DIY Commercial Deodorizing & Scenting Tips

Don’t Leave the Scent of Your Business to Chance

Businesses have many options when it comes to scenting their facility. Perhaps, the most obvious option is going to the store to buy widely available air freshening plug-ins and sprays. But there are much more effective and far-reaching options available to you for commercial deodorizing. Think of scent as an important element of your interior design plan. The truth is, the way your business smells is just as important as how it looks. If it doesn’t smell clean, customers AND employees will assume it isn’t clean!

Make Your Restrooms Smell Good

Despite your best cleaning efforts, bad smells will taint the overall impression of your business. In fact, a study by Initial Hygiene, shows 77% of customers leave with a negative perception of a business that has unpleasant restroom smells. The condition of your restrooms speaks volumes about the rest of your facility. The overall perception of your business is judged by how fresh you keep your restrooms.

Identify the Source of Bad Odors & Eliminate Them: Conquering Odor Problems in Your Facility

The first step to deodorizing & making your business smell amazing is to find the source of any odors & eliminate them. Deodorize first & scent second. Over the years, we’ve seen all types of bad smells in commercial facilities. Sometimes, the odor source is obvious but other times there are sneakier, fleeting odors that are difficult to identify. Commercial deodorizing can be tricky, especially in larger facilities. From our experience, the most common odor sources that we see are:

Restroom Odors

The most common source of odor in restrooms is urine odor, particularly in the men’s room. Urine seeps behind the urinal & splashes on the walls. Mop regularly with a disinfect, behind and around the urinal.  Don’t forget to wipe down the walls! In women’s restrooms, watch for odor from feminine hygiene waste disposals. Empty the disposals daily & disinfect them regularly. Be proactive. Use urinal screens, toilet/urinal floor mats, & drip systems that release deodorizer & cleaning agents into the flush water. AeroWest offers a full line of restroom deodorizing products included in the service cost. Click here for more info on AeroWest’s restroom service.

Drain Odors

There are a number of reasons that drains may emit horrible odors. We encounter this in public restrooms, commercial kitchens, sinks, showers, & bathtubs.

Why Does My Drain Smell So Bad?!

Floor drains have a trap that’s designed to hold water in order to block sewer gases from seeping out. This drain trap can dry out, releasing sewer odors back up into the piping & into the air. Flush out your drains regularly with water or appropriate drain care products. Clogged drains are another common source of bad smells coming from your drain. The hair, food, & debris that collects in the drain is a breeding ground for bacteria & bad odor. To prevent this, keep your drains clean. Identify the type of smell coming from your drain & address it promptly to prevent the drains from rotting or becoming a bigger issue. AeroWest has a drain control system which consists of installing drain valves & treating your drains with eco-friendly drain fluid to completely eliminate drain odors & bugs.

Sewer Smell in Building

We’ve all encountered the smell of sewage or sewer gas at some time or another. Maybe it was walking down city streets, in your home, or in your building at work. So what causes that horrible odor?

Sewer gas is similar to the smell of rotten eggs and it’s produced by the sewage system. As waste materials decompose, they release smelly gasses. These gasses are a mixture of methane, hydrogen sulfide, ammonia and other chemicals.

More often than not, the smell sewage gas will usually be smelled in the basement. This is because it’s a heavier gas that “sinks” to the lowest level in a building. The sewage gas smells are caused because somewhere within or outside of the house, the rotten egg smell is not being vented and so it starts to accumulate.

When we smell this gas, many times it’s caused by a small problem, such as a dried out water seal in a floor drain. Drain odor control services are much cheaper than plumbing services and will usually resolve this. However, if it’s a more serious issue, a plumber will be required.

It’s not healthy to breathe sewer gas. In fact, sewer gas can be dangerous. Sewer gases are not only unpleasant, but can be dangerous.

Mold & Mildew

Mold & mildew cause that “musty” or “old house” smell. First, identify the source of the mold or mildew. We commonly see these issues in the walls, basement, or areas of high moisture and low ventilation such as elevator shafts.

If you are concerned about a mold issue, contact a professional to assess the situation.

For lesser cases, the best thing you can do is scrub down affected areas with a cleaner made for mold/mildew & ventilate the area the best you can. Open the windows & doors and let in sunlight. For moist areas, use a dehumidifier. Another great option to absorb the musty smell is activated charcoal. AeroWest uses an odor neutralizer with activated charcoal in the HVAC system. Don’t just cover the smell of mold/mildew with fragrance. Use products that will actually neutralize the odor at the molecular level.

Waste Disposal / Commercial Dumpsters

Another common odor source that we see is GARBAGE! The biggest complaint is dumpsters, but also with trash cans. Trash cans should be emptied and disinfected regularly. Dumpster odor comes from the decay of fruits, vegetables, meats, urine, etc. Any business with a dumpster can expect to experience these odors at some point, but it is worse in the heat of the summer. Don’t let the smell of trash affect your customers perception of your business. Get prepared for the summer before hand. Treat your dumpster with a commercial grade, bioenzymatic deodorizing spray or odor neutralizing granules.

At AeroWest, we use a commercial grade deodorizing spray that is sprayed directly into the dumpster to neutralize the odors. It contains our proprietary odor neutralizing technology that eliminates odors at the molecular level.

Maintenance is KEY!

Once you’ve identified & treated your problem areas, stay on top of it. Odor control is not a one time thing. Make it a part of your regular cleaning routine. If you’re still having odor problems in your facility, consider contact a commercial deodorizing service company like AeroWest.

Beyond Odor Control: Making Your Business Smell Amazing

Commercial Air Fresheners to Scent Your Business

There are tons of benefits to scenting your facility. Your customers deserve the added luxury of a pleasant ambient scent. Trust me, they will notice the extra effort you put in! Plus, it just feels good to walk into a building & be greeted by a nice, uplifting scent.

Scent Marketing

Scent marketing is a growing practice used by successful businesses. It increases customer satisfaction & loyalty, boosts sales, & creates a more upscale vibe. For more on scent marketing, check out our homepage🙂

AeroWest offers both odor control & scent marketing services. We work with our customers to help them choose the best scent for their facility & their brand. We have over 50 essential-oil based fragrances to choose from, plus we offer fragrance customization if you’d like to have your very own signature scent.

5 Tips For Scenting Your Business:

  • Avoid Aerosols – Installing an aerosol that automatically releases scent at specific time intervals may seem like a convenience, but you want to avoid this. Aerosols are messy, they pose a slipping hazard, can stain flooring, & contain harmful chemicals. The smell is often over-powering in enclosed spaces.
  • Use a Scent Nebulizer or Diffuser – Essential oil diffusers are becoming very popular. They’re effective devices with a wide variety of fragrance options. Plus, they don’t emit the chemicals that aerosols do. We prefer nebulizers to diffusers because nebulizers disperses fragrance across a larger area due to the smaller surface areas of the particles emitted. Our WestAir Nebulizer features programmable fragrance levels, with 9 intensities to choose from. We refill or replace the fragrance every 28 days & there is no charge for the nebulizer or any replacement parts.
  • Don’t Overdo It – Remember that a little goes a long way. You want a nice, pleasant scent in the background, not a super strong, overpowering scent. Look for devices that allow you to control the fragrance intensity & choose an appropriate fragrance dispenser for the size of the area you’re scenting.
  • Use a Different Scent in the Restroom – You don’t want your customers to perceive that your whole facility smells like the restroom. Use one fragrance in the restroom and another in rest of your facility. This will also help prevent noseblindness, as they pick up on different scents when crossing from the restroom to the rest of your space.
  • Follow Fragrance Trends – Fragrance is just like fashion. It goes in and out of style. Find out what’s trending now in our previous blog post on the top fragrance trends of 2020.

Should you Consider Professional Deodorizing or Scenting Services?

You can freshen your facility on your own, but you’ll be missing out on some great perks. Here’s a few reasons to consider hiring a professional:

  • Longer-lasting, 24/7 freshness
  • More options! (innovative air fresheners & tons of scents to choose from)
  • Saves valuable time & money
  • More effective than doing it yourself
  • Service is customized based on your needs & your budget
  • No inventory to maintain
  • Enjoy additional services such as hand cleaning services, fragrance customization, & drain care

Want to give our professional odor control & scent marketing service a try? Give us a call at 225-302-5570 or e-mail us at info@aerowest.com. For cool scent info, giveaways, & the latest AeroWest news, subscribe to our newsletter.