Anyone Else's House Reek After You Cook? Suggestions?

Updated on January 24, 2012
P.M. asks from Arvada, CO
16 answers

So we live in a poorly ventilated small townhouse (2 levels, about 1100 sq. feet) I don't know if it's just the way it's laid out, or the way the vents are, or what, but whenever I cook onions (and let's face it, anything worth cooking that's any good starts with sauteed onions and garlic...) the house smells for days afterwards. not the entire house, it's weird. Our coat closet (which is downstairs) and our bedroom closet (upstairs) and our towels (bathroom upstairs) seem to be the worst. Clothes smell, coats smell, and as I mentioned, our towels. I cook a lot, and i don't know what else to do. I use the little overhead fan on our microwave above the stove, but that doesn't seem to do much. I feel like I reek of cooking/onions 1/2 the time when I throw on my coat. eeeewww!!!! Anyone else have this issue? Any recommendations?

2 moms found this helpful

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

So What Happened?

Thanks moms! I will look for the odor absorbing things to put in the closets, hopefully that will help. I don't have a window in the kitchen, it's sort of smack dab in the middle of the lower floor, and our stairs go up right behind it, so the smell just carries upward. I didn't even think of febreze, or lighting matches in those areas. Good ideas, thanks!

Featured Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.K.

answers from Phoenix on

.

1 mom found this helpful

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.C.

answers from Houston on

I saw on a cooking show to pour vinegar in a cup and sit it next to the stove while cooking.

2 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.P.

answers from Seattle on

I feel you! I open a window or our sliding door while cooking sometimes, and it really helps. Brings in good fresh air too which I love. I also keep vanilla incense in closets, and up high in different rooms to keep a nice smell throughout, and use Febreeze in between. Works great.

1 mom found this helpful

C.P.

answers from Columbia on

Does your vent fan vent right into the attic/rafter space? If so, you just need to get someone in there to extend that fan to the outside. Problem solved. ;-)

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

H.G.

answers from New York on

My house is pretty well ventilated with my kitchen downstairs along with an open corner coat rack not far away. Yesterday morning my husband made very crispy (read - burnt) bacon to go with our eggs. I went to church smelling delicious. I apologized to my singing partner for stinking up the stage. She said she likes bacon, so she didn't mind.

Today, I'm not smelling it in the house as much. It's the fish smell that I can't stand. Glad you got come good ideas here. I'm going to use some of them.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.N.

answers from Bloomington on

Scentsy has a room spray called Odor Out that is especially good for removing odors.

They also have excellent scented wax that uses a warmer rather than burning so it is much safer.

message me if you would like more info about it or you can check all of their products out at www.flamelesswarmer.com

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.S.

answers from Milwaukee on

This made me laugh. :) However I feel your pain!

Try keeping some candles lit while you cook.-the 'scent' doesn't really matter and maybe it's just my imagination, but I think that works. OR, burn some inscense after. Try cooking with a window open too if you can.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.G.

answers from Kansas City on

I burn a vanilla candle almost every evening. I always make sure the trash goes out right after dinner.

(BTW, my hubby once questioned me about trying to get the smell of frying bacon out of the house. He said "if I could make a bacon scented candle I'd be a millionare, every man in the world would buy it" !!)

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

D.H.

answers from Louisville on

I'd bet the little fan on the microwave above the stove is not vented outside - probably just righ tback into the room! From the sound of it, not sure how you'd be able to fix that w/o going thru a small remodel of that area....

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.V.

answers from Los Angeles on

I have the same issue too, and on top of it, we get the neighboors food smells in our house too. I've burnt candles in the bathrooms, and opened up the entire house but I really dont know what to do about it either :0(

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.L.

answers from Colorado Springs on

I have a candle on my stove. I light it after something odoriferous is cooked. It seems to help. If something is really bad, and the odor spreads to other rooms, then I go in each room, light a match, and wave it about for a couple of seconds, and that seems to help.

There are things you can hang in closets that are supposed to help take care of odors. I don't use them but some of my friends swear by them. They might be worth a try.

You might have your range vent checked, by the way. It should work better than it seems to do. In temperate weather, can you open your kitchen window when you and the onions get creative together?

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.H.

answers from St. Louis on

I live in an older house, & old homes are notorious for stinking like "last night's dinner"!

I Febreze after dinner, before bedtime, & then again in the morning. I guess it's better than smelling like our 2 80lb dogs!

1 mom found this helpful

F.H.

answers from Phoenix on

Our house is like this. The landlord whipped up all kinds of homeopatic remedies when she lived here and I swear, after 4 years, it still smells! I think it may be the Saltillo tiles, but not sure. Anyway, the thing that really helped is the Sentsy warmers. I bought 2 of them back in Oct and LOVE them! I have one in the front room and one in the back and the house smells great, even after cooking! Now when people come over, they always say how "nice" the house smells. =)

1 mom found this helpful

J.P.

answers from Lakeland on

Try using those Arm and Hammer hanging things for the closets, they should help absord the odors. Do you have a window in your kitchen? Try a small box fan facing out the window when you cook, it will take some of it away.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.B.

answers from Salt Lake City on

I just learned a bit about ventilation while doing a kitchen/laundry room remodel. It sounds like you have a microwave over your range, and that is the only fan you have. The very likely case is that there is no ventilation to the outside from over your range. In that case, the fan on the micro just sends the air back into your kitchen (sucks in below the micro, spits out above the micro). Kinda pointless, I know. Sometimes, those have a charcoal filter. You could change that and may get some benefit, but without ventilation you can't send the air somewhere else.

1 mom found this helpful

M.L.

answers from Chicago on

Oh my gosh!! I have this issue too but I do not have an answer - I will be reading your responses!

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions