There’s nothing quite as distressing as getting ready to prepare a meal and finding an unidentified bad smell in the refrigerator! The stench not only robs you of your appetite, but it can also take too long to diagnose the cause of the stench. Are there spoiled foods? Has something spilled on the floor? Is there mold behind the door? Listed below are three methods on how to get smells out of fridge and prevent them from reoccurring in the future.
1. Clean the fridge thoroughly.
It may seem daunting to take the first step, especially when you don’t know how to get smells out of fridge, but fridge cleaning is essential. Throw away anything that might be rotten in your fridge, or that you won’t eat in the next few days. All your remaining food should be placed in a cooler covered with ice, and the fridge should be unplugged. It’s imperative to save your food (if it’s still good) and not waste electricity while you clean the door. Cleaning means cleaning all the shelves, soaking the drawers in the sink, and wiping the area under the drawers. Be sure to swab the seals on the door and the outside surfaces as well! It’s impossible to predict what foods will drip as you put them in and out of the refrigerator.
2. Clean with natural products.
Using chemicals around food while fridge cleaning, no matter what the ingredients say, is risky. With just a few household ingredients, you can easily create natural cleaning solutions and perfect how to get smells out of fridge. You can scrub all surfaces by dissolving half a cup of baking soda in warm water and scrubbing with it. You can really make that fridge shine by mixing half white vinegar and half water.
3. Make sure odor removers are on the shelves.
Baking soda can be kept open in your refrigerator to prevent odors, but did you know you can spread baking soda on a cookie sheet to absorb any odors that remain after fridge cleaning? Baking soda’s larger surface area helps eliminate odors faster. Just make sure you throw it out when you’re done. You’ll know how to get smells out of fridge in no time!
To tackle tougher smells, you can mix half a cup of baking soda with a tablespoon of vanilla.
Other odor removers include:
Potatoes
It is recommended to peel a potato and put it in the refrigerator in order to eliminate all odors in the fridge. The potato acts as an absorbent, so it should be changed every 2-3 days and kept in the fridge until the odor is gone.
Vinegar
The vinegar performs the same function as bicarbonate, but since vinegar has a peculiar smell, it should be used in a much smaller amount. Just half of the glass will do for a medium-sized fridge.
Lemon
Place the lemon slices in a bowl in the refrigerator. Lemons absorb bad odors, but they must be changed at least once a week to prevent a recurrence.
4. How to get smells out of fridge? Make sure fresh foods are visible.
If you’re going to forget about your fruits and veggies, don’t put them away in a drawer! If you open the door, you’ll see them on the top shelf. By doing this, you’ll be aware of when they go bad and will be able to eat them before they spoil.
5. Store food in airtight containers.
Don’t store leftover pizza or Chinese food in cardboard containers, don’t wrap sandwiches loosely in napkins and don’t leave bowls of leftovers out on the counter. Keep everything in airtight containers. You will not only keep your leftovers edible for longer periods of time, but the odors will not mingle and assault your nose when you open the door.
6. Date and label leftovers.
By doing so, you won’t have to open the lid of some unidentifiable object and lose your appetite! No more trying to remember whether you ate spaghetti on Monday or the Monday before. Your food will always be packed away exactly when you need it, so you’ll know if it should be used tonight or thrown out with tomorrow’s trash.
As a bonus, did you know that a good organization of the refrigerator helps reduce the possibility of bad smells forming? If you’re not confident about How to get smells out of fridge, then some good organization is the way to go.
- The upper shelf contains cold sweets, butter, cheese, and yogurt.
- The middle shelf contains foods cooked, charcuterie, and sauces.
- Raw food, meat, and fish can be found on the lower shelf.
- After being washed and cleaned, the drawers contain fruits and vegetables.
- Drinks and sauces are available at the front door.
