The Hands-Down Quickest Affordable Fix For Your Smelly Pantry

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You head over to your pantry to grab some pasta for dinner and you notice this odd smell. It could be a mixture of scents from all the different food you keep in there, or just a lingering musty odor — one you might find in a basement or attic. Only this is your pantry, and it should have a clean odor. Before you start inspecting your pantry to clean it out, there's one thing you can do to quickly get rid of that smell.

The secret? Baking soda. There are plenty of unexpected uses for baking soda, and this might be one of them. It's super affordable, quick, and easy to use. How many boxes you will need depends on how big your pantry is. You can put the baking soda in a bowl or jar with holes in it or just tear off the top of any baking soda box. Place it in your pantry, and it will soak up all those bad smells. If you want to make the process even easier, Arm & Hammer makes fridge and freezer packs that are designed not to spell and are meant specifically for absorbing bad odors. They have tear-off front and back panels so air can waft through and get deodorized, all without you having to open the package.

There's some actual science behind how baking soda works to get rid of bad odors. The sources of many bad smells are acidic in nature, but baking soda is alkaline. When you introduce that alkaline substance to the acidic odor in the air, it neutralizes that smell. That's why the odor disappears when you put baking soda on the shelves. This is just one of the many clever things you can do with baking soda in your kitchen.

There are some things you need to do on a regular basis to keep your pantry smelling fresh. For example, it's recommended that you replace your baking soda boxes every one to three months to keep everything smelling fresh and clean. After that, the baking soda may not work as well at absorbing and neutralizing odors as when it was fresh. While you're doing that, remove everything from your pantry and wipe down your shelves before putting everything back. This ensures any spills and dust gets cleaned away.

About once or twice a week, you should assess your pantry. Any fresh fruits and vegetables you keep in there need to be looked at to see if any have started to turn. Look for fuzzy mold spots or dark spots that indicate the produce is rotting. Remove anything that has begun to rot before it spreads to the other produce and creates a smell, not to mention ruining the whole stock of produce you have in there.

Even your dry ingredients could create an odor. While that smell probably won't be as unpleasant as rotting fruits and vegetables, it can still contribute to the off-putting scent in your pantry. This is why you should use airtight containers for your rice, pasta, flour, sugar, cereal, and any other food you stock on your pantry shelves. It will keep your food fresher longer, and can even prevent it from attracting pests.