It turns out there's a super simple and easy way to get rid of unpleasant odors lingering in any room of your house, as one TikTok content creator recently shared with her followers.
How it works
"Did you know white vinegar is a great natural deodorizer?" cleaning, decluttering, and home maintenance specialist jryansolutions (@jryansolutions) asked her followers. "Grab a bowl, take your vinegar, pour that into the bowl, and just let this sit in whatever room you need to deodorize."
"This super easy hack comes in handy when I, you know, overcook Brussels sprouts," she wrote in the caption.
@jryansolutions How to use white vinegar to deodorize a room! This super easy hack comes in handy when I, you know, overcook Brussels sprouts 😱✌️‼️. Just pour some in a bowl, and let the vinegar absorb all of the smell. Disclaimer: Watch your kids and pets around this bowl! Place it in an area that's out of reach. 🙏🏼 Follow @jryansolutions for more cleaning tips! @jryansolutions @jryansolutions @jryansolutions #cleaning #cleaninghacks #nontoxiccleaning #howtoclean #homecleaning #homecleaninghacks #vinegarhacks #naturalcleaningproducts #naturalcleaningtips #cleantok101 #cleantok #fypシ ♬ original sound - jryansolutions
Other experts agree. "Vinegar can help neutralize odors in the home, such as in the kitchen or refrigerator," Katie Dills, senior vice president of The Cleaning Authority, told the Martha Stewart website.
According to Apartment Therapy, "The acetic acid in vinegar neutralizes alkaline odors, which means it can help get rid of cooking smells cheaply and easily."
How it's helping
Other odor removal products on the market may come with some unwelcome side effects, both for the environment and for your health, and are more expensive than a jug of vinegar.
According to the UMass Amherst Environmental Health and Safety page, "Air fresheners can impact indoor air quality by adding potentially hazardous pollutants to the air … [and] can add VOCs and other pollutants to the air through direct emissions from fresheners as well as through secondary reaction products from the freshener chemicals reacting with constituents (such as ozone) that are already in the air."
"Whether it's an aerosol bottle, plug-in, oil, scented candle or gel, if a product promises to clear smells, chances are it harbors toxins that pollute indoor air quality," The Washington Post wrote in an article on the topic.
According to a study from the National Library of Medicine, "Fragranced consumer products, such as cleaning supplies, air fresheners, and personal care products, are a primary source of indoor air pollutants and personal exposure. Previous research indicates that fragranced products can trigger adverse health effects."
That's why it's always a better option to go with more natural, less chemical-reliant solutions, like vinegar, when finding cleaning solutions.
What everyone's saying
Vinegar can be useful in many other home cleaning solutions, as the article on the Martha Stewart website pointed out.
"You can also do equal parts with water and your favorite essential oils into a spray bottle and use it as a fabric freshener," a commenter on the TikTok video wrote.
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