One of the most powerful senses in a human being is the sense of smell. Smell can teach us a lot about our environment, whether the smells we perceive are particularly bad or good. They can tell us what we should eat and drink as well as whom we should associate ourselves with. They also tell us where we want to stay. A place that smells nice is welcoming, while one that smells bad is considered uncomfortable.

Your home is a particularly important place in this respect. It’s where you spend your most intimate moments. It is your sanctuary and refuge. It should, therefore, be welcoming. That is especially true now that spring is upon us. The outside is fresh and smelling nice. You want your home to smell just as good, so it is welcoming to your visitors.

That said, you don’t make a place smell good by spraying your favorite air freshener on every ugly smelling thing. That doesn’t really solve the problem, at least not permanently. You actually do not want an overwhelming scent in your house, whether good or bad. Heavy fragrances can be quite uncomfortable, especially for people with allergies. What you want is something subtle. Your house should smell almost like nothing, with just a little hint of something good here and there.

So how exactly do you achieve that? Well, here is your guide to getting your house to smell perfectly fresh this spring:

Get rid of the Bad Stuff

• Moisture

Moisture is the main cause of bad odors in houses. The first step to getting rid of it permanently, therefore, is to begin by tackling the moisture. A good first step is to get yourself a hydrometer, which you can use to measure the moisture in all of the rooms. Humidity in the indoors should not exceed 60%. Past that point, you will want to get yourself a dehumidifier.

If your climate is of the humid variety, then you should avoid things like rugs or carpets that run wall to wall as they can trap lots of moisture. You should also keep an eye on things like towels and sponges, which can be small sources of moisture. Replace your sponges regularly and keep your towels dry.

• Garbage

This is pretty much obvious, and you should get rid of it before you can consider making your house smell better. Think of garbage cans, litter boxes, and all other sources of bad smells in the house. These are all obvious sources of bad scents, but they have a way of tricking us. When we spend a lot of time around them, our noses sort of get used to them and just mask their smells. Basically, our noses adapt. This can cause us to forget getting rid of them. On the one hand, getting used to familiar smells can be a good thing, since it allows you to more readily identify smells that are out of the ordinary, such as smoke. However, it can also mean not recognizing the stinks coming from your own garbage bin.

You should, therefore, remind yourself to empty the garbage and clean your garbage bin regularly, as well as such things as pet beds and litters. Garbage pails are also a good idea because they force you to take the trash out.

• The Fridge

The fridge is yet another common source of bad smells. Here the actions to take are fairly straightforward. Start by throwing away anything that is past its expiration date. Check your fridge once every two weeks and get rid of the stuff that does not deserve to be in there.

You should also scrub the interior of your fridge thoroughly, soaking drawers and shelves in hot water with plenty of soap. You should also wipe the interior down with white vinegar mixed with water to completely disinfect it. Never use bleach to clean your fridge.

• The Soft Stuff

Things like linen, upholstery, pillows, and carpets have a way of harboring all kinds of smells, including the very worst of them. Once you spill something on your rug and wipe it away, the bacteria that cause the odor can still be left behind. It can also lead to the development of mildew and mold, which are dangerous for our health.

Have your upholstery and carpets professionally steam cleaned at least once annually. You should also clean your window covers, bed linen, and throw pillows according to the instructions on their labels. If you can’t handle it yourself, just call in a professional to do it for you.

Bring in the Good Stuff

Once you have got rid of the obviously bad stuff in the house, you can bring in some of the good stuff and introduce some great smells around the house.

• Candles

Candles are a pretty effective way to get the right smells permeating throughout your house. All you need to do is place them strategically then let them do the rest of the magic. You can place them in places that can absorb the smells easily, such as closets and other places with lots of fabrics, you won’t even have to light the candles.

• Indoor Plants

One of the best ways to make your house smell great this spring is to bring the outside in. Indoor plants will help you do that. These plants have a way of cleaning your house and will offer lots of pleasant and natural smells for the house. Go for plants like corsage orchids, gardenias, geraniums, and Cuban oregano. They also come with an added bonus. Not only will they make your house smell nice, but they will also make it look nice as well, which is a plus for your interior style.

• Windows

“This is pretty much the easiest hack you can apply to get your home smelling like heaven,” says Alice Urquhart of Best Essay Writing.

Remember, it’s spring, which means the outside already smells great and you want to let some of that goodness into your home. What better way to do that than to simply open the window? Keeping your windows open helps to air out the house, especially when there are odors lingering in the house, such as smells from your cooking, or the smell of paint or anything else involved in home improvements. The window will allow a breeze in the house and make all the difference in the smell of your house.

• Stove Simmers and Scent Jars

If you want your house to have a natural scent, there is a way you can do it naturally: stove simmers. Get some water simmering in a saucepan and add herbs like mint and lavender, as well as some slices of lemon. The heat will cause the scent to travel throughout the house and get it smelling nice and fresh.

You can also extend the idea to mason jars, where you add simmering water to mason jars with lemon slices and herbs as well as dried apples and cinnamon sticks then hang them in strategic spots around the house. The effect is absolutely magical!

Remember, the idea isn’t to get strong positive scents in your house. Even a good smell can be overwhelming when there is too much of it. Instead, you want your house to smell as neutral as possible with just a hint of the good stuff. Follow the tips in this article, and your house will practically smell like what heaven must smell like!

About The Author:  Scott Mathews is a writing expert that works at Assignment Masters. He also contributes columns to AssignmentGeek. He is known to have written some of the best dissertation papers for these two services.