If an unpleasant odor is detected in the closet with clothes in a house or apartment, the shelves smell of dampness, this is evidence that there is mold in the room. Anyone can encounter such an unpleasant phenomenon. Before entering into a fight, it is worth understanding the reasons for its occurrence. First you need to determine where the excess moisture comes from. Fixing the problem and getting rid of the smell of mold in the closet forever is only possible after identifying and destroying the original source.
Reasons for the appearance of “aroma”
It can appear for a number of reasons:
- A specific smell from new furniture. As a rule, it goes away with time.
- Dampness (mold) and mustiness. They appear most often in old pieces of furniture or when they are incorrectly positioned. It is not recommended to place a wardrobe near an adjacent wall with a bathroom or kitchen.
- Improper storage of things. You cannot put something that has been worn at least once in a closet with clean clothes. Such things already “have” their own smell. They could be saturated with strong-smelling vapors and smoke (for example, from cigarettes), then, with deodorant, which means they could fill the wardrobe with the corresponding “aroma.”
- Lack of ventilation. In a confined space, such as a closet, over time the air becomes stale. This is also affected by underwear that has not been used for a long time (several months, a year).
How to add a pleasant aroma
To give things a special smell that is pleasant to the owners, the simplest methods are used - regular washing, aromatic substances.
Important: fragrances pleasantly refresh things if they are free of foreign odors. Combining an unpleasant amber with any scent will only make the situation worse.
Cleanliness support
The best and most reliable way to make things smell pleasant is to keep the entire contents of your closet clean. Worn items should be stored separately. For them, it is better to allocate a separate chest of drawers, a bedside table, and not a shelf in a common wardrobe.
It is also useful to keep things that are no longer used in another place. When stored for a long time, they acquire the specific aroma of stale laundry.
Periodic revision of clothing
Everything in the wardrobe must be ventilated regularly. This applies not only to fur products, which protect against moths in this way. It’s worth setting aside a day and taking out all the things from the closet and shaking them out. Unused items should be thrown away or moved to distant mezzanines.
Humidity level
To reduce humidity in cabinets, use salt, soda, silica gel, rice, and zeolite. Special moisture absorbers are produced, which are used if other methods do not help.
Scented soap
Soap has long been used to protect clothes from moths and give them a freshly washed scent.
Coffee beans
The aroma of coffee can overpower many odors. The grains need to be roasted and placed in the wardrobe, whole or ground. Wooden cabinets preserve the coffee spirit for a long time; clothes and linens are also saturated with it.
Citrus
Dry citrus peels retain the aroma of fruit for a long time. Bags with crusts are placed in different corners of the wardrobe.
Empty perfume bottle
The remains of your favorite perfume in an empty bottle will add a light scent to your clothes. It is better not to use it if men's and women's clothing are stored together in the wardrobe.
Vanillin bag
The remaining vanillin in the bag will add the aroma of baking and women's perfumes to things.
Essential oils
Your favorite essential oil is dripped onto the fabric and left in a closed wardrobe. Gradually, all things acquire this aroma.
The smell of new furniture
You can remove unpleasant odors from new furniture through active ventilation. To do this, you need to open the wardrobe doors and create a strong draft in the room for at least a couple of hours.
Unused tea leaves in tea bags can help remove this smell faster. Any type of green or black tea is suitable for these purposes. Dry bags need to be placed in the wardrobe in different places (in all corners and shelves). This method allows you to achieve results within a week.
What to do if clothes and shoes smell damp
If mold gets on things, you need to act quickly. To begin with, clothes are hung out in the fresh air and sun. Can be left for 3 or more days. After drying, treatment with special products is recommended.
Light or white things
Can be treated with hydrogen peroxide or bleach. The substances will quickly remove the stench and return it to its previous appearance. Soak the product and leave it for several hours. Wash with regular powder and rinse with fabric softener. The procedure is aggressive! May damage delicate, delicate fabric.
Colored products
It is optimal to use ammonia. It is mixed halfway with ammonia, and the finished product is applied to the site of contamination. After treatment, wash in warm water using a stain remover or strong powder.
Bedding set and cotton
To restore freshness, a simple product is suitable - onions. Rub freshly squeezed juice onto moldy areas and wash in warm water. You can use curdled milk; the soaking period lasts up to 12 hours.
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Products made from natural fabrics
Vinegar and freshly squeezed lemon juice are used for cleansing. Combine in equal quantities, pour onto the stain, sprinkle with a small amount of salt on top. Allow the fabric to dry and wash.
Linen
Fungus on linen clothes is removed with a mixture of ammonia 20 g, water 1 liter, table salt 20 g. Mix, put the product to boil on the stove for half an hour. Soak the item for a couple of hours, wash it by hand or in a machine, and dry it.
Eliminating mold odor from closets
Getting rid of the smell of mold is the most difficult thing, since this requires completely destroying the fungus in and around the furniture. Mold appears in spaces where humidity exceeds 70%.
It is better to prevent its occurrence than to eliminate it. For this it is recommended:
- Do not install the wardrobe near the walls behind which there are bathrooms and kitchens.
- Do not place a dressing room in the corner that faces the street on both sides (in corner apartments). In such a corner there is usually dampness, which leads to the appearance of mold.
- Do not place (hang) wet or not completely dry items in the closet.
- Do not close the doors of a piece of furniture immediately after wet cleaning it. To do this, you need to wait until its interior is completely dry.
- Do not press the wardrobe tightly against the wall to avoid poor ventilation in this place.
Regular ventilation and general cleaning help prevent the occurrence of fungi in the closet. To reduce humidity, you can use a desiccant (silica gel). It is found in shoe boxes. You can purchase it at construction retail outlets.
Mold is a problem not only for furniture or walls, but also for household appliances. Read about how to eliminate mold in the refrigerator here.
Mold that appears can be eliminated by:
- soda solution;
- table vinegar;
- special antifungal products for furniture;
- hydrogen peroxide.
To do this, you need to completely empty the closet and subject things to antiseptic treatment. Apply peroxide to moldy areas of furniture using a small diameter around it, then treat with soda. After this, you need to wipe the problem areas several times with a clean wet cloth, and also ventilate the cabinet and room well.
Treating the surface with a weak vinegar solution will help remove mold in the closet. Then you need to leave it open for two days so that the product dries completely and the smell of the product itself disappears.
Causes of unpleasant odor
Fungus and dampness are usually associated with living in an old house, but this is a misconception. Mold in the linen closet most often appears due to insufficient air circulation in the room. This problem is especially common among residents of private houses, although recently apartment owners have also been attacked by mold. Poor ventilation, old, damp floors, low foundation levels, and cheap waterproofing contribute to the appearance of dampness and the formation of mold. A musty smell is caused by the following reasons:
- Increased level of humidity in the room.
- Insufficient sealing of furniture and walls, adhesion of the walls of the old cabinet to the external wall of the house.
- Storing poorly dried clothes on shelves.
- Features of the chemical composition of fabrics.
- Poor quality materials and cabinet fittings.
Getting rid of mustiness
What to do if it smells musty? The problem appears if you do not clean your closet for a long time and store old things in it that are not used for a long time. An air freshener is not effective in removing unpleasant odors in this case.
To eliminate mustiness, you need to periodically inspect your wardrobe (at least 2 times a year when changing cold and warm seasons) and remove unused items.
If clothes are not used, but may be useful, then they need to be placed in bags. It is advisable to use vacuum ones, which close tightly, allow you to optimize space and ensure high-quality storage of things.
In addition, a musty smell can appear when dirty (used several times, sweaty) clothes are in the wardrobe. It is advisable to immediately put it in a container for dirty laundry.
Note: This also applies to towels, which, due to frequent or improper use, begin to emit a musty smell. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with how to remove it.
The audit of the closet should be accompanied by its general cleaning. After that you should put in it:
- pieces of your favorite scented soap wrapped in cloth (also prevents moths);
- dried citrus zest (orange or tangerine);
- bags made of cotton fabric with fragrant herbs and spices;
- coffee beans in an open jar;
- perfume bottles and samples.
Prevention measures
If the apartment has high humidity, then preventive measures should be taken in advance to avoid mold infecting the furniture. It's easier and cheaper than saving things later and trying to eliminate the unpleasant smell. You should not neglect prevention even after you have managed to get rid of the fungus.
Silica gel beads
Some tips on what to do to prevent mold from appearing in your closet:
- Maintain optimal humidity in the house. Eliminate the causes that create an unfavorable microclimate.
- Ventilate the furniture by periodically leaving its doors open.
- You cannot put clothes that are not completely dried in the wardrobe.
- Do not place the cabinet close to an outside wall.
- In the summer, it is imperative to take out and place in the sun things that have been stored for a long time.
- Bags of silica gel beads, which are placed in shoe boxes when sold, will remove excess water vapor. It is enough to place a few pieces on the shelves in the closet.
- To prevent mold spores from getting onto things through the washing machine, its drum should be treated with bleach or vinegar once a month.
Eliminating tobacco odor
Cigarette smoke is quickly absorbed into fabrics and is stable for a long time. Therefore, you don’t have to be a smoker to have all things that smell of tobacco. It is enough to sit in a smoky place and then put your clothes in the closet. How to get rid of tobacco smell in this case:
- The closet is emptied with the washing of all things saturated with cigarette smoke.
- A large wet towel is hung inside the wardrobe and left for 30 minutes with the furniture doors closed.
- This procedure is repeated (the towel is washed and hung again) several times until the problem is completely eliminated.
Unpleasant smells in the closet can and should be eliminated by all available means. However, the task may prove difficult to solve if there is constant dampness in the room, and also if the wardrobe is very old and has not been properly maintained.
In such cases, only high-quality repairs and the purchase of new furniture will help to radically solve the problem if all of the above methods are ineffective.
photo: depositphotos.com/evgenyataman, sbotas
The most unexpected places for mold to form
The appearance of fungal plaque is always accompanied by such factors as an increase in humidity and dampness, which is absorbed by furniture, walls, and ceilings. Due to its structure, mold fungus has an unlimited ability to penetrate deep into walls and furniture. The possibility of reproduction in a damp and humid environment increases several times, which results in a lightning-fast increase in lesions. Over time, clothing becomes infected. Rot in a closet can cause enormous damage to furniture and belongings. It is possible to detect mold only by completely checking the contents of things, the back wall of the cabinet, storage shelves, and the corners of the walls. Only after determining the location of the source of infection can we begin to eliminate the problem that has arisen. I recommend reading the article “How to get rid of mold in an apartment?”
Necessary actions to prevent fungal infection
To begin combating fungal mold, you need to make sure that the root cause of the mold has been eliminated. Since when the fungus is removed superficially, its reappearance is guaranteed. It is easier to prevent the occurrence of any contagious infections than to eliminate their consequences later. Preventative actions against mold:
- ventilate the premises (2-3 times a day);
- if necessary, it is necessary to install forced ventilation;
- during repairs and construction, use antiseptic preparations;
- monitor the condition of plumbing fixtures and, if necessary, repair damage or leaks that lead to dampness.
Danger of mold to people
Learn more about why mold is harmful in an apartment or house. As it develops, it is capable of releasing thousands of spores that float in the air and can enter the lungs, bronchi, mucous membranes and skin. Mold affects human health in the following ways:
- She is the strongest allergen. When ingested, mold spores cause rhinitis, pharyngitis, pneumonia, bronchitis, and asthma.
- Human immunity, exposed to constant exposure to mold, slowly fades away.
- The fungus affects the skin, resulting in dermatitis and other inflammations.
- This is a poison that can cause poisoning, the development of cancer of the liver and lungs, and cardiovascular pathology.
- Affects the central nervous system.
According to the latest scientific data, mold fungi perceive the human body with a severely weakened immune system as a substrate, and in every possible way strive to master it, which leads to death.
Furniture processing
Carry out the treatment only after the closet is completely empty of clothes. Today, there are several simple methods that can at the same time kill harmful spores and save wood from further damage. Let’s look at the 2 most effective ones.
The most common method is to treat wood with soda solution. This method is suitable even for a cabinet with children's underwear, as it is safe. Dissolve 3 tbsp in a liter of water. l. soda, then wash the inside of the cabinet with the resulting solution, including all sides, shelves, walls and doors. Leave the cabinet open for 4 days. You can also use hydrogen peroxide. Treating children's cabinets with peroxide is as safe as using soda.
See also: How to get rid of black mold on walls?
Another effective method is chlorine bleach. But keep in mind that this method of dealing with the problem is not suitable for everyone, since chlorine causes an allergic reaction in many people. The method is suitable for processing a closet where the clothes of adult family members are stored. Carrying out such treatment is unacceptable for disinfecting children's furniture.
First, you should remove all clothes from the closet and dry the inner surface using a special dryer or fan, and only then proceed directly to disinfection. It is better to take the wardrobe out of the room into the open air so as not to breathe in harmful fumes.
Mix equal parts water and chlorine bleach, put on gloves and use the resulting solution to wipe all the walls and shelves of the cabinet, inside and out. When done, wash the cabinet with clean water. It is advisable for the wardrobe to stand for about 3 days in the fresh air, which will help eliminate the unpleasant smell of chlorine.
When processing wardrobes using this method, you do not need to add additional detergents to the water so as not to harm your health. Using bleach allows you to completely clean the surface, which ordinary soda, which is best used at the initial stage of infection, cannot cope with.
