Your roommate cooked salmon—again—and the lingering smell is driving you nuts. Or, maybe your coconut curry’s to blame this time around, and you want to clear out the scent before your roommate gets home. Don’t suffer through the stench. Find out how to quickly and easily get rid of cooking smells in a small apartment kitchen.
Limit how far the smell can go.
Don’t let the pesky odors infiltrate your apartment any more than they need to. Before you start cooking, close all of the bedroom and closet doors. That way, even if the kitchen and living area smell like your dinner, your room (and clothing!) will be spared.
Clean up quickly and thoroughly.
Leave dirty pots and pans in the sink or scraps in the garbage can, and you’re inviting smells to stick around with them. As tempting as it is to procrastinate on kitchen clean up, don’t do it!
Try to clean dishes, cutting boards, and other utensils as you cook to make life easier once your meal is ready. Wipe down the stovetop and counters, take out any garbage, and even rinse off sponges and dish brushes. You’ll decrease cooking smells and increase roommate appreciation.
Ventilate as much as possible.
The vent over your stove may be obnoxiously loud, but it’s seriously effective! If you have a vent, run it. If you have a smaller kitchen or just a kitchenette, open the windows or run the air conditioner to allow the smell to dissipate. Start airing out your space while you cook, and the odors won’t stand a chance.
Put out a few bowls of white vinegar or baking soda.
Did you know both white vinegar and baking soda helps absorb strong odors in the air? Bowls of either substance might not be your most chic home décor, but they’re for a good cause. Leave a few bowls around your kitchen or dining area, and let them sit overnight. By morning your apartment will smell like that baked trout experiment never happened.
Invest in an air purifier.
Air purifiers have a variety of uses, and cleansing the air of overpowering cooking smells is only one of them. These bad boys can also improve the overall air quality in your apartment (which is particularly practical if you suffer from allergies or respiratory issues like asthma). Along with clearing out food smells, an air purifier can help eliminate odors caused by smoking or pets.
Create a better smell.
One of the best ways to get rid of smells from a stinky meal is to replace them with a scent you like. Before you whip out a bottle of intense air freshener, consider some more natural options. Brew a fresh pot of coffee, simmer some cinnamon sticks or citrus peels on the stovetop, light your favorite scented candle, or bake a batch of cookies. Not quite into the sugar cookie smell? Try one of these no-bake dessert recipes for a sweet, low-scent treat.
Fed up with cooking smells that hang around the apartment no matter what you try, or an apartment that seems to trap everything in like an odor prison? Don’t put up with it anymore! Search apartments for rent on ApartmentSearch.com, and start fresh!
