Dorm rooms, smaller than most bedrooms, are shared by two or more people and tend to get smelly. The young inhabitants living together in these cramped quarters are often not used to picking up after themselves, and leave dirty clothes, food, drinks and more in the room which creates odor if not disposed of properly. However, common-sense advice and new advanced cleaners can help eliminate or lessen many dorm odors.
Instructions
1. Assess the source of the odors. Start in one corner of the room and search high, then low, all the while sniffing items that may be emitting a foul smell.
2. Pick up all the dirty clothes and place them in a hamper, preferably one with a lid. This item should be a permanent part of the dorm landscape. Once collected, wash the clothes immediately or as soon as possible. Use a laundry odor eliminator liquid to remove tough food, perspiration, mildew and smoke odors from clothing. If the clothing is only mildly stinking, spray it with an odor-eliminating spray product. If odors are coming from stinky gym shoes, wash them as well if they are the type of style that can be washed. Use odor eliminator balls or similar products designed to be inserted in gym shoes after each use to cut down or eliminate shoe odors caused by foot perspiration.
3. Look for food that is lying around, out of its packaging. Dispose of the food in a trash can with a lid if the smell is not overwhelming, or place it inside a plastic bag first and then dispose of it if the smell is obnoxious. Sweep up remaining crumbs or residual with a broom or vacuum sweeper. If sticky or wet elements remain, use an anti-bacterial spray cleaner with a paper towel or anti-bacterial towel to wipe the area. Sniff the area, then repeat if necessary until no odor is detected. Wash any clothes or bedding stained by food or drink.
4. Eliminate odors in the air naturally by opening all the windows and allow fresh air to enter the room (weather permitting). Don't allow windows to remain open for more than 24 hours. If windows can allow easy access to the dorm, for security reasons only open them while someone will be in the dorm.
5. Spray an odor-eliminating spray on the carpeted floors, drapes and cloth furniture even if you can't see stains. For more thorough cleaning, sweep all the carpeted areas in the dorm and then use a mop soaked with a disinfecting detergent to clean non-carpeted floors. Wipe down all hard surfaces, such as sinks, tubs and toilets, with anti-bacterial wipes or towels sprayed with disinfectant. Pay special attention to shower/tub areas, and use special bathroom cleaning sprays to destroy mildew and molds found there.
6. Leave behind odor-eliminating or odor-masking products only if they are deemed to be safe--or allowed--by the school. Insert one plug-in type deodorizer in an outlet for 24/7 air freshening. Place a solar-rechargeable, environmentally safe odor eliminator product made from all-natural volcanic minerals under the bed or in a closet. These negatively charged minerals attract the positively charged odors of smoke, food, and similar bad smells and "hold" them. Also consider another natural product using enzymes to eliminate all organic odors. Add a bowl full of pleasant-smelling potpourri.
7. Think about buying a small, well-researched ozone air purifier or other type of air filter to destroy harmful germs and viruses and/or help remove dust and pollen.
Tags: odor eliminator, dirty clothes, odor-eliminating spray, windows allow