Burnt smells can be tough to remove as VOCs (or volatile organic compounds) like smoke and burnt food odors cling to your walls, curtains, furniture, and more.
Luckily, there are a few steps you can follow to get rid of burnt smells for good.
Make sure that the burnt smell you’re sensing is not coming from anything that is actively on fire, and please call 911 if you cannot locate a source.
1. Take whatever you’ve burnt outside the house
If you’ve burnt some food, you may be tempted to simply place it in the trash, but this can cause the smell to linger in your home. The best practice is to take the burnt food outside and place it in a garbage bin.
2. Open your windows and doors to let fresh air in
By opening your windows and doors and allowing fresh air to circulate, you’ll be able to get rid of most bad odors, including burnt smells. Sometimes the simplest things work wonders.
3. Thoroughly clean burnt pans and pots
First, fill the pan/pot/skillet with white vinegar until all stains are covered and let it sit for two hours before scrubbing. Next, bring to a boil a mixture of equal parts of water and white vinegar before letting it cool down so you can scrub off all remaining traces of burnt residue.
4. Spray white vinegar on surfaces
Wipe down countertops, cabinets, stovetops and other surfaces after spraying them with a mix of one cup of white vinegar and one cup of water. If available, you can add 10-15 drops of essential oil (lemon or grapefruit are great) for an additional scent boost.
5. Wash your fabrics and furnishings
Washing your clothes, kitchen apron, and curtains is relatively easy, but if the smell has seeped into your furniture, you’ll need a steam cleaner to completely eliminate the burnt smell.
If you don’t have a steam cleaner, you can spray the vinegar-based cleaner you made for step 4 on your sofa, cushions, and fabrics. You’ll definitely smell the vinegar for a little while, but the smell will dissipate relatively quickly.
6. Spread some baking soda
Baking soda can be very effective at absorbing odors. Simply spread a generous amount of baking soda around the worst impacted area in terms of smells. For bad cases of burnt smells, you can try placing small containers of baking soda throughout the room.
7. Place a jar with used coffee grounds
Just like baking soda, coffee does a fantastic job of absorbing odors. First, dry wet coffee grounds by spreading a thin layer on a baking sheet and placing it in a 250-degree oven until dry. Next, move the dried coffee grounds to a jar and leave it open near the spot where burnt smells are an issue.
8. Get some charcoal bags
Charcoal is surprisingly good at absorbing foul odors, so something you can try is placing some charcoal bags near the source of the burnt smell.
9. Spray some lemon water
Pour two cups of hot water into a spray bottle and add 1/8 cup of baking soda and 1/2 cup of fresh-squeezed lemon juice. One mixed, simply spray it in the air wherever you notice the burnt smell.
10. Get an air purifier with a good activated carbon filter
By far the best way to eliminate a burnt smell from your home is by using an air purifier with a filter packed with activated carbon because this is the only type of air filter that can remove odors and gases from the air.
When looking for an air purifier, also look for a device with a high Clean Air Delivery Rate or CADR. CADR is a measure of how efficiently an air purifier can cycle and clean the air, so the higher the CADR count, the quicker the smell will be removed.
For burnt smells in the kitchen, my recommendations would be going for something like the Levoit Core 400S (with a Smoke Remover filter). For large kitchens, check out the Dyson Big+Quiet BP06 or the IQAir HealthPro Plus. And if you are struggling with burnt smells from chemicals, then you will need a lot more activated carbon so check out the Austin Air HealthMate.
I hope my tips today help! And if you have any questions about using air purifier to remove unwanted smells from the air, please drop them in the comments below.
