Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

Lifestyle Parenting, Household Affairs and Cuisine corner
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i live in a 2 bedroom apartment. I am unable to keep the desi cooking smell out of my apartment. I keep the bedroom door close while i am cooking but the cooking/food smell remains in the rest of the apartment all the time.

Seriously i am sick of this.. my hair, clothes, coat, handbag smells, my aprtment smells. I feel marinated in desi food smell.
What should i do… Please share what you guys do to keep the smell out of your homes/apartments and from yourself.

I would :ban:cooking desi food all together if it wasn’t for my husband.:wink:

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candles might help..

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

We have a product called Febreeze, its a spray mist for carpets, furniture, curtains etc. It works pretty well. Then there are air-freshener sprays which contain odor remover. Oust is a good one.

Also, do you have an overhead fan on your stove? If you turn that on while cooking on the stovetop, it will help prevent oily steam from getting on the walls.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

first ewwwwwwwww

Now if you have little spare fan and a window close to stove you are not out of luck.
When you cook put that little fan in the window facing OUT and let it run on full speed.
This is an additional fan to the fan you already have built in the stove.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

As MO3 said febreeze is excelant for damage control.
Alyaws have in home.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

It is too much work to keep the house smelling good. Read the following.

Keep the fan above your stove top running for two hours after you are done cooking do not turn it off immediately after cooking. It has charcoal filter which absorbs the odor and filters the air. Change that filter frequently.

Keep many sets of potpourri(a mixture of wood shavings, twigs etc.) is used for the fragrant smell. They are not very expensive and are available in all stores in different fragrances. Try some of those out and see if that helps. But again, potpourri loses the fragrance after a while, so you either have to get a new bag or pour some of the fragrant oil(which can be bought separately in bottles) on top.

Change your clothes and take a bath after you are done cooking.

As Mo3 said above.Use Febreze on carpets, sofas, drapes , closets etc. which absorb the odors (they even have an air freshener now) . Make purchase of this magic part of your weekly grocery bill. Do not just spray it over spray it.
I use one product which is available at sams club in a galon size it is called odoban http://cleancontrol.com/ it works like magic. Many of my friends asked me the secret of our home smelling free of desi cooking odor and smelling good and they now use this product.Use it two three times a day.

Keep all the door and Windows open while cooking which open outside of the apartment. If your neighborhood is not pre dominantly desi do not do it otherwise you might see a nasty note from one of neighbors. :hehe: I did get one in Chicago.

When you are cooking try to cook two three dishes at a time so they will last for many days and will save you from cooking again and again and save that smell of food to seep into your home and belongings every day three times a day.

When you are warming up your food always keep it covered while warming it.

Anything you put in the fridge or freezer has to be in put in a ziplock bag or airtight container . Even the fruits and vegetables should be put in the ziplock bag before putting them in fridge. Nothing should be put in fridge in an open container or on its own.

Twice a year, get your carpet and fabric furniture steam cleaned.

Wash your drapes frequently.

P.S: keep the fan of your air coditioning or heating systeme running while you are cooking and afterwards for 2 three hours it filters the air out of that food smell too.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

thank you soooooo much for all your advice. I am going to purchase the Odo Ban from samsclub today.

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Hey I have a long list of things for you to do , odoban is not the only thing which will help you with it.

If you over spary odoban it makes all the family members start coughing for few minutes. You or someone at home might have allergic reaction so do not buy the gallon the first time buy just one spray bottle to experiment.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

yea, burn some candle...lol

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

if you have a range hood with the filters, that helps a lot.. just keep changin washing the filters monthly or so... i resent food smell but thank god i have a good exhaust that throws air outside of the kitchen... and i keep it on full for the whole time something is cooking. fan in the window if u have a window in the kitchen or a powerful suction exhaust are ur best bet.. all those sprays candles and potpurri only covers the smell for a little bit..

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You have to be very carefull about candles and incense sticks(agar batti) you might end up accumulating black soot ( dhoowan) on your walls, roof, and other stuff. Buy some very expensive candles of some reputed brand.

GS Apprentice - TEAM 2 (Task 1)!!!!!!
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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

i have a cheap exhaust fan over the stove and i keep it on for a long time.. but it does not do much.
I am going to try and do everything Mirch as suggested. thank you

GS Apprentice - TEAM 1 (Task 1)!!!!!!
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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

Salam Hin , long time no see , busy ?

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

this is why I dont cook desi food! when ur non-paki friends come over, they expect your place NOT to smell like masala dosa!

GS Apprentice - TEAM 3 (Task 1)!!!!!!
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It is not related to whether you cook desi food or not.
It is how you take care of your house to kill all kinds of odors.
It is all in one's own attitude toward life . Like the thread starter cares and she asked the question here. Like many of my friends noted that when they come for a party they expect my home to smell like biryani and qorma but it does not and the take a note of it and then they care to ask and then when they go back to their homes , they take advantage of my experiences.

Many non desi have pets which can make home smell like hell but since they have pet they make sure that they take care of the issues which come with the responsibility of owing a pet.

I work at a company which has many office building in the office campus and one of the buildings smells like mold all the times and nobody cares. I try to avoid to go to that building as much I can.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

We had the same problem growing up but now I make a HUGE effort to rid the house of masala-smell. When my mom starts cooking, I open up the windows, fan goes on, doors close, exhaust is on and she starts getting mad at me, lol.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

Mirch, I have printed out your tips and posted it on my fridge.
I'll be following everything you have advised. Thank you very much.

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Re: Smell in my aprtment.. how do i get rid of it.

yes prevention, ie like mirch said, rather than cover up is the solution.

close the door to the kitchen and make it air tight top and bottom. Use extra fan and window method very good idea.

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:k: You will live happily ever after now , Inshallah.

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If u burn a candle close to the stove while cooking the smell wudn't permeate thruout the house.. during dawats I burn "oud" or an oil incence burner...

U can also get rid of the smell if u sprinkle cinnamon powder on orange peels and place them on a baking tray and turn u're oven on.. the smell is yummy!