Home Sweet-Smelling Home
May 25, 2006 by Maricar
Filed under General Housekeeping and Homemaking
Kathleen Yamauchi, a realtor, talks about a home’s “nose appeal“. If you’re getting ready to sell your house, she has tips on how to make sure that your house appeals to a potential buyer’s sense of smell. Pets, cooking and cigarettes are the three big offenders she lists.
I don’t have pets. I don’t smoke. But I cook. A lot. With a lot of spices. Onions, garlic, fish sauce. They’re all staples of our traditional home cooking. While we’re not selling our home anytime soon, I do like it to be sweet-smelling. I like garlic in my food, but I don’t want to smell it in my curtains. I have several options to get rid of food aromas.
1. Turn on the exhaust fan right before I cook. Even a pan that’s starting to heat up gives a distinct aroma. Our fan’s exhaust is directed outside, so the air is not just “filtered” and recycled back inside. It helps but I still have to employ other means.
2. Light a scented candle (or two) while cooking and keep it lighted for sometime after. The scent not only masks unwanted smells. It’s also my belief that the flame burns off the particles of food oils that are suspended in the air. I can’t vouch for the scientific basis behind that. But I like to think it is so.
3. To get rid of food odors in the microwave, I nuke a slice of lemon and some water for one minute.
4. Baking soda in the refrigerator and in cabinets absorbs odors to keep these spaces smelling fresh.
5. Use Febreeze on upholstered surfaces, carpets and curtains. I usually do this at night when the kids are asleep. I love the oh-so-fresh smell that greets me in the morning.
6. Air out the house during warm weather. Open the windows and let the fresh air in. Don’t forget the upstairs bedrooms.
7. Use a room mist to scent a room. My favorite is a Freesia home fragrance spray. The scent is so light and makes me want to run through meadows of flowers. “The hills are alive…” 
Cooking aromas are mainly what I have to deal with to keep my home smelling pleasantly fresh. My kids are not yet at the smelly sneaker stage. Though poopy diapers are an everyday thing, thank goodness for the Diaper Genie to help me deal with those.
What do you do to keep your home a pleasant place, nose-wise?
It must be stated that some candles can leave a significant amount of black soot into a home which can actually be worse for your home then any cooking odors. If scented candles are to be used for odor control it is important to test the candle first to determine how much black soot it is creating. The best way to do this is to burn the candle in a jar for about 5 hours and then check the side of the jar to see how much soot the candle is releasing. One of the main reasons a candle releases soot is because of candle makers using cheap or imporper wicks.
You’re right, Shirlee. Thanks for the tips. I know Yankee Candle has a cover for jars that’s supposed to keep the soot down. I haven’t tried it so I can’t vouch for it. There may be ways to keep soot down when using candles. If you know of any, please let us know.
Its difficult to find a candle manufacturer that has candles that produce a low amount of black soot. Many candle manufacturers use special additives to help more of there wax burn but these additives also cause alot of black soot. There are a number of soy wax candles on the market which does not need additives so the candles make for a more natural burn and aroma. For soy candle companies it solely comes down to using the very best wicks for there candles to produce a candle with very little black soot. I am not saying that it is impossible for a parrafin candle to produce low amounts of black soot because I have seen a few but how they manage to keep black soot down is a mystery to me.
The flameless scented candles are o.k. leaving just a hint of fragrance but if you have a tart burner which uses a tealight candle and a tart shape candle,the scent is awesome. I personally burn the Christmas Cookie or the Ocean scent by Yankee Candle.
Another thought is in my Kitchen i have a wreath that has fresh cinamon sticks.When I think the aroma is fading I add some cinamon oil to them. Difusers are another great way!
Hi Kathy, I’ve heard of those tart candles. Thanks for the review.
Hello. The reason for candles producing soot is due to the petroleum in the ingredients. (If you’ve seen a fire at a petroleum plant you’ll have seen a big plumes of black smoke. It’s like a large candle!). Natural candles, for example an all soy candle, when burned will produce virtual no soot.
On the other hand a 100% soy candle doesn’t tend to burn evenly; it can leave large ‘globs’ of unused soy or sometimes it burns in a tiny circle around the wick. So you can spend a lot of money and not burn a good portion of the candle. Soy also isn’t known for retaining the fragrance. So the candle may smell good initially but generally by mid-way into the candle the scent is barely noticeable.
An option to consider is the Mia Bella candle. It’s a natural candle (100% biodegradable) that burns clean and evenly, plus it’s triple scented so you can smell the fragrance right to the very last burn! It also has a double cotton wick (no lead).
The company offers Mia Melts which produce no flame as the melts are burned without a flame in an electric simmer simmer pot. If you’re interested in learning more about Mia Bella candles & melts, check out my website.