My son is 8 and lately I've noticed his room has developed a smell. He throws dirty clothes down the laundry chute, sheets are washed weekly and he showers nightly. Not sure what the smell is. How can I deoderize his room? He doesn't seem to mind but I do. Thanks!
ETA: Hardwood floors in our whole house. They get swiffered and vaccuumed weekly. Wet towels stay in the bathroom. Waterproof mattress pad gets washed every other week.
Never thought about the shoes, since he does keep them there. I will spend a little time this weekend washing shoes, and maybe put some baking soda and/or vinegar in there. Thanks for all the ideas.
Suzanne is right! Use Febreze in the meantime!
From a mom with a teenage boy at home still!! LOL!
Dawn
Have you tried Febreeze?
You clean way more than I do, and my son's room does not smell bad.
But I do open his windows a lot.
We only wear our clothes once....that's my issue.
We take our shoes off at the front door, so there are never dirty shoes in our rooms.
Whenever I notice a smell I don't like, I sprinkle Baking Soda on the floor overnight and vacuum it the next day. It really absorbs bad smells.
GL!
Open his windows every chance you get. If he has carpet in there, make sure it is vacuumed, every week, .. You can sprinkle baking soda on there. let it sit and then vacuum.
Also if he keeps his shoes in a closed closet, that can hold in a lot of odors, place a box or 2 of baking soda in there, to absorb those odors. Change out the boxes every 3 months.
Our family is not good with artificial perfumed or scented products. So we use, baking soda, vinegar, lemon and vanilla to help absorb odors.
My son's room still has the famous "stinky boy smell" and he is now 19!
I think it's a combination of sweat and shoes, not to mention all the random socks, underwear and other pieces of clothing that get lost under the bed or behind the furniture. And because he likes to have his door shut most of the time that smell just ferments :(
And it's NOT food, I am adamant about no food in the bedrooms.
Besides doing laundry like a madwoman, air it out as often as you can. Frequent, fresh air makes a big difference, though in my case the smell never really went away until he left for college, and yes it returns when he comes home on breaks, yuck!
Oh well, at least it reminds me that my boy is home LOL!!!
Boys = stink. You sound like you're doing all you can. I agree, with other poster , suggesting windows & vinegar.
Make sure he has a waterproof mattress pad under the sheets and that you're washing that too. Same thing happened with my oldest SS... he is just STINKY and it got into his mattress.
Does he let wet towels sit on the rug? Or the mattress? That can create a damp smell over time.
I second the "baking soda" suggestions. And also, you can use vinegar in a similar manner.... just put a small bowl of it somewhere and let it sit. Or a bowl of coffee beans.
Also, you might try using vinegar as a rinse/fabric softener for his clothes/linens.
My husband runs and works out regularly. His running and work-out wear gets really nasty stinky. The stuff that just stinks even when it is clean. So I started washing it with a spoonful amount of laundry detergent, and 1/2 cup of 20 Mule Team Borax washing powder, 1/2 cup Arm & Hammer washing powder and using vinegar for the rinse/fabric softener. The stuff doesn't stink anymore.
Strip his bed. spray his bed. Open the window air out the place. In the evening open his window for bout ahalf hour a day .
I like to use Lysol spray for everything. Seems to deodorize the room quicker than anything else. Then once that settles, I spray a touch of Febreeze and that makes it smell extra fresh.
Spray the Lysol down the laundry chute that will help too.
Gross! My brother (he's almost 30) moved in with us a few months ago and his room is stinky, too! I spray lysol and febreeze and added a "guy-smell" plug in freshener. I also leave the window open a few inches and we wash his blankets every 2 weeks (laundry weekly)! The plug in helped a little... I like the other suggestions, I'm going to try sprinkling baking soda (and a hidden dish of vinegar)! At least mine & dd's girly-smells counterbalance hubby's boy-smell! Gross!
Shoes. It's most likely his shoes. Wash them and put them on the heater vents upside down for the air to dry them. BUT make sure you start the water in the washer, add the detergent, then add about 1/4 cup bleach to the running water.
LET IT FILL AND START AGITATING before adding the shoes. Put everyone's shoes in, they float so the more the merrier. I wash almost every pair of shoes we wear. IF it's leather you might want to think about it> but if it's cloth go for it.
This will kills germs, bacteria, and cleanse the grim and sweat out of them.
Using a spray only deodorizes them for a few hours then they will start up again.
We have this smell sometimes at the gym/dance studio. I stand behind each of the oscillating fans and spray some air freshener but it only makes the air smell nice for a little while. The actual cleaning of the places that people walk with their bare feet is the only way to eliminate the smell.
If they are worn out then perhaps just tossing them is the best idea.
It is just part of the male scent thing. All boys smell and so do their rooms. We mommas can air them out and tone it down a bit but they do have an odor that is stronger than a girls.
Do what you are doing and keep the air fresheners about. Good luck to you. Know one day he will be gone and the smell will be gone too.
The other S.
Open the window daily to air it out.
Keep his shoes in the hall closet or front entry way in a wicker basket.
Sport shoes can be kept in a bin in the garage.
Febreeze his room.
If he has any rugs in his room, shake them out weekly outside. You can
even lay them in the sun.
Put a laundry basket for him in the bathroom for his dirty clothes.
Go through his room to make sure there aren't any dirty, smelly socks
hanging around or old food snacks.
Edit: wash his sheets often.
My SD's room is like that. I think it just needs to be aired out often, dirty clothes taken out, bedding changed often & letting some sunlight in.
