You step outside and the weather is cool, crisp, and fresh. It smells like leaves, pine, apples, pumpkin spice and maybe just a hint of someone’s fireplace. Then you walk back inside the house and say… WHOA! What is that smell?!?

Once the windows close and the AC goes off, we suddenly discover every mysterious smell our homes have been quietly collecting all summer. 

But here is the good news: making your home smell amazing is not about spraying enough fragrance into the air to cover what is hiding in some mystery location. The secret is getting rid of the stink at the source. Find it. Clean it. THEN bring in those warm, cozy fall scents.

So open up that cleaning cabinet, put on your cozy sweater, and let’s make the air inside feel every bit as fresh and inviting as that beautiful fall air outside.

Let's Go! 👇

Your number one odor culprit is almost always the obvious one: the garbage. Take it out every single day, from the kitchen, the bathroom, everywhere. That one simple habit removes the lingering smells before they ever get comfortable. Then, at least once a month, clean the can itself with my DIY vinegar mix: 1 cup white vinegar, 1 cup water, and a teaspoon of Blue Dawn dish soap. The vinegar neutralizes odors while the Dawn cuts through the grease and grime that build up over time.

While you are at it, do not forget the kitchen sink disposal. Old food and grease love to build up in there and get nasty. Clean your sink, then drop in a garbage disposal cleaning pod, run it, and enjoy a fresh scent instead of a science experiment.

This one is a bit of an investment, but in my experience it is 100% worth it. A good air purifier traps the dust, debris, and floating particles that quietly contribute to a stale-smelling home. Three things to get right when you buy one: make sure it has a HEPA filter, which pulls out the finest particles; make sure it is sized correctly for the room, because an undersized unit just cannot keep up; and replace or clean the filter on the schedule the manufacturer recommends.

Skip that last step and you have basically bought an expensive fan. A dirty filter defeats the entire purpose of running the machine.

Every fall, millions of people flip on the heat and immediately wonder, "What is that smell?" Congratulations, you have just met the aroma of Vintage Vent No. 5: notes of old dust, forgotten pet hair, and whatever has been hiding in your vents. Your furnace has been quietly collecting dust all summer, and the second the heat kicks on it blasts all of it straight into your rooms.

Start with the vents. Floor vents are where dust goes to die. Lift the covers off, vacuum inside the duct opening as far as your hose reaches. A vacuum brush attachment plus a damp microfiber gets them looking new in about two minutes each.

Then change the filter on your furnace or AC unit. (If you are in a warmer climate) A dirty filter gets stinky and pushes that odor through the entire house, and a fresh one traps the dust and particles that cause smells in the first place. It also helps your system run better and last longer, so put it on the calendar and never let it sneak up on you.

Now for the fun part. Once you have removed the bad smells, you get to add a good one, naturally. A stovetop simmer pot is inexpensive, all natural, and usually made from stuff already sitting in your kitchen. My favorite fall recipe: chop up one orange and one apple, add a few cinnamon sticks, a teaspoon of whole cloves, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Cover with water and let it simmer low on the stove for a few hours.

Your whole house fills with a warm, cozy aroma that store-bought sprays cannot touch. Just keep an eye on the water level, because it evaporates as it works.

My Clean Freak Fam, a fresh-smelling home does not start with candles, sprays, or pumpkin spice. It starts by finding what stinks and cleaning it! 

Remove the stink at the source, then add the cozy. Take out the trash daily, clean your disposal, run a HEPA purifier, change the furnace and/or AC filter and let a fall simmer do the finishing touch. Do these things and your home stops smelling "lived in" and starts smelling like the place everyone wants to be.

This way, your home does not just smell clean. It actually is clean. And Clean Freak Fam, that is one fall fragrance you can enjoy all season long! 🏡✨

💫Clean Freak of October:

Jen wrote in and shared how Brandon’s dishwasher pod trick really made a difference:

“I just used your tips on using a dishwasher pod to clean my oven racks. Wow! That was unbelievably easy and they came out looking like new! Love your tips and tricks.”

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Thanks so much for joining us at Clean Freak Weekly!

Brandon