OT: How do you keep your house smelling good??

[Jen76b]

I like to use the tea lights with the oil on top too, but not everyday. I also don't like the plug-in types for fear of a fire, so I bought Whisps. Can't remember who makes it, but it's battery operated and lets out a puff of fragrance every 10 sections. I started using it in my home office (my dogs spend alot of time there with me since I work from home and it tends to smell like dog) and i've notice a difference. It's Fresh Linen and it's not too strong but smells clean. I'm sure it won't work well for large areas, but a small room or bathroom would be great.

I also try to vaccum often, using carpet freshener, and we also don't wear our shoes in the house. About twice I week I spray Febreeze on the the couches and drapes.

For the bathrooms, I've tried keeping it clean smelling but for some reason with my DS7 and DH it always smells likes urine. So in addtion to cleaning with bathroom cleaner, I started using Odor Blaster around the toilet. It's great for urine and pet oders.

 

[hauntedmansion]

Simple....I don't let My Mother In Law in my house!

 

[LuvOrlando]

I read through all the posts and love the smell of candles but can't use them because of the kids' Asthma. Like another poster here I sprinkle cinnamon on a baking sheet and warm it up for a bit...that's the best I can do to scent my home. We have 2 adults, 2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 cats and 1 reptile in my home. If you don't see my pets when you walk in you probably wouldn't know we had them.

For the humans we don't allow shoes in the house.
For the pets we invested in a Bissel carpet cleaner, I LOVE mine.

The cat litter boxes are upstairs in the unused 2nd bath tub which keeps the smell away from the door and allows for easy flushing AND keeps the litter in the tub. This was my Mother-in-law's idea and one of many good ones.
We use Jonny Cat jumbo disposable liners which makes trash day a breeze.

For the dogs I bought fleece blankets to cover my furniture so they don't rip it and so I can wash it as needed. They get baths as soon as I can smell them.

The reptile is in the basement and is cleaned very regularly by DH (note to all, it's not a good idea to tell a kid they can have 'anything' they want for a good report card)

Basically my home smells clean not 'pretty', but I do wish I could do candles some of them smell so yummy.

 

[welovedis]

I use Mrs. Meyers products pretty regularily, even with my DH & DS' allergies, these don't bother them at all. I also use the Yankee Candle tarts, I no longer burn candles at all because of what they release into the air.

I agree with the previous poster about the bucket of cleaning product, a pine based cleaner will scent your air immediately!

Our dog has 2 beds that I rotate on a weekly (or sooner) basis, so that he is using one and one is clean & dried. He gets a bath about every 10 days to 2 weeks & because he is a hound (Harrier to be exact) he does get that weird bad smell if not bathed regularily.

For the poster who mentioned the "not pleasant" bathroom smell, it could be mold. We had this issue and it wasn't until the tub surround was removed that mold was found between that & the wall. Even though there was no cracks or area where the water was getting in now, it must have gotten in at some point. Because of the location of it in our house there was no way to look for this except to remove the tub surround. Is there anyway it could be mold?

Another thing to try for that room is charcoal (in a safe container) or newspaper that is changed often. Perhaps they would absorb the unpleasant smell from the room-GL!

 

[jennifer293]

I change my filters in my bagless vacuum all the time, but it still smells like a nasty sweat sock when I start it up. We have a dalmation in the house(she gets a bath 2-3 times a month) and I am guessing that is where the smell is coming from, but I dump the canister after I use it everytime. I have tried putting bounce sheets in there and that didn't even conceal the smell....The rest of the house I use the glade oil plug ins but those only smell good for a little while or my nose just gets immune to it..LOL


ANY SUGGESTIONS????

 

[Dizneydaz]

We have several of those "candle warmers" and use them to make the house smell good. Our current favorite (found at 99 cent store) is by Glade (I think) and is Lemon Meringue pie. It smells so good-but be careful-it'll make you hungry. Also like Apple spice and anything "cookies and...)

I really like the warmer as I don't have to worry about open flames or the soot you can get from burning candles. I'll be bringing one on our trip too!

 

[PirateKitty]

I swear by the products made by Method. I found them at Target. They smell fantastic. They don't have a chemical smell to them, they clean beautifully, and they leave my house smelling wonderful. I also love the soy candles, especially the grapefruit & pear. I get so many compliments from people that come over. They can't tell that we have 1 cat and 5 large fishtanks!

 

[disneycutie84]

I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who said that they used Yankee Candle "tart" warmers.
I went out and bought some today and they are FANTASTIC! Our apartment smells amazing!
Maybe I'll have to go buy some "Method" products next.

 

[famofsix]

I am alway worried my house smells. With 3 kids, 2 dogs, stinky sneakers, and dirty diapers it can get smelly quick!!!

So post your tips on how you keep your house smelling great!!!!

We got rid of the diaper pail two kids ago...baby gets diaper changed, diaper goes in a plastic grocery bag and then I get one of my big kids to put it in the outside garbage.
Another great product is the blue diaper bags they sell at the dollar store. They are scented so I use them if I can't get the dirty diaper to the trash can in a jiffy.
I have an unlit candle on the stove that still has a nice scent even though it's unlit (ginger and orange).
I try to get the windows open for a little while when it's not too muggy outside to freshen the place up. I cook meals in the crock pot sometimes and everyone likes the smell around here.
We smell the best around here after the kids have a bath...they stink up the place LOL

 

[fivefordisney]

We got rid of the diaper pail two kids ago...baby gets diaper changed, diaper goes in a plastic grocery bag and then I get one of my big kids to put it in the outside garbage.
Another great product is the blue diaper bags they sell at the dollar store. They are scented so I use them if I can't get the dirty diaper to the trash can in a jiffy.
I have an unlit candle on the stove that still has a nice scent even though it's unlit (ginger and orange).
I try to get the windows open for a little while when it's not too muggy outside to freshen the place up. I cook meals in the crock pot sometimes and everyone likes the smell around here.
We smell the best around here after the kids have a bath...they stink up the place LOL

My sister's father-in-law used to save the plastic bags the newspaper arrived in and wasn't sure what to do with them. Finally, my sister decided that they make excellent diaper disposal bags! We all got rid of our diaper genies and started using the newspaper bags... Unusual but effective!

 

[lisabelll]

My sister's father-in-law used to save the plastic bags the newspaper arrived in and wasn't sure what to do with them. Finally, my sister decided that they make excellent diaper disposal bags! We all got rid of our diaper genies and started using the newspaper bags... Unusual but effective!

I actually read about using those plastic bags as a bargain tip a few years ago. Worked really well, but we never seemed to have enough

 

[fivefordisney]

I actually read about using those plastic bags as a bargain tip a few years ago. Worked really well, but we never seemed to have enough

Luckily he was a "saver" and had plenty to spare!!

 

[wrldpossibility]

If you need to have a diaper pail in the house (for convenience, we really do), put a few dryer sheets in it. It REALLY cuts the odor (or masks it I guess, but either way, it works!).

Now I'm off to figure out what "tarts" and "tart warmers" are.

 

[mom*to*2*princesses]

I do use B&BW wallflowers, and candles when we are home. I love changing the scents to go with the seasons/holidays. I ditched the diaper pail with #2 as well. It just didn't make sense to have a big plastic box of smelly diapers in the nursery! I just put diapers in plastic grocery bags, tied them shut, and tossed in the trash. Our trash gets emptied at least every other day, so the smell was never a big deal.

 

[EthansMom]

I'm with those who say "get rid of the diaper pail". Our diaper pail smelled nasty no matter what we did. We started putting wet diapers in the regular garbage and poopy diapers in plastic grocery bags and straight into the garbage outside. Our house started smelling better immediately.

 

[vhoffman]

We never use candles--my father was a safety engineer for a construction company, need I say more? We were never allowed to turn our back on a lit candle. If we left the room, even for a minute, answer the phone, use the bathroom, whatever, the candle went out. With two kids and four cats I'm leary of them, anyways.

Here's what I do--open up the windows at least once a week while cleaning. I mean, open all of them for at least an hour, and run all the fans. Its amazing the built up odors in a house, regardless of how clean it is kept. I've had people comment on how nice my house smells, especially after I've just aired it out. Personally, I don't care for air freshners, etc (except for those to get rid of "stinks" like Oust, used sparingly). I feel they are like perfume--smells great when first applied, but if you don't shower it off the smell quickly becomes stale.

Oh, here's something I do sometimes when company's coming and I want the house to smell like I spend all day cleaning--I just spray some Lemon Pledge in the air! Just a few quick sprits and it smells like I've spent all day polishing the whole house! Or I just quickly do one tabletop near the door. Fools 'em every time!

 

[Aliisa]

I love my candles! I just think they are so homey! I've never used a diaper pail either. I buy those scented bags for dirty diapers. Walmart sells them for .97 cents in the baby department and they work better than just the grocery bags

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I also use YC & B&BW candles. IMHO, B&BW candles are stronger. Our house has vaulted ceilings & is fairly open. It's really hard to get anything strong enough to spread fragrance throughout that much empty space. A couple months ago I bought 2 YC tart warmers that use tea lights. They work much better than burning candles. I've started cutting the jar candles I already had into smaller chunks & burning those in the tart warmers. You'd be surprised how much more scent they put out in the burner vs. in the jar.

 

[Lisa_Belle]

I've never used a candle or an air freshener. Candles make me nervous because a friend nearly burned down her million-dollar house with a tea candle, and I think air fresheners stink. So how do I keep my house smelling great?

1 - Use cleaning products liberally, and try to keep them all to a single scent (like lemon). Just a splash of lemon Clorox in the toilets makes the bathrooms smell better; also I put it down the garbage disposal in the kitchen at the end of the day. Lemon rinds will also make your disposal smell better.

2 - Ditch the diaper pail. The only way to effectively remove the odors is to remove the cause. Get those diapers out of the house as fast as you can!

3 - Get rid of the kitchen-sized trash can. When DD was born in an effort to eliminate the diaper smell, I started putting the trash in plastic grocery-store bags in a small can under the sink. Add diapers when needed, and remove to outside immediately. We still use the grocery bags even though DD has been potty trained for 3 years now. It means several daily trips to the "Big Green Monster" garbage can outside, but there is little garbage to stink up the house.

4 - Remember to bathe the dogs and their beds/toys/other belongings. Oxy Clean helps remove the odors from their little messes.

5 - Don't let the kids take food out of the kitchen.

5 - Have everyone put their dirty clothes in the washer daily rather than leaving them in a hamper, which will soon get musty and mildewy. Do a load daily.

 

[mikymouse]

I just bought and love the jars of scented oils that have a hole in the top to hold the sticks that draw the smell out of the jar into your room. This is much safer than candles plus it looks oriental which I love. I found it at Bed, Bath & Beyond.