Due to the fibrous nature of carpets, they have a tendency to hold odours for a long time. This can be a nightmare if you have pets. Even once you’ve gotten the stains out of a carpet, the odours can linger for months.
Thankfully, there are a variety of products on the market that aim to neutralise odours in your carpet, either by removing them or masking them.
If you’re struggling to get odours out of your carpet, you should try a carpet deodorising product before you try ripping your carpet up.
To help you find a product that’ll meet your needs, we’ve rounded up a few of the best carpet deodorisers on the market.
Best Carpet Deodorisers in the UK
1. 1001 Carpet Fresh Pet with Thai Orchid
Bottle size: 300 ml
This carpet spray from 1001 is designed specifically to tackle pet odours. 1001 is a brand owned by WD40, so their reputation is certainly good. They make a few different carpet deodorising products, but this one is specifically formulated for tackling pet odours.
It has a fresh Thai Orchid scent which does a surprisingly good job of covering up the smell of dogs. So, if you’re looking for the best carpet deodoriser for dog smell, this might be a good place to look.
Dealing with pet odour is really tough, so this is one of the best options shy of having your carpet professionally cleaned if you’re a pet owner.
2. Glade Shake n’ Vac Fresh Lemon Carpet Freshener
Bottle size: 500 g
Glade are a company renowned for their scented products. This carpet deodoriser is no exception. It’s available in a range of scents, though we’re specifically looking at their Citrus Blossom scent.
Simply shake the carpet deodoriser powder over the carpet, leave for a few minutes, then vacuum off. Once vacuumed, it should leave your carpets cleaner and fresher than before, with a soft citrus scent.
Unlike the 1001 product above, this carpet deodoriser isn’t specifically formulated for pet odour. However, the manufacturer suggests that it’s good for pets, tobacco, and cooking odours. In fact, this product would likely do a very good job with most common household smells.
3. Sta-Kill Deodoriser Concentrate
Bottle size: 750 ml
Sta-Kill Deodoriser Concentrate is a heavy-duty deodoriser designed for tackling the worst stains, such as urine. They advertise it to people who drive taxis and work in care homes. This stuff is quite powerful.
The only downside is that the product itself has a very strong smell that lingers for a few days, comparable to a hospital disinfectant. However, if you’re dealing with strong unpleasant odours, it can be a preferable option.
Whilst this is probably overkill for most day-to-day household odours, it’s a great last resort for tricky stains, or simply as an emergency cleaner for when the worst happens.
4. Vanish Carpet Gold Foam
Bottle size: 600 ml
Vanish Carpet Gold Foam isn’t just a deodoriser, it’s also a carpet cleaner. So, if you need to refresh your carpets completely, this product from Vanish is a great way to do it. Simply spray the foam onto the carpet, brush it in, then vacuum once dry.
It’s a super easy way to remove troublesome stains from the carpet, or to simply refresh an old carpet.
Allegedly, this product helps to remove pet hair from carpet as well, which can be a major source of pet odour.
Whilst it’s not as strong of a deodoriser as many other products, the cleaning properties certainly help make this product useful.
It’s best used as a first response to a stain, helping to remove the odour at the same time.
5. Neutradol Sniff ‘N’ Purr Carpet Deodoriser
Bottle size: 350 g
Neutradol’s Sniff ‘N’ Purr is the perfect deodoriser to help combat pungent pet odours that have become embedded into your household furnishings.
In order to protect your furry friends from damage, the formula is both hygienic and nontoxic for use around your home.
The formula has been developed to eliminate the foundation of bad odours by removing the molecules that cause the smell, rather than attempting to mask it like various alternatives.
That being said, the scent of the deodoriser is quite powerful, so be sure to take it slowly at first to know how much you need to use.
How Can You Make Your Carpet Smell Good?
There’s nothing worse than a smelly carpet. If your carpet smells less than fresh, you will quickly find that your entire home does. Fortunately, there are some easy ways to tackle this common problem.
Carpet cleaner or carpet shampoo
Using a carpet cleaner or carpet shampoo is easily the most foolproof way to leave your carpet smelling better. If your carpet is very dirty and smells bad, a carpet cleaner will work wonders. If the carpet just smells a little and needs a quick refresh, the household favourite that is Glade’s Shake n Vac will suffice.
Products such as Shake n Vac simply need to be sprinkled across the floor, left for a couple of minutes, and then hoovered up. If you do need a more intensive clean from a product like Vanish carpet foam, you will need to spray this on the carpet, brush it in, and then vacuum it up once it has dried.
Bicarbonate of soda
Most of us have bicarbonate of soda in our kitchens, but you may not have been aware that it works as a very effective deodoriser.
Simply sprinkle a generous amount of bicarbonate of soda across the carpet, and leave it to sit. If the scent is not that strong, a couple of hours should be more than enough. If the odour is really bad, you might need to leave it overnight. At the end of that time, simply vacuum up the powder.
If you want to add a fragrance to the mix, simply put a couple of drops of your favourite essential oil in a bowl with two cups of bicarbonate of soda, and shake the mix together until evenly distributed before using as above.
Vinegar
If the unpleasant scent is musty, it could be because mould or mildew has gotten into the fibres of the carpet. A good way to tackle this particular issue is with distilled white vinegar.
To use this method, simply mix one part distilled white vinegar with one part warm water in a spray bottle, and give it a good shake to mix thoroughly. Spray the carpet, and leave it to air dry.
If the odour is very strong, sprinkle bicarbonate of soda on the carpet before you spray the vinegar, and hoover the carpet once the vinegar has dried.
How to Prevent Your Carpet from Smelling Bad
If you want to avoid needing to deodorise your carpet regularly, you’ll need to prevent the problem before it occurs. This is especially crucial if you have pets or small children.
Ventilation
Keeping a room well ventilated at all times, especially in summer, can go a long way to preventing nasty smells from taking hold in the first place. Just opening one window will work wonders, but the effect will be even better if you can open two windows across from each other to create a through-breeze.
Not only will this whisk away nasty smells quickly, but it will also reduce the humidity level in your home. This will reduce the likelihood of mould or mildew building up.
Hoover and clean regularly
Keeping your home clean and carpets hoovered can also help keep odours at a minimum as it will keep the levels of bacteria and dirt in your home as low as possible.
Deal with spills when they happen
Spills are one of the most common culprits of odours, and this is especially true if you have pets or children. The best way to tackle this problem is to clean up the spill as quickly as possible.
Conclusion
If we had to pick just one carpet deodoriser to recommend, it would be 1001’s Carpet Fresh Pet with Thai Orchid. It’s great for removing pet odours, especially those from dogs, and will quickly get your carpets smelling fresh again.
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