Does Your Home Stink? Try Odor Eliminator Candles

Scented candles are a great way to add different kinds of refreshing, enticing and heavenly fragrances to your home. But if you are dealing with stinky odors around the house, then odor eliminator candles can be a real life saver.

Pet owners, busy moms, smokers, etc., face the issue of unpleasant odors arising from diapers, stinky litter box, sweaty t-shirts, spoilt milk, smelly onion and garlic laced curries, etc. It is quite difficult to keep your house free from these odors all the time! Doing so is specially harder when you are expecting company (some of whom happen to be super sensitive or super finicky!). That’s another level of judgment!

Possible Reason Your Home Smells Funny

If a house smells funky, it doesn’t mean it’s dirty! Homes are meant to be lived in, an so smells are the byproduct of our human activities, like cooking, having a pet and enjoying it, allowing your laundry basket to get full, entertaining friends over, etc.  Sometimes, your home starts to smell weird due to the change of weathers, such as humidity, prolonged rainy weather and the absence of sun, old carpeting, loose wiring or worn out wiring, even from operating certain appliances.

Some people consider buying scented candles and an odor eliminator candle to be a waste of money. But there is scientific evidence that odor eliminator candles actually work….exactly how? Let me elaborate:

How Do Odor Eliminating Candles Work

Generally speaking, when wax candles burn they give way to -ive ions. Since bad odors as well as dust, dirt, pollen and other kinds of pollutants drifting in the air carry a -ve charge, attach themselves easily to the oxygen molecules in air. That’s why they tend to hang on longer in the air. Odors can be unpleasant to deal with. But when candles are burnt in the affected area, negate the positive charge, thereby whip off the funky odor and other pollutants from the air. In comparison to simple scented candles, odor eliminator candles contain special odor neutralizing enzymes and additives that wipe out bad odors quickly from the air and replace them with a pleasant fragrance.

If there is a peculiar odor in an area, the presence of oxygen would make them linger on longer.  However, when you burn a candle, the oxygen in the surroundings gets burnt and replaced by carbon dioxide. Therefore, the stronger the unpleasant odor is, the longer you need to burn your odor eliminator candle. The strength of your scented candle also matters when the odor is strong, hence, going for an odor eliminator candle instead of a simple scented candle is your best bet.

The Effectiveness of Your Odor Eliminator Candles Depend on These 5 Factors

In order for odor eliminator candles to work, you need to take care of a few factors:

Investigate the Source

Before you give a go to your chosen odor eliminator candle a go, it’s more important to identify the source of the odor and eliminate it. It would be wrong to expect the candle to work miracles when the culprit is there like,

  • A litter box that hasn’t been cleaned
  • Letting your dog with a wet coat climb on your furniture
  • Letting dirty laundry pile up.  

Remember, odors tend to linger in areas with poor ventilation, such as bathrooms, closets, and basements. So, take care to ventilate these areas through natural ventilation or artificial means.

Also understand that if there is a serious issue, like a gas leak or mildew or mold, odor eliminator candles will not work and you may end up having even a bigger and potentially dangerous problem at your hand. Therefore, be proactive in researching the source of the odor and tending to them accordingly.  

odor eliminating candles
Image source: Juan Pablo Serra@Pexels

The Dimensions of the Area

If the malodor is very strong or lingering at a larger area, then lighting one odor eliminator candle might not be enough. Thus, placing the odor busting candles in strategic locations around the room or house would help in eliminating the odor and distributing the fragrance rapidly and more effectively.

Strategic Placement

You don’t want to place your odor eliminator candle directly over the source of the odor, as this will only mask the smell temporarily. However, placing candles nearby the offensive source, such as a garbage can or litter box, can help you get rid of the smell effectively.

The Burn Time Factor

Odor eliminator candles need considerable time to work. They won’t cover the odor immediately. You need to burn them at least for a few hours, so as to allow the enzymes in the odor eliminating candle to permeate the room and overcome the unpleasant odors.

Strength in Numbers

If you are trying to eliminate odors in a large space, you cannot rely on just one odor eliminating candle! Go for multiple odor eliminator candles to get the best result in less time. This strategy is important to remember if you have guests coming over and your house stinks funny, bad or even un-fresh!

When Odor Eliminator Candles Won’t Work        

Since odor eliminator candles only mask unpleasant odors and don’t actually remove them entirely, then it is you need to consider stronger and more sophisticated other odor-eliminating solutions like using air fresheners, purifiers, essential oil diffusers, etc.

Which Odor Eliminating Candle Can Address Which Problem

Just like you can differentiate between a pleasant odor and an unpleasant one, bad odors can be differentiated from mildly unpleasant to somewhat tolerable, from an offensive one to downright intolerable odor. Thus, it makes sense to be selective when choosing an odor eliminating candle to do a particular job. Cigarette smoke is different from smoke emitted during cooking, and even from weed smoke. Likewise, an unclean litter box is more tolerable than pee on carpet or upholstery. That’s why there are specific candles to do specific odor busting jobs:  A smoke eliminator candle thus won’t work very well in getting rid of pet odors. Likewise, a pet odor eliminating candle or a smoke eliminating candle won’t help you get rid of the stale curry stink engrained in the walls of your house.  

Go specific when selecting a deodorizing candle. A specialized candle will do a better job than one that is not. If the problem is smoke, a candle formulated specifically for treatment of that malodor is the best choice. Be careful here because most deodorizing candles are formulated for either smoke or pet-related odors and may not be effective against others. There are odor eliminating candles for pets that are best choice for households having pets.

Moreover, people’s preferences and tastes distinguish from one another when it comes to candle scents and fragrances. Hence, you want your candle to get rid of the odor but also replace it with a pleasant fragrance.

My Personal Recommendations in Odor Eliminating Candles

While most odor eliminating candles work well, I have a few personal recommendations based on personal experience. I tend to focus on brands which are more on the affordable end:

Odor Eliminating Candles for Pets

Odor eliminating candles from certain brands have even come up with formulations that not only help you get rid of funky pet odors but also emit essential oils which can be soothing for your anxious or ill pet. I cannot recommend enough Gerrard Larriett Aromatherapy Pet Care company’s lavender and chamomile scented pet odor eliminator candle. Since I have a senior cat with bladder control issues and anxiousness, these candles are a lifesaver. But if you can afford a high-end but thoroughly effective brand, then go for One Fur All candle brand.

Check this Out: Are Candles Safe for cats or Toxic? Here is What I Learnt…

Does Your Home Stink? Try Odor Eliminator Candles
Image source: Pixabay

Kitchen Odor Eliminating Candles

Food smells and cooking smoke are the inevitable result of cooking. Some foods have a stronger smell than others, such as fish and curries and even an over ripe melon sitting on the counter for long. I tend to get good results from Smoke Odor Exterminator brand of candles. There is a wide variety of fragrances but all aren’t effective. I have discovered that Lemon Splash scent is very good for getting rid of kitchen and dining area smells. This is because citrus scents have great odor eliminating properties.

Smoke Odor Eliminator Candles

BBQ smell and cigarette smoke are things I can’t tolerate because they mess up my sinuses and trigger migraines. While my own house is a smoke free zone, my smoker friends have nice things to say about Hippie Love and Nag champa smoke odor eliminator candle.

Do Check Out: Hippie Love Smoke Odor Exterminator Jar Candle Review

Bathroom Odor Eliminator Candles

Bathrooms are the area where I don’t favor using scented candles when tackling offensive smells. Bathroom odor eliminating sprays are a more reliable method to get rid of bad odors. However, if you want to create a calm, refreshing, soothing, at home spa experience, then Sage, Eucalyptus and Jasmine scented candles work pretty well.

People Also Ask

How do odor eliminator candles work?

Odor eliminator candles owe their odor busting properties to the presence of special enzymes that interact with the odor containing molecules and neutralize it.

Which unpleasant can odor eliminator candles help in eliminating?

Odor eliminating candles can successfully mask unpleasant smells like that of garbage, litter, smoke, burnt food, dirty laundry, etc., lingering in confined space.

To Sum Up

Who doesn’t want their home to smell nice and clean? However, there are times when our house ends up smelling unpleasant. Pet odors, pungent cooking smells, dirty laundry, stale food and poor ventilation all cause unpleasant odors. Odor eliminator candles are really effective in removing most bad odors due to their formulation. Not only this, these odor exterminating candles don’t just remove odors but also replace them with lovely fragrances. Furthermore, these odor busting candles are purpose specific. For instance, odor eliminating candles for pets specifically targets litter odors and a variety of pet odors like dealing with pet pee, poo and vomit. Meanwhile, a certain type of smoke eliminator candles would help you get rid of cigarette and weed smokes, meanwhile, others would help you mask pungent curry smells and cooking smoke. So, if you want your home to smell nice and fresh, why not give these candles a go!   



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