How can I remove a terrible smell from a freezer chest?
Answers:
This is about a refrigerator, but I think it would apply to a freezer. Several things you can try:
a. Spread baking soda out on shallow pans (like shallow glass casseroles, pie plates, or jelly roll pans lined with foil) and put pans on shelves to absorb odors, or on the bottom and in baskets of chest freezer. Leave open and unplugged.
b. Buy activated charcoal (which is specially treated to remove odor molecules from air) at some department store housewares sections, appliance store, or pet shop. Spread out on shallow pans and put on shelves of refrigerator. Turn refrigerator on low setting and run empty a few days so odors will be absorbed.
c. Spread cat litter in shallow pan in cabinet, turn on and run empty a few days. If odor is disappearing but is not all gone, replace old litter with fresh litter.
d. Pour several ounces imitation vanilla (not pure extract) in a shallow saucer, put on shelf and let run empty a few days.
e. Put fresh ground coffee in cereal bowls inside the refrigerator and let run empty several days. A slight coffee odor may remain, but will disappear after washing again with baking soda solution.
f. Pack each refrigerator shelf with crumpled newspaper. Set a cup of water on the top shelf or sprinkle the newspaper lightly with water. Allow refrigerator to run for approximately 5-6 days. This method takes a bit longer but has been effective in removal of strong odors.
g. Buy a commercial odor remover, and follow instructions exactly. Several companies manufacture a liquid concentrate which sells for about $3.00 for 1/4 to 1/2 ounce. A couple drops are put on a piece of cotton and placed in the area to absorb odors, in the cabinet or in a room.
Other answers:
Baking Soda
Baking Soda
Use dilute bleach water.
Dilute it with regular bleach 10 to 1 with water.
You might try using a Power Washer. Painters use them to wash sides of houses before painting. Use Bleach and baking soda and power wash the sucker.
Try keeping it outside and open for a few days and continue using bleach. You could also try Pine-Sol. A Borax solution, such as Mule Team, would also help. When you try to clean it again, try getting into the little nooks and crannies and more porous surfaces, like the seal around the door, which might also be harboring the odor.
Good luck!
Baking soda and three or more charcoal
clean it out ,...spray with Lysol then put 2 boxes of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda ( made for refrigerators & freezers ) ...and you are done !
I found an inexpensive product at Sam's Club, so Wal Mart may have it as well. it is called "Odo Ban". I have used this product to comepletely go through a house that was like a sewer. It works great. I have been told that fire restoration companies use it to clean after fires as well. Hope this helps
Wash and rinse using a strong soap and bleach 2-3 times and while the interior is still wet coat the inside with baking soda and reseal for 10-15 hours (but don't turn the freezer on). There should be noticeable improvement upon reopening and it will be ok for use. Keep baking soda in the freezer as you operate it for as many weeks as it takes for the smell to fade completely(you might have to change it out a few times).
If you've already done this and the smell remains I would suggest scouring the interior and the seals with an industrial strength hose and soap. If possible fill the interior with water and allow it to soak for a while.
If your using the Arm&Hammer freezing packs that look like pouches full of bakingsoda cut them open/buy a regular box of soda and spread it around every surface. The idea is to allow the granules to absorb nearby particles causing the smell and if the mess was really bad the packs aren’t going to be as effective as spreading it around.
I understand not wanting to throw out a brand new freezer!
Good Luck!
Armus
First of all, the freezer needs to be unplugged. You need to leave the door open for a couple of days so that it will "air out" and not be in this mode of freezing and reviving small organisms. The problem with a smelly freezer is that the surface area of an organism that is living inside is so large in comparison with it's actual body size that A) we don't see it, and B) it is smelly and will defrost when you open the freezer door and this will leave you with a foul odor! After a few days of air, most of the grodiness will be gone (dead). However, you will then also need to use bleach to get any smelly remnants/reminders out! I would suggest dousing the whole freezer with bleach and allowing it to stay there and fester (kind of like the gross bacteria you're trying to get rid of). Once it has permeated (3hrs. -1 day, minimum) you can spray it with a hose and be delighted that your olfactory senses are not being assaulted by "smells" anymore from your freezer! Hope this helps!
an old home remedy that works.crumple up a lot of newspapers loosely,and fill the freezer.close freezer door,and allow papers to remain for a week.may take 2 or 3 applications to render the odor gone.good luck
It sounds like the putrid liquid seeped into the insulation through cracks and seams on the inside. The only possible way to save the freezer is to remove the inside liner and pull out all the contaminated insulation. Clean with bleach then spray with a commercial odor killer spray. Reassemble the freezer AFTER it has completely dried. If it has a fan run it with the lid open for a couple of hours before using. Good luck!
I've used odorban as well and it works on lots of things, but refrigerators and freezers are extremely difficult to deoderize. You might try it to see if it will work, otherwise, I would unplug it and put deactivated charcoal on large cookie sheets and leave a day or two. If memory serves, I was told that if the unit is running, the air inside will retain moisture in it which will nullify the effects of baking soda, charcoal and other methods. Good luck.
what's probably happened is that the food got into a crack. Make sure you clean the outside as well. I also suggest buying pure lemon juice, and pouring that around. Also, it might be that the smell got into the surrounding garage or wherever it was kept. Try moving it to see if the smell is the machine or the area.