pee stinks so the tray needs changing and disinfecting every day. Why is it upstairs? Are they house cats? If not, why aren't they weeing and pooping outside? Furniture is for humans, not dogs.

You can get litter trays with covers and door flap for the cat to get in and out - it’s not a perfect fix but if you remove the poop quickly it really helps contain the smells to the litter tray. Maybe see if you can move the cat trays to a less used area of house too - ours was in the downstairs loo which had a wee cupboard that we left open. Also agree with airing the house regularly and getting the sofa and carpets shampooed at least once a year! Hope that helps.

Make sure you clean the litter trays immediately if they have done a poo and spray air freshener after every time. Works for me.

Open windows , get rid of litter tray daily, wash the dog, wash dog bedding weekly at least.