Ever feel as if your bathrooms smell ‘less than fresh?’ There are a few reasons this might happen, and we have several tricks that will get rid of that issue once and for all.

What to Do First?

Identify the Bathroom Odor

The primary thing you need to do is figure out where the smell is coming from, and what is causing it. Does the odor smell stale, with a mild sting to it? Musty odors are the effect of fungus and mold, which are ample in wet areas like a tub or shower. The bathroom is a paradise for fungus because there is always a water source, and many bathrooms are not adequately vented to let all of the moisture to evaporate.

If the odor is strong and smells like bad eggs, it could be a sign of light sulfur fumes. A typical cause of a septic issue related to the plumbing in your toilet.

Develop a Plan

So, you have figured out the problem, now it’s time to develop a solution! A good place to start is with ventilation. Open all the windows and let the fresh air in. Turn on ceiling fans and exhaust fans. This will lessen some of the stinks while you work. Avoid using any scented products such as air fresheners or candles because this will just make the problem severer.

Remove Foul Odors

1. Baking Soda

Baking soda smells good and can actually absorb bad odors. Fill a bowl or mason jar with baking soda and leave it open in the bathroom. The neutralizing element of the baking soda will absorb and repeal the gross smell you want to get rid of. But make sure that you throw out and replace the baking soda about once a month, and it will make sure that you efficiently neutralize your bathroom’s smells.

2. Essential Oils

Essential oils can produce a great natural aroma in your bathroom. These natural, aromatic liquids are called “essential” because they smell like the “essence” of the plant they are extracted from. Essential oils are used to make perfumes, soap, flavoring, and even incenses. Most household scent diffusers use essential oils as their active ingredient. There are a ton of identified essential oils out there, so you’ll have plenty of great smells to choose from.

3. Eucalyptus Leaves

Eucalyptus trees or “gum trees”, are native to Australia. The leaves of Eucalyptus trees have a peculiar, pleasant smell similar to pine or mint. This scent comes from the oils within the leaves, which can be extracted. Eucalyptus leaves have high concentrations of oil in their leaves, so they smell great naturally even before extraction, and hanging it in your bathroom is an affordable, low-maintenance way to make your bathroom odor free.

DIY: Remove Odor on Your Toilet

Supplies Needed:

• Baking Soda
• Lemon Juice
• White Vinegar
• Toothbrush
• Washcloth
• Measuring Cup
• Medium Sized Bowl

Step 1: Use a fresh lemon and squeeze the juice into a bowl.
Step 2: Add baking soda to the lemon juice to make a paste. The paste should have a thick cake batter-like texture.

Step 3: Spread the paste along with areas that you suspect have a strong odor, or areas with noticeable buildup including the seat, bottom of the toilet where it meets the floor, back of the toilet, tank, and underneath the side of the stool area and allow the paste to sit for 15 minutes.

Step 4: Remove the cover of the toilet tank and add a 1/2 cup of vinegar to the water in the tank. Allow for the vinegar to sit for at least 15 minutes. The stinky smell in your bathroom can actually sit and penetrate the tank of the toilet, so it is important that you don’t skip this step.

Step 5: While the baking soda and lemon paste is setting, clean all areas around the toilet: walls, cupboards, sink, and bathtub.

Step 6: If your toilet is next to a bathtub with a shower curtain, hurl the shower curtain in the washer and add 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the final cycle to freshen that up as well. After giving everything a good scrub, you should see an immediate difference with regards to the smell.

Step 7: After 15 minutes, flush the toilet to wash out the water from the tank. Flush 2-3 times, then add in another 1/2 cup of vinegar and allow to sit while you are finishing up the cleaning process. If there is visible build up along the tank walls you’ll need to scrub down the tank and make sure to wear a pair of gloves.

Step 8: Next, grab a toothbrush, pour vinegar over it, then scrub at the areas where the baking soda & the lemon paste is around the toilet. Scrub all of the areas well with the toothbrush, then pour small amounts of the vinegar over the paste and wipe it away with a washcloth. If you see a residue build up along the water line in the toilet bowl, a pumice stone is a great way to scrub it off.

Step 9: Flush the toilet another 2-3 times to once again flush out the vinegar in the tank.

There is always a solution to your bathroom problems — Next time if your candles, air fresheners, or sprays don’t work out, try this or parts of this solution instead. If these don’t work, don’t give up! You should never have to learn to live with bothersome plumbing problems!

If you have tried everything and the odor still won’t go away, it may be a sign that there is something severe happening. Give Caccia Plumbing a call and we will be able to figure out what that “something serious” is and fix it!