How long does baking soda take to get rid of fridge smells?
Baking soda typically needs to stay in the refrigerator for about 30 days to absorb moderate odors, but persistent smells can linger for a week or longer. If the baking soda is old or the source of the odor hasn't been cleaned out, the smell will remain despite leaving the box in the fridge.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Keeping an open box of baking soda in the fridge full-time and replacing it every 1 to 3 months.
- 2Removing and replacing all food
- 3Thoroughly cleaning the interior
- 4Using fresh baking soda and bowls of vinegar
- 5Cleaning dust from behind and underneath the unit
- 6Checking and adding bleach to the drain pan
- 7leaving an open container of baking soda inside
- 8cleaning the refrigerator with bleach or a favorite cleaner and leaving the door open
- 9discarding current food that has likely absorbed the odor
- 10throwing out suspected items
- 11Wiping down the interior with vinegar and water
- 12Spraying a mixture of white vinegar, warm water, and dish soap, letting it sit, and airing it out
- 13Buying takeout food and DoorDash instead of groceries
- 14Putting an open box of baking soda in the fridge to absorb odors
- 15Using white vinegar and cold water to soak the machine
- 16Leaving the washing machine door and detergent dispenser tray open between washes
- 17Finding and cleaning the appliance filter
- 18Avoiding fabric softener
- 19Running monthly cleaning tablets through a tub clean or regular wash cycle
- 20Physically scrubbing the rubber gasket and seals
- 21Wiping surfaces down with a mixture of water, white vinegar, and vanilla
- 22Using Odoban charcoal bags
- 23Leaving the refrigerator door open for an extended period (e.g., 2 weeks) and using a cooler in the meantime
- 24Leaving a bowl of vinegar or coffee inside the fridge
- 25Lining the fridge with newspaper and changing it frequently
- 26Using a cut lemon filled with salt
- 27Placing a UV light inside the fridge to kill bacteria
- 28Cleaning the refrigerator drip tray
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“How get off smell fridge”source ↗
“i feel like ive tried everything and my machine still smells off after a wash.”source ↗
“looked it up and theres like a million different methods and products and i genuinely dont know whats worth trying.”source ↗
“I left to go on a trip and when I came back, I found out that the power had gone out.. all of the food (especially meat) in my fridge was rotting.”source ↗
“I've tried cleaning it over and over, but for some reason, the rotting meat smell still lingers and won't go away.”source ↗
“I can't replace the fridge and it doesn't have a water dispenser, so I have no idea what else to do..”source ↗
“So my landlord lets me rent a room in his house and he’s a 80 y.o man and he likes to keep things past expiration date until it’s like no longer deemed eatable and sometimes it rots in his fridge and makes the fridge smell, I’m stuck buying take out food and DoorDash instead of groceries because it makes all food smell bad through packing and even leftovers smell sometimes and I don’t wanna hurt his feelings because he’s noticed and fixed it before but it’s repetitive and he doesn’t think about it .”source ↗
“How long should I leave baking soda in the fridge to get rid of bad smells ?”source ↗
“Now everything in there smells like it and affects the taste. I'v tried backing soda, but it hasn't helped.”source ↗
“Stuff it never touched tasted like it enough you noticed.”source ↗
“Same happen to me, Mix equal parts white vinegar and warm water in a spray bottle with a drop of dish soap.”source ↗
“This just happened to me too! I cleaned it with mr clean Then bleach spray several more times... But I had to leave the door open for 2 weeks to get the smell out fully.”source ↗
“I pulled the gasket/seal thing off my front loaded and soaked it in vinegar, then bleach, then that mold killer stuff in the green bottle that is amazing on showers. Plus physical scrubbing in between. Looked 99% when i was done, but it made it obvious that the idea of running some magical combo of cleaners for a cycle or 3 ain’t gonna do shit for actual buildup.”source ↗
Where this came up
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