Eliminating Bad Odours in a Rental: The Guide

The property is spotless, the bed perfectly made. Yet the guest opens the door and wrinkles their nose: it smells musty, of stale smoke or drains. Smell is the first sense triggered on arrival, even before sight. A bad odour creates an instant impression of dirtiness in just three seconds, which two hours of cleaning cannot undo, and it almost always ends up in the review. The good news: every smell has an identifiable cause, and every cause has a lasting solution.

Why odours cost more than you think

Around 95% of guests mention cleanliness in their review, and a suspicious smell is always interpreted as a sign of poor cleaning, even if the property is immaculate.

This is a direct financial issue: a cleanliness rating below 4.8 stars leads to around 20% fewer bookings, according to the same analysis. And lack of cleanliness is among the top three problems reported by guests, cited by 33% of them (ConsumerAffairs).

Another key point: an air freshener solves nothing. Masking a smell of smoke or damp with a room fragrance creates a sickly mix that tells guests you are hiding something. The only sustainable strategy: identify the source, treat it, then prevent it from returning.

Diagnosing the source: the 15-second method

The trap with odour diagnosis: you get used to it. After 10 minutes in a property, your nose stops noticing anything. The right protocol, at the start of cleaning:

1. Enter the closed propertyAnd note your very first impression, within the first 15 seconds: this is what the guest will experience.
2. Go room by roomAnd describe the smell: acrid (smoke), earthy (mould), sulphurous (drains), rancid (cooking grease), sour (damp textiles).
3. Check the usual suspectsDrains, bin, fridge, sofa, mattress, washing machine, extractor fan.
4. Record the source in the property fileA smell that returns despite cleaning signals an underlying issue (leak, ventilation, seal).

This diagnosis takes less than 5 minutes. If you outsource, put this odour check at the top of your Complete Airbnb Cleaning Checklist: Never Miss a Spot: it is the only point no photo can prove.

Smoke smell: treat the surfaces, not the air

Stale smoke soaks into porous surfaces: textiles, carpets, painted walls, furniture. Airing out is never enough, as nicotine and tar remain fixed. The effective protocol, in order of priority:

Prevention: clear no-smoking rule in the listing, outdoor ashtray provided, systematic odour check at check-out.

Damp and mould: the musty smell that ruins reviews

The "cellar" or musty smell comes from stagnant damp and mould, often invisible. It plagues properties left closed between stays and bathrooms without windows. Key points to check:

Prevention: air out for 10 to 15 minutes at every clean, even in winter, leave internal doors and shower curtain open between stays, place a moisture absorber in properties left empty for more than a week.

Kitchen: grease, fridge and bin, the trio to neutralise

The kitchen generates three types of odours, each with its own solution:

Rancid grease. It settles on the extractor hood, splashback, and tops of wall units, often missed in most cleans. Degrease with black soap; wash or replace the extractor hood filter every 2 to 3 months (a saturated filter constantly releases the smell of frying).

The fridge. Empty it completely at every departure, including condiments "left for the next guest". Clean shelves and door seal, rinse the water collection tray at the back (a little-known source of odour). Between spaced stays, leave a ramekin of bicarbonate inside.

The bin. Wash the bin itself once a week in high season. Never leave a bag, even half-full, between stays.

Add the dishwasher (clean the filter, run a monthly empty cycle with vinegar) and the microwave (bowl of lemon water for 3 minutes) and you cover most kitchen smells. As for products, the trio bicarbonate, white vinegar, black soap is enough, but never mix vinegar and bleach: the combination releases toxic fumes, as the ANSES warns regarding chemical risks of cleaning products.

Drains: the recurring smell of sewage

A rotten egg smell almost always comes from the traps. Two mechanisms:

• The trap is clogged: hair, soap and grease ferment. Pour half a cup of bicarbonate then a cup of hot white vinegar, let it fizz for 30 minutes, rinse with boiling water, do this monthly, with a full dismantle at the quarterly deep clean.
• The trap has dried out: in a property left empty for several days, the water in the trap evaporates and sewer gases rise up. This is the number one explanation for the "mystery" smell after a quiet spell. Solution: run water for 30 seconds in every drain (basins, shower, sink, washing machine outlet) before each arrival.

This point must be on the pre-arrival checklist: a trap can dry out even in a perfectly clean property. If the smell persists despite clean, filled traps, suspect a sealing issue and call a plumber, this is a building problem, not a cleaning one.

Textiles, bedding and sofa: odour reservoirs

Textiles absorb and release all the property’s smells: sweat, cooking, pets. Critical points:

The anti-odour routine to include in every clean

Winning the battle against odours is about repetition, not one-off blitzes. The routine to standardise, for an extra 5 minutes per clean:

At every changeover: 15-second odour check, through-draught airing throughout, bins AND containers checked, fridge emptied, water in all traps, laundry washed at 60°C.

Every month: bicarbonate + vacuum on mattress, sofa and rugs; empty cycles in washing machine and dishwasher with vinegar; traps treated; extractor fan grilles dusted; duvets and pillows machine washed.

Every quarter: extractor hood filter washed or replaced, traps dismantled, shower seals checked and treated, curtains washed.

Formalise this routine in a checklist for each property: this guarantees consistent results, whether cleaning is done by you, your regular cleaner or a last-minute stand-in. And favour natural neutralisers over synthetic fragrances, see our detailed approach in the Eco-friendly cleaning in short-term rentals: a guide guide. The target smell for a property ready to welcome guests is not "orange blossom": it is no smell at all, with a hint of clean and fresh laundry.