My apartment smells. How can I get rid of strange odours?

There are many smells you can get in your home, some come on quick like a kick to the face while others creep up on you over time and then one day you walk through the front door and well, let’s also call that a kick in the face.

So what can you do to make your apartment not smell like the foot that kicked you in the face. (we’re going to assume that the foot also smells bad)

1. Air out your apartment

We started simple, open a window, open a door. If you have a smell that is contained to a single room, open that window and get the air circulating. A cheap fan will do the trick. Don’t lock your odours in. Let them free.

2. Odour eaters, or odour absorbing solutions

Get baking soda, really simple. Just leave it open somewhere. You can also use other items, like lemons, but make sure you don’t let these go mouldy or you’ll have a new smell on your hands. Also, if you have a bit more money to burn, you can get proper moisture absorbing products from Coles or Woolies.

3. Clean your carpets really well

Back to baking soda, (come to think of it, have you ever used baking soda to bake with?) and sprinkle it on the carpet, you know where the smell is coming from? Sprinkle more of it there and let it absorb the smell, vacuum it up. You can also get some white vinegar which will help decrease the odour as it dries.

4. Mop the floors with vinegar

Add white vinegar to water, don’t over do it, probably as much as you would add detergent to hot water. And don’t use balsamic or red-wine vinegar. Maybe if you have redwood flooring. But if you do, you can probably pay someone else to mop the floors for you.

5. Use an automate air-refresher

Air refreshers are an easy way to keep your place smelling nice, you like the smell of country gardens, we got it, you like the smell of Ralph Lauren’s Polo? Yeah, we got that too. We also have orange, mango, vanilla and a lot more. It is anti-bacterial so it also helps kills the odour causing bacteria.

Kind of like an automated Glenn20 spray, but without smelling like a toilet.

4. Call in the building manager

If the smell is too much to bear, or you can’t find a solution above, call in the manager, it is their job to help you. If they have been around a while, there is a good chance that they know where the smell is coming from. If there was a serious smoker living there before you, the carpets might need replacing, or the walls will need to be sanded back and repainted.