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.

can you bring it up with him? especially if its being mentioned by DS friends, will this galvanise him?

or just don't ask and put them away, you can use the vacuum storage bags?

Why is this just OP's problem to solve? Where is her DH in all this?

OP, I'm really sorry you're having to deal with such nasty comments, especially after you've lost your son. Some people are just vile.

Now you've made me cry

Reminder that plug in air fresheners aren't often great for pets

And they just mask smells

I was going to suggest that - tucked in blankets on the sofa that can be washed easily and regularly (at least once a week).

What about a cat litter robot? Or if that’s out of budget, one of those cat litters that are covered, and then change it more regularly?

I was weirdly reading an article about hallway smells recently (procrastinating at work!!) and the first thing the article suggested was putting shoes away, making sure coats are clean! As they make the biggest smell difference.

My vote is the litter tray. Can you have a cat tunnel made so the cats can get out on their own? It might help with the cat weeing inside as well.
WOrth it.
Also blankets tucked into sofas and washed every week. Air the house daily.
Perhaps pay for a one off clean if you can afford it or at least for the carpets and sofas to be stream cleaned (or buy a steamer)?

Ack, that's not nice to hear OP.

For the cat, especially as she wees on your DS's clothes, you need an enzyme cleaner. It also would be an idea to get a blue light torch (enzyme cleaner and torch are available on Amazon) and then you can see if there is wee elsewhere. The enzyme cleaner will neutralise the smells and also discourage from more weeing outside the litter.

For the litter tray you might want to try a wooden style pellet litter. We found that better. And scooping poop and the little patches of wee every day, and one of those air deodoriser pots on a shelf next to the litter.

If your DH likes to keep stuff and is borderline hoarding then you'll have the musty smell of all that too. Wash and dust and Fabreeze what you can! Open all the windows!

You've been through a lot though OP, so be kind to yourself.

Expensive but we have a self cleaning litter tray and it cycles after every use and the deposits go into a liner in a sealed tray below, which we then take out about every 3 days. I’m fairly confident it doesn’t smell because the cat is a bit anti social and we’ve had a few people comment ‘I had no idea you even had a cat’, also my Mum is an animal hating clean freak would definitely tell me.

A throw on the sofa are also a great idea. I do this because the kids make a mess and it’s so much easier than doing all the cushion covers.

Put the shoes in the cupboard too, so easy to do, looks neater and definitely necessary if anyone has stinky feet.

Also windows open all the time, even in the depths of winter we air the house every morning. We also have those Dyson cool fans that double as air purifiers.

I don’t mind a nice scented candle but air fresheners are nauseating so I’d avoid as I’m not sure public toilet fresh is that much better than damp dog!

OK, so the cats sound stressed and are spraying, this won't help keep things clean!

Change your litter to Everclean if you can, especially the multicat type. It is the best litter we've ever found, after years of being a multicat household.

Get lidded trays, it contains the smell better and reduces stress because they feel more private. We had a stress-sprayer and the lidded tray was a game changer. Also you must scoop daily.

Look into creating "kitty highways" along your walls. There are special steps, platforms, and bridges you can buy and fix to walls to give cats more space and the ability to move around without being near the dog. You can also DIY these with sturdy shelves.

We have 4 cats and do all this. They have zones/territories they keep to throughout the house and it helps them stay comfortable, ad well as keep the mess and smell down.

Empty litter trays regularly and scoop any mess when you notice it's been used

Carpet Cleaner (we hire a reasonably priced one once every 6 months

Regular cleaning of sofas - use throws which can be washed every few days to avoid animal smell

I wipe down kitchen sides after any use and bleach kitchen sink after pots have been washed

Bathroom I clean every day... Deep clean on a weekend.

Hoover areas frequented by pets daily

Move clothing so they cannot pee on it

Put all costs and shoes away after wearing - coats and dressing gowns get checked for smells regularly

Empty bins daily

Don't leave smelly foods sat around

Open windows as much as weather allows. Even in winter I open for 10 min to air off in the mornings

Kids empty their rooms of washing, towels, rubbish every morning/night and no food allowed to stay up there

Sofa — use throws. Don’t use fleece ones, get some cotton bedspreads like this https://www.dunelm.com/product/antigoni-quilted-bedspread-235cm-x-235cm-1000216597?defaultSkuId=30824905 Wash in aerial as the smell lasts on them and just smells clean rather than scented.
Clean the litter trays with Surgical Spirit. Cheap in a pharmacy, keep away from kids and animals, put some on a kitchen towel, wipe round empty tray. Will kill all smell dead. It’s the only thing that works 100%.

Cats STINK. Even if there's no litter box! You can tell a cat lives in a house as soon as you walk in

What do they smell of to you - I'm intrigued?!

I swear there is a genetic element to this. I see people on here say that cats stink all the time but to me, cats smell completely neutral.
Obviously dirty litter trays smell, but the animals themselves have zero scent to me.

Whereas dogs have a very unpleasant doggy smell. My friend has three dogs and I can't bear to be in her house for very long. When I leave I have to change when I get home because my clothes have the smell on them.

I blame our hallway

No, I blame your dog and two cats. You cannot have a house where the dog is allowed on the sofa and cats have litter trays in the house and expect it not to smell.

I had this with the cat. I finally had enough and now the cat goes outside. Honestly, we just open the door several times a day (probably about 6 times) and cat strolls in and out. Is this something you could do?

Also, I find the smell of dogs quite strong when I go to friends houses, I think it’s alsways worse around sofas, I think the blanket and regular washing is the best advice I’ve seen on here.

Or could be that your house just has a different yet normal smell than her house and she's rude to comment on it.

Dogs make even the cleanest houses smell. Dog owners can’t smell it.

The cat trays are also likely a major problem. You can put catflaps through walls not just in doors, you can get a little tunnel in sections to go through them.

Instead of blankets on the sofa, maybe look st getting the fitted seat covers - they stay on better than a blanket tucked in

Don't just dust. Unless surfaces are wooden, wash down with hot soapy water (fairy liquid is great) and a soft cloth and polish dry. Everything that can be - twice a year. Wardrobe doors, window sills, curtain rails, insides of wardrobes, etc. Banister every week. Internal windows, skirting boards. Walls where they have been touched and the corners where spiders/cobwebs accumulative. It's a fafff but it's the difference between looking ok and smelling ok.

Clean the litter trays as soon as they are used. Wash it every week. Use deodorising litter.

Get the dog washed at the groomers every month. I never smell dog in the homes where people do this, even after they've walked the dog in the rain.

Move those shoes. Use shoe spray in them weekly. Not fabreze, I think scholl does something better.

Do a general dust, hoover and open windows weekly as a minimum.

I am so sorry about your ds. It sounds as if you have a lot on your plate.

I air the house regularly and have a vax to freshen up the carpet when well enough, but I still find the bedroom gets a bit smelly from the dogs… we have flooring downstairs. I have other diffusers but find this one smells nice rather than overpowering, disguises any residual smells and is a good price point. https://www.next.co.uk/style/st988021/m82559#m82559

I don’t wash the rugs on the sofa monthly but my dogs are non shedding and smallish. I change bedding fortnightly as I am not well enough to do weekly these days. Our sofas are leather.

I have all seasons duvets and wash them at the change of each season and also wash pillows. Other things to consider is changing the bin regularly, especially if cooking with onions, garlic or binning fruit and other strong smells. As for your dh’s stuff, jackets etc, if you don’t have time to deal with these, do you have a garage to bung them in there?

Forgot to add, can you stretch to a cleaner even for a one off?

Diffusers are good for a temporary fix, they are surprisingly powerful. I have a lovely Oud smell and a fresh lemon.

I’m intrigued by this too. I have a very sensitive sense of smell and I also think cats smell neutral. Dogs do not! (I have a dog. He’s a poodle so not as “smelly” as some, but still.)

Cat litters do smell, I’ll give you that, but cats themselves don’t to me…

You’re not the only person who lives in the house. This is not all on you. Maybe this might spur your child to get involved. If DH won’t move his shoes/coats that he’s currently not using, you move them. He’s been warned and asked!

I have a big old dog in a house now but I used to have a cat in a flat so I was paranoid about the smell. I used clumping litter so that whatever they did could be lifted out and got rid of pretty much straight away. He also had a litter box with a flap and a lid to contain the litter and smell. You can also get a little spray that you can spray on the litter for deodorising in between changes. Can you always have the window cracked open in the room the cats use?

For the dog, she has a massive fleecy blanket on the sofa that gets washed about every week and her bed gets fresh blankets roughly at that schedule too. I don’t bath her unless she’s rolled in something though. We have a rug in the hall and in the kitchen (because she’s a princess who won’t walk on hard floors) that are washable so I chuck them in the washing machine with a good dose of strong fabric conditioner and then when they are walked on they give out a nice smell.

If I’m home and it’s not freezing cold, either the back door or the windows are open. I love getting fresh air through.

Generally I don’t like chemical things because of the dog but I do use a carpet foam spray just before hoovering which leaves a lovely smell, and I have spritzed the curtains closest to the front door with pet safe febreeze, so that people get a waft of a nice smell when they arrive.

Empty the hoover as soon as you’ve used it otherwise the next time you use it it will pump out the dog smell!

I used to flat share with someone whose feet really stank and ended up keeping a shoe spray right by the shoe rack so that I could attack his shoes whenever I passed!

It’s horrible to feel like this - we’ve just sold our house and I was constantly asking the estate agent if he could smell dog - but it’s totally understandable that this hasn’t been your priority. Be gentle on yourself.

Cat litter trays can be very smelly. My DF has one and it sometimes stinks.

When we had a litter tray I was a bit paranoid so scooped twice a day and as soon as there was a poo, then did a whole change every two days.

I bought very cheap litter and tray liners as it seemed better for smells to change the whole thing more often than to buy the more expensive odour control stuff as I am not convinced it is any better.

Plus dogs smell I'm afraid. My DSister's house never smells of dog somehow but he is not allowed on the furniture and she washes his bedding frequently.

My friend's house stinks of dog and it hits you in the face when she opens the door. Their clothes smell of it too and they sometimes leave a lingering smell when they have visited.

I haven't told her as I'm pretty sure it's because her husband won't replace their carpets and he controls the money. (Their old dogs were incontinent and so there's old wee everywhere).

Sorry this has happened, you must be mortified but good friends won't hold it against you. Lots of good advice on here though, hope it all helps.