When you enter a flooded house, you will notice a prominent musty smell. The smell comes from materials that have been soaked with the flood water for many days. The mold that develops on the surface in the area will also release a musty smell. Getting rid of the musty smell is important for preserving the health of your family.
The first step is to open all the doors and windows to allow air to enter the house. Doing so will increase the ventilation in the house. The fresh air from outside will help to clear away some of the smell in the flooded room. It will help if you can install an air freshener in the area. The air freshener can be made by yourself, for example, boiling lemon water in a pot and then leaving it in the room. You can use a fan to help you spread the smell throughout the room.
Baking soda can be sprinkled on items with a musty smell. For example, you can pour some baking soda on a carpet and use a broom to evenly spread them all over. The baking soda should stay on the carpet overnight in order for it to effectively remove the odor. You can mix baking soda with some water and use it to scrub the area thoroughly. After that, you should let it dry on its own. After a few hours, you can use a vacuum cleaner to vacuum the particles. If the musty smell comes from the wall, make sure the wall is completely dried before working to remove the smell.
If your upholstery has a musty smell, you can fill some white vinegar in a bottle and spray it. The upholstery will smell like vinegar afterward but the smell should dissipate quickly. Vinegar also works well for removing musty smell on clothing and curtains that have come in contact with the floodwater. You can add 2 cups of white vinegar to the washing machine when washing your clothes and curtain. Vinegar is effective for killing mold and mildew.
Another method is to put cat litters in containers around the room to absorb the musty smells. The cat litter should be changed every day for optimal deodorization. The method does not work well for households that have a cat as your cat may mistake that you put the litter for her to use. You can get help from a professional restoration company if there continues to have a musty smell after you have tried all the methods to remove it. Professional restoration companies are equipped with special equipment such as an ozone generator and hydroxyl machine to remove the musty smell. They can identify the source and get rid of the mold in the area.
