The best way to clean house

You probably think this post is about how to fix the House of Representatives after Matt Gaetz screwed the pooch on Kevin McCarthy. It’s actually really simple and should have taken place on Jan 7, 2021 after a whole bunch of Republican’s in the House, who were elected in the same election that Joe Biden was, decided to vote against accepting the results. All of them, should have been removed from office, tried for treason, and their opponents sworn in.

But, this post isn’t about that. It’s about how to deal with what AirBnB guests can do to your home to stink it up. It’s what I’ve been dealing with for the last 3 weeks- after I had a 75 day stay by an Airman and her wife- and their 3 dogs and 3 cats.

Whatever the dogs and cats did, it was nothing close to what they did to cover it up. There were nasty smelling “plugins” in two places, a Glade spray stink can in the laundry room, and an empty can (probably one of many) of Renuzit sitting it. The house stank of chemical “air freshners.” This was in a house where I use fragrance free everything because I’m allergic to it- and many guests are.

I started out by vacuuming the place. I’ve used a lot of different vacuums from a Kirby, to a Panasonic to a Rainbow, but I still love my corded Dyson Animal. The ergonomics of this vacuum from the way it handles the cord to how you can quickly get a wand, or the attachments for edges, to how you can take it apart without tools makes it amazing. I vacuumed the place twice, I cleaned the two internal filters. Unfortunately it still wasn’t stink free. Here’s an Amazon link for a Dyson Animal- thank me later. Prime day has the price at $399

Dyson Animal 3 Vacuum ^[1]

Next step was to clean the carpet. I had a Hoover carpet cleaning machine, I used it twice, and the smell was still there. I’d tried using OdorBan in it, still smelled. I was lamenting it’s horrible design, wishing Dyson made a carpet cleaner. The next day, the NY Times Wirecutter section had a review of carpet cleaning machines ^[2] and they recommended the TINECO CARPET ONE Smart Carpet Cleaner. Use this link for 15% off Best $225 I ever spent ^[3]. And then navigate to the product page Tineco Carpet one smart carpet cleaner ^[4]

It isn’t as perfect as the Dyson- but it cleans the carpet, where the Hoover didn’t. It’s tanks are smaller, the voice warnings to fill and empty tanks are annoying, the cord is too short, but it worked wonders.

I’d also tried my favorite Odor killing solution: OdorXit. It’s done wonders everywhere in the past.

It’s a concentrate you mix with water- and spray. Or try adding to the carpet cleaner. I used this once on a rental I managed where someone left a dead pet dog in the house. It was the only thing that worked. Odor Xit at Amazon ^[5].

But, the smell was still an issue. I asked my professional carpet cleaner company to come, and he said, you probably need an Ozone machine. I looked on Amazon and found this Tesiplz Ozone Negative Ion Generator ^[6]for about the same as I could rent one locally.

Plug it in, turn it on- and leave. A few hours later, wow. Much better. But, the next guests, 3 weeks later, still noticed a smell, especially when the furnace came on. Now, you’re probably thinking, he didn’t change the furnace filter, but, nope, I’d actually done it twice. I’ve also now wiped down every surface in the place, and aired the place out for multiple days.

We’re now waiting for quotes and dates for doing a complete duct cleaning service. I’m at a point, where it’s this, or replace the 1 year old carpet. I reached into the cold air return as far as I could and pulled out a ton of pet hair, so, I’m hoping this is the solution. BTW- I had a tenant in the same house for 7 years with a cat, and it never smelled.

AirBnB’s aircover is a farce. they’ve wasted more of my time and jerked me around way too much, trying to make out like I somehow couldn’t prove the place smelled. How exactly am I supposed to email proof of a stink? The last 3 guests mentioning it after 2.5 years of flawless reviews should be a good indicator.

Now, the question is, will they reimburse the duct cleaning? Stay tuned.

And, most of these links, are affiliate links- and will get me a small kickback on sales. Considering this blog isn’t monetized with ads, if you’ve liked it, please consider clicking through.

I really can’t stress how much each of these products has made my life easier- and helped me keep my AirBnB’s awesome. I absolutely love the Tineco and my Dyson. Treat yourself. There’s nothing like having a really clean house- for rent, for yourself, or in Congress.