Room Suddenly Smells Like Garlic | How to Get rid of it?

Garlic is delicious and tastes great with steaks, chicken, and pizza. However, the smell that it leaves behind is not so delicious. These odors result from the oxidation of the garlic’s oil, which contains the variable sulfur compound, allicin. Allicin is what gives garlic its intense flavor, and it’s also what causes a garlic smell when it comes in contact with oxygen. Do you also wonder why your room suddenly smells like garlic? Let’s find out.

Room Suddenly Smells Like Garlic

Unsurprisingly, a household can develop an unpleasant odor from their garlic-infused foods and cooking preparations. The smell of garlic can be overpowering and may linger for several hours after cleaning. There are a couple of reasons why this happens. One is that when garlic bulbs go through the pickling process, they release ethyl alcohol into their brine, and ethanol dehydrates whatever food has been sitting below them for too long. Let’s discuss some other reasons as well.

Room Suddenly Smells Like Garlic | How To Get Rid Of It?

The most common cause of any volatile sulfur compound smell is poor ventilation. If an odor is pungent, it’s probably because it’s trapped in the air inside your house. The smell of garlic can often cling to the person’s hands after it has been chopped or crushed. When this happens, people have been known to rub their hands on nearby surfaces and inadvertently transfer the smell to those surfaces.

Causes of Garlic Smell

Raw Garlic: One of the most common reasons people notice the smell of garlic at home or anywhere else is because there is too much raw garlic nearby; the smell penetrates everything, and it can become overwhelming for some individuals. 

raw garlic

Cleaner: The second most popular reason for the odor of garlic to be noticed is Garlic Toxicity. There are several over-the-counter medications and home remedies that contain garlic. Some people prefer to use it because of its powerful germ-killing properties, but others find that the smell of garlic can become incredibly strong and even overpowering.

Air Ducts: If you have a garlic-tinged odor permeating the house, your heating and cooling system may be the culprit. Allowing water to collect in the air ducts can lead to an unpleasant, musty smell mistaken for garlic.

The most common cause for a musty smell like garlic is the stagnation of water in the Ducts, leading to mold growth and possibly, an odor like garlic. To eliminate this problem, you must identify all of the ducts in your home. These are typically found behind walls or inside soffits and crawl spaces.

Solutions to Eliminate Garlic Smell

Fortunately, there are a few easy ways to solve this problem. Here are four simple steps to eliminate your garlic smell.

There are a few ways to evict a garlic smell from your room. 

  • Open the window to let fresh air in and circulate the smell out 
  • Place an air purifier in the room   
  • Sprinkle baking soda on carpets, couches, and curtains to absorb any remaining odors
  • Rub sliced lemon or grapefruit on furniture and walls to rid the room of the odor
  • Place a bowl of vinegar in the room
  • Vacuum rugs and carpets thoroughly to remove all excess debris
  • Spray some Febreze on all surfaces where the garlic odor is present
  • Steep several sprigs of fresh mint in boiling water 
  • Make a pot of strong coffee and leave it on to get rid of smells
  • Boil brown sugar, cinnamon powder, cloves, and nutmeg in water, then simmer for 15 minutes 
  • Dry the pot out and store in a cool, dry place 
  • Bring the mixture to a boil again, and it will have a pleasant scent

When the room suddenly smells like garlic without having garlic: When your house smells like garlic without even a piece of garlic, there must be something else that you have forgotten to look at or have not thought about. Here is a list of the leading causes of a house that smells like garlic without any garlic. 

Garlic Smell

It’s not as unusual as it may seem to smell like garlic in your house, but what might cause it? A few reasons for this are either:

  • Garlic’s natural content permeates even when no fresh product is used
  • Absorption of garlic’s natural contents through the skin
  • Kitchen that may have been used to cut or prepare garlic
  • Garlic bread crumbs on the floor and gnawed on by a dog or cat
  • Garlic products used in cooking as an ingredient or a base for a meal
  • Garlic eggs from the grocery store’s refrigerator, and you accidentally break or drop it
  • Excessive ventilation in the kitchen leads to garlic smell outside the kitchen
  • Yeast infection in the shower room, which leads to a garlic odor

FAQs | Room Suddenly Smells Like Garlic

Why do Bathrooms smell like Garlic?

Add garlic and other ingredients to make dinner for your family. As you walk out of the room, you notice a strange smell coming from your bathroom. You wonder what could be causing this smell when you suddenly realize it’s coming from your drain. Unfortunately, garlic has a particularly pungent smell and can linger long. When cleaning your kitchen, you often put dishwashing detergent down the drain and other food scraps. This mixture goes down your sink and into the sewer pipes outside your home. Struggling with 

Is Garlic smell in the house toxic?

The smell is considered harmless, but it will make your cooking more difficult. The odor of garlic makes people nauseous and gives off hydrogen sulfide, which causes bad breath and headaches. It is not toxic, but it could be dangerous if it comes into contact with the skin or eyes.

Why does my hand stink like garlic when I haven’t touched it?

If you’re not a fan of garlic-laced meals, this isn’t the best way to get rid of that gut-wrenching garlic stench. While it is true that some will smell like garlic after eating it, most will not. Your body has a way of breaking down and ridding the toxins released when you eat certain foods. So, if you want to avoid smelling like garlic when you’re done with that meal, consider incorporating more healthy foods into your diet. This way, your body will start to change the toxins into something it can dispose of, and it will probably not smell like garlic. 

Conclusion | Room Suddenly Smells Like Garlic

If you ever noticed that the room suddenly smells like garlic, there’s a reason. Garlic contains unique sulfur compounds that have been found to have antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiparasitic, anticarcinogenic, and anti-inflammatory properties. The sulfur compounds are mainly found in the garlic cloves but can also be present in the skin. 

Garlic contains compounds that stimulate the production of certain enzymes, including lipase (lipid digestive enzyme), which breaks down fats in the diet. Garlic also contains antioxidants, mainly diallyl sulfide, which have strong antibacterial properties and can help protect the body from free radical damage. It has been used for thousands of years to treat various health problems, from heart disease to diabetes. So, eat garlic but clean your house to get rid of the smell.

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