How to Get Rid of Those Bad Smells in Your Kitchen Sink
There’s nothing worse than entering your kitchen only to be sent fleeing by a terrible smell. You try taking out the garbage, but nope, the culprit is your kitchen sink. Regardless of your sink type and whether or not you have a garbage disposal in Las Vegas, NV, here’s how you can successfully rid your sink of that awful odor.
Start simple with boiling water
Sometimes hot water is all it takes to refresh your pipes. If you have leftover water from cooking, dump it down the sink while it’s still piping hot and see if that eliminates any mild odors. Hot water kills the bacteria that causes the foul stench. If hot water isn’t quite clearing the smell, try hot vinegar instead.
If pouring boiling water down the kitchen sink doesn’t remove the odor, you’ll need to add some stronger cleaning agents, but keep that hot water handy, as you’ll likely still need it to flush out cleaning products.
The tried and true baking soda and vinegar method
This easy fix only requires ingredients you likely already have in your pantry.
You may recall from science class that baking soda mixed with vinegar makes a bubbly reaction, which helps it reach all the spots in your drain. Add one part baking soda down the drain and two parts vinegar. Let it sit and fizz for a few minutes, then add boiling hot water to rinse thoroughly.
For extra gunk-clearing abrasion, add one part coarse salt before adding the baking soda and vinegar. If you’d like to add a fresh smell and have the time, substitute fresh-squeezed lemon juice for vinegar.
When you’re finished with the baking soda cleanse, you may want to ensure your kitchen sink really smells great. Add more baking soda plus a few drops of essential oils down the drain and let it sit for at least an hour or overnight. In the morning, rinse with hot water for a refreshing kitchen smell.
Cleaning your garbage disposal
If your kitchen sink reeks and you have a garbage disposal, there are a few more tricks you can try to keep it fresh.
As always, start with hot water to kill bacteria. Fill the sink with several inches of hot water and add liquid dish soap. Unplug the sink and run the garbage disposal to let the hot, soapy mixture run through it. The dish soap cuts grease while the large volume of water allows the disposal to fill completely.
If your garbage disposal still smells, you may need a more aggressive method. Add ice cubes, coarse salt and lemon peels to the disposal and allow it to run. The ice whacks any food off the blades while the salt scours the sides. Lemon peel is added for freshness and is good to run through your garbage disposal whenever you have leftovers.
Keep your garbage disposal and your kitchen sink smelling clean by regularly flushing with hot water and liquid soap or baking soda, depending on your kitchen.
Are DIY remedies still not enough to clean your kitchen sink in Las Vegas, NV? If so, call Orchard Plumbing for a disposal drain cleaning. When you choose Orchard Plumbing, you can rest easy knowing that we’ll quickly fix your kitchen sink, garbage disposal or any other plumbing problem you may have.