How to Deodorize Carpet: Tips to Eliminate Odors for Good

Even the cleanest homes with carpet can develop a smell of their own, but sometimes it interferes with your relaxation, ability to entertain, and your health and safety. When carpet odors become too much, you need to know how to eliminate them completely or you’re going to be fighting a losing battle. Let’s tackle the issue at the source, so you can enjoy your space to its full potential. 

 

What Causes Carpet to Smell?

Carpet smells for a variety of reasons. Most likely, your carpet odors are the result of a convergence of events, especially if it’s been a while since you cleaned or replaced them. Here are a few of the common reasons carpet smells:

Trapped Moisture

Excess humidity or leftover water from a previous clean can get trapped in your carpet and the underlayment, leading to mold and mildew growth. Plumbing and appliance leaks can also easily go undetected in a fully carpeted room, which can creep up on you later. 

 

If you suspect trapped moisture is the cause of your carpet odor, you can try running a dehumidifier in the space to draw out the remaining liquid before it can contribute to further water damage. 

Tobacco Smoke

Smoke lingers on everything, especially if occupants habitually smoke indoors. Whether you’re a landlord inspecting the property at lease-end or a new homeowner making the space yours, carpet may not show tobacco stains as easily as walls and other fabrics, but it can still harbor unpleasant smells. If you find the odor lingers and you can’t find the source, carpet can be a likely suspect.

Pet and Child Accidents

Kids and pets are incredibly unpredictable. They get into everything, and sometimes they get sick, or endure normal potty training and housebreaking missteps along the way. You may not always catch these accidents immediately or have the time to fully clean them every time. Spilled milk, lingering urine, and other built-up debris can definitely contribute to unpleasant carpet odors.

Old Age

As carpet ages, it breaks down, which can lead to chemical off-gassing and other odors. If old age is the culprit, you may notice your carpet breaking down in high-traffic areas and producing a strong musty smell. Carpet can last anywhere from 5 to 15 years, but quality and maintenance play a big part in that lifespan.

Insufficient Cleaning

Carpet has its benefits, but it’s also demanding. Maintaining carpet requires a careful and consistent regimen. If you’ve failed to quickly clean up spills, regularly vacuum, or do a thorough deep clean in your recent memory, your carpet may be trying to tell you it’s time. 

How Do You Get Bad Smells Out of Carpet?

Your instinct to clean bad smells out of carpet is correct, but it can be hard to know where to start. We’ve compiled a few natural and chemical solutions to remediating carpet odors before calling in the big guns. 

How to Get Odor Out of Carpet

Here are 8 tips for deodorizing carpet:

Baking Soda

Before you go out and buy an expensive deodorizing powder, start with baking soda on carpet. Simply sprinkle it all over the suspected odor source, and be generous to ensure it penetrates all the layers. Leave it for at least 24 hours, then carefully vacuum it and dispense the contents in an outdoor trash can.

Vinegar

Vinegar is a powerful deodorizer that can be used in a few ways, but you’ll have to cope with the smell of vinegar for a short while. To attack the odor at the source, carefully spray your carpet and then dab up the vinegar fully. You can also boil vinegar or leave small bowls of vinegar near the odor to try to absorb it from the air.

Club Soda

Club soda, like vinegar, can be used as a spot treatment in a pinch. If you notice a recent carpet stain, spill, or odor, dab the moisture out of the carpet, apply a small amount of club soda, then dab it again. Repeat as many times as necessary. 

At-Home Carpet Cleaner

Small appliances, like hand-held and vacuum-style carpet cleaners, can penetrate deeper than methods you can do by hand. They also use carpet cleaning solutions designed to extract as much dirt, debris, pet hair, and other potential odor sources. 

Enzymatic Cleaner

Pet smells aren’t like other smells and they’re often compounded by your pet’s ability to detect the smell again and again, leading to long-term bad habits. Pet supply and Big Box stores will likely have a fully stocked section of pet accident tools, but be sure to look for the magic word: enzymatic. These cleaners have special enzymes that break down leftover urine from past accidents and eliminate the likelihood of your pet returning to that spot. 

Air Purifier or Ozone Machine

Sometimes, you need a little extra help. Bringing in a HEPA air purifier or an ozone machine can truly breathe fresh air into your home by filtering odor-causing particles. With this method, carefully read the instructions and take any precautions outlined in the manual. Many ozone machines require you to vacate the property while they’re running. 

Activated Charcoal

Activated charcoal is a natural sponge. It’ll work like a natural filter to attract odors and particles from the air. Leave small bowls of activated charcoal in the room you suspect the odor comes from, but be careful to put them out of reach of children and pets. It can cause adverse health effects in large quantities, but it can stain in even small amounts. 

Proprietary Carpet Deodorizer

If you’ve tried everything else and are unsure what else you can do, it may be time to consider premade products. Ask around for recommendations or try a few products at once to find the best option for your odor and carpet material. Even a quick search online for “carpet smell remover” returns hundreds of options. 

When You Need to Replace Your Carpet

If you’ve already tried everything you can to get the odor out of your carpet, the best thing you can do is replace it. Here’s how you know it’s time to replace your carpet:

• Stains are old, set-in, and difficult to remove
• Evidence of water damage
• Irreparable bald patches, tears, and discoloration
• Lumps, bumps, wrinkles, and excessive padding wear
• Carpet is older than 15 years
• Previous homeowners smoked, had children, or extensive pet damage

Once you’ve reached this point, it’s important not to delay replacing or removing the carpet as the problem will become worse, and even negatively impact your health. 

Tips for Maintaining Your Carpet

The key to maintaining your carpet is keeping it clean. While you can’t stop life from happening near your carpet, a few good habits can extend the life of your investment and keep it looking beautiful longer:

• Ask guests to remove shoes before entering
• Employ door mats near entrances and exits
• Address spills and accidents as soon as you notice them
• Consider professional cleaning twice a year for high traffic areas
• Use carpet protectors
• Vacuum daily

Is DIY or Professional Carpet Cleaning Better?

Neither DIY or professional carpet cleaning is necessarily better than the other, but it depends on the kind of results you want. DIY carpet cleaning can be an option if you’re on a budget, already own the tools, or prefer to take a hands-on approach, but you may need to spend more time and elbow grease to get comparable results. Professional carpet cleaning may cause a disruption to pets and children, but it ultimately can go further than consumer-grade products because it’s a more intense process. 

Add Carpet Cleaning to Your Liberty Home Guard Home Warranty

Carpet cleaning doesn’t have to be out of budget. If you want to enjoy the benefits of professional carpet cleaning at a reduced price, bring it up with your sales representatives when you request a custom quote. Rather than pay the upfront cost for carpet cleaning, adding it to your plan allows you to pay the benefit in installments, so all you have to do is pay the service call fee to request service. 

 

Liberty Home Guard home warranties are designed to meet you where you are. We offer three plan tiers, priced competitively, that cover a variety of systems and appliances. You can also further customize your plan with our long list of add-on options, many of which you can’t find from our competitors.