Trashcan Stinking up the House! :-/

Throw all diapers outside. I keep a can in the garage for them. Also, I only cook chicken the night BEFORE trash night, that way it isn't stinking in the trash. Rice smells really bad as it's rotting, as do noodles, so I put those down the disposal and rinse the pots and plates right away.

Wash it with warm, soapy water. Then spray some vinegar and let that sit. Wash it, again. Put some baking soda in the bottom, or a trash can deodorizer. If it still stinks, throw it out and buy a new trash can.

If it's a plastic can, they are very porous, I'd toss it and buy a new one, they are cheap.
Don't forget when you throw meat in the can it will stink the next day, especially chicken.
Don't forget to check and see if you have any rotten potatoes, they are notorious kitchen stinker uppers.

Does it have a lid? That would be my first tip. Other than that, probably give the inside of the can a nice cleaning. I would also use the disposal more. Mine is super old and I've had it back up a few times, so I don't use it much, especially after the plumber told me it wasn't a goat ;), but if you have good pipes, use that baby all the time!

Also, I don't even put things that spoil (meats and cheeses mostly) in the trash until we take it out for trash night. I leave them in the fridge and then clean it out once a week. I do throw dinner scraps in there and veggie scraps, but those don't seem to make as big of an issue, especially with a lid.

Get a smaller trashcan for the kitchen. That will force you to empty it every night. :)

Clean the garbage can every time you empty the garbage. If you happen to have some kind of spoiled food or food scraps we usually put that stuff in a small plastic bag and freeze it until garbage day or just take the food scraps out separate from the other garbage. Usually those things are the source of funk in my home.

Have you tried washing out the trashcan? Ours used to stink horribly and I ended up buying a new one and then spraying it down with a bacteria killing cleaner (Bio-Kleen Bac Out bathroom cleaner- I buy it at Whole Foods or on vitacost.com -best stuff EVER, and it's non toxic!) and rinsing it out about once a week.

Well, if it was the kitchen trash, it would stop smelling after you took it out. We take ours out every day so we don't have that problem. Maybe its the garbage disposal? If so, cut up a couple lemons and grind them up in it, that refreshes it. Otherwise, I would just put hubs in charge of taking the trash out ever day. Good luck!

I know this may be a silly question, but are you putting diapers in it at all? Also, you might want to consider walking your meat scraps to the big trash outside. They get stinky fast, especially when it's warmer. I ended up invested in one of the stainless insulated trashcans with tight lid that open by stepping on a lever. I also got the scented trash bags and it's all good. I hate stinky trash too, bleck!

Empty the trash can and SCRUB it out, put a fresh clean bag in there.
It may not be full enough to empty every day, but it may need to be emptied more. Meat packaging, fruit peels and skins are all "take out the garbage NOW" triggers here.

Sure--use your disposal more. But keep IT clean as well, or that will stink. A good rule of thumb for a disposal: Use it for anything that can be eaten. (That means food scraps--yes. Watermelon rinds--no. Bones--no. Leftovers--yes.)

commet the can out, rinse, dry, then spray it with lysol

I wash my trash can every couple of months. I take it outside and hose it out. You might try that and some garbage bags that have a scent, I like the ones with fabreeze. You should also have a lid on it that will help contain the odors. I also clean out the big garbage can since it sits in the garage.

Do you have a garage? That's where I keep our trash can. It's not the most convenient solution, but it works for us. If I'm cooking, I toss trash in a small plastic grocery bag and then carry the whole thing out when I'm done.

Utilze and clean your disposal for the stinky stuff...except diapers and those need to exit the house when they happen. A smaller can Tge can only hold a plastic grocery can size bag will have you empty it more and sprinkle baking soda at the bottom to absorb odors. Cans get cleaned and washed on garbage night weekly with fresh baking soda.

I'd do smaller trash cans, personally. We have a short one we take out every few days (unless we've got wrappers from fish or seafood, then it goes out immediately--any animal flesh, wrappers, scraped-out wet pet food from bowls and such--you want to get those outside right away.). Otherwise, I compost veg scraps and the rest is usually not too smelly.

Lettuce, some greens and many brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) will reek to high heaven as it's sitting in your garbage can. Seriously bad gag-me smell. They tend to be 'gassy'. Definitely put that down the disposal. In fact, any pungent veggie matter should be composted or go down the drain, except banana peels or thick, tough stems (think broccoli, etc.), which are fibrous and can really mess up your disposal. And run a vinegar rinse through your disposal occasionally, to remove odors.

You should wash our your can; check for moldy/rotten food. Also, you can leave a bit of baking soda at the bottom before putting a liner in-- that might help.

I have started taking out the kitchen garbage daily. The house no longer stinks. I didn't even realize that there was a mild odor until one day my sister was kind enough to mention it to me. Thanks for sibling honesty :)

It is likely that something got into the can between the liner and the can itself. You may have had an unnoticed leak in a recent bag of trash. When that dreaded event happens (it happens to everyone on occasion) it usually leaves a clear unnoticeable liquid... unnoticeable until it starts to stink.

I would start by emptying the current bag of trash and taking the can outside. Put some dish soap in the bottom first, then spray with a spray nozzle on the garden hose, until it sudses up some, and (using rubber gloves, b/c, well, ick!) scrub inside the can, especially the flat bottom. Spray rinse. Let it sit in the sun for an hour or so. Then bring it back in and either wipe it down with vinegar (inside of it) or spray it with a Lysol kitchen spray, let it sit for a minute or two and wipe it clean. THEN, let it completely air dry, before putting a new bag in it.

That should solve the problem, if you have odors in the can itself. It may also be that you have thrown in more pungent items recently that spoil more quickly, particularly if your home is hotter inside than normal right now.

Any kind of meat (cooked or uncooked) will reek in a short number of hours. As will any sort of melon rind (watermelon, cantalope, etc).. veggie peels aren't usually a problem. But melon rinds can take your breath away after just overnight.

Good luck.

If you are not using the disposal I am wondering how often water is going down that drain. It could be sewer gases coming up the pipe if it's getting dry inside. The water in the crook keeps sewer gas from coming up the pipe so make sure you run water a minute or so every day.

Pick up your trash can, does it smell bad? Question answered if the answer is yes.

If the trash can does not smell and you cannot see any food residue in the bottom or sides of the disposal it may be time to call in a maintenance man.

I always keep an open box of baking soda in the bottom of the indoor trash cans....it works wonders for smells.

I suggest:

Clean your trash can inside and out with soap and water.

Lysol it.

Take out the trash each night after dinner is cleaned up.

If your can doesn't have a lid, get one that does.

Run ice and oranges down your disposal to help with the odor in there.