Why Does My Home Smell Funny?
Guys, we need to talk.
Some homes have a smell. You know the one I’m talking about. It’s not… bad, exactly. It’s sort of musty, and not especially pleasant. You definitely notice it in someone else’s home, or it might remind you of an older relative’s home from your childhood. It’s not the kind of smell you want your home to have when you walk through the front door, let alone when you’re welcoming guests!
If you know someone who’s dealing with this smell in their home, you might wonder why they don’t handle it. Well, there are two reasons people continue to exist with this weird musty odor permeating their living space:
They’ve become nose blind. They don’t even notice the smell anymore!
They smell it, but they don’t know where it comes from and therefore have no idea how to fix it. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that when someone doesn’t know the next step to take to solve a problem, they just stop the process altogether.
Here’s the good news: I know what this smell is, where it comes from, and how anyone can fix it!
The Smell
The funny, musty smell some homes have is the smell of living beings. Specifically, it comes from the oils and debris of bodies that become trapped in the fabrics we live with.
That’s why a home can have this smell even when it’s relatively tidy and cleaned regularly! The cleaning we tend to prioritize is that of surfaces: wiping, scrubbing, vacuuming. We’re not thinking about cleaning fabrics.
The Roots of The Smell
No, don’t worry, you don’t have to start washing your couch! There are three primary fabrics that trap the flotsam and jetsam from bodies that cause this unpleasant odor in our homes, and it’s these three specific things because they are the fabrics that spend the most close contact with bodies.
Large amounts of dirty laundry in multiple locations
Yes, we all have dirty laundry! When it’s contained in a hamper, you’ll smell that dirty laundry smell when you pick it up to load into the washer, but otherwise it won’t permeate. However, if you have overflowing hampers or piles of dirty laundry, much more surface area comes into contact with the air and spreads that odor around. And the longer the same laundry sits, the more it stinks.
Unwashed bedding
Bedding touches our skin for even more hours than many of our clothes. And if you’re a morning shower person, you’re not just bringing your body into bed, you’re bringing everything you came into contact with that day into bed with you. Odor from unwashed bedding can start to build in less than a week, especially if the bed is left unmade - surface area again!
*Important note: when I say bedding, I mean any fabric that touches your body while you sleep. Some people don’t use a top sheet or duvet cover, and sleep directly under blankets. Those blankets can be a source of this smell.
Unwashed pet bedding
A lot of people have their pets groomed or give them baths on a regular basis… but when was the last time you washed your dog’s bedding? If you’re only cleaning the dog and not the bedding, the odor continues to proliferate. (This is why I think dog beds without removable and washable covers are completely ridiculous.)
How To Fix The Smell
Obviously, I’m going to tell you do do your laundry, change your sheets, and wash your pet’s bedding. And you’re probably rolling your eyes at me, thinking, I can barely keep up with anything else, where am I going to find the time to do more fabric care?
You’re probably assuming a couple of things. First, you’re assuming you need to do more work. You might need to do different work. If you have a laundry routine that results in a big backlog and overflowing piles, I would not recommend you try harder at your current routine - I’d recommend you start from scratch and create a routine that works for your household.
You’re probably also assuming you have to do all this yourself - especially if you are a woman with a partner and/or kids. Sure, if you live alone, it’s reasonable to hold yourself to a standard of regular laundry and sheet changing. But unless your literal job description is homemaker, keeping track of a whole household full of sheets and laundry is a lot to ask of one person. This is where it’s time to strategize with your family members and share the work.
Something I often say to my clients about repetitive tasks is hard to hear, but true: you can do more of it less often, or less of it more often, but the total amount will stay consistent. Laundry piles up because we tell ourselves it’s easier to just do it all at once. And for some people, this may be true. But others may find that a single load once a day is much more manageable. You won’t know until you experiment!
Fundamentally, everyone deserves a home that smells fresh. My clients often find that it’s much easier to keep up with laundry routines when they have less clutter and a system that works. We can help you declutter and create systems, too!
LMW
