Getting rid of an unpleasant odor in a thermos is quite difficult, especially if it has not been used for a long time. There are several effective methods that will help make this process much easier. A musty or musty smell is a sign that microorganisms have begun to actively multiply inside the container. Therefore, as soon as you smell a slight “smell,” you must immediately take measures to eliminate it.
The most effective ways
Soda solution.
Ordinary baking soda is one of the most effective methods in combating this problem. With it you can kill even the most disgusting smell in a few hours. You need to pour a few tablespoons of baking soda into a thermos and pour boiling water into it. Close the container tightly and after three to four hours, shake the liquid thoroughly. During this time, the solution will begin to act and neutralize the existing problem. It also actively fights mold, which may begin to spread inside the container.
To enhance the effect, add vinegar to the soda solution. After just an hour of using this liquid, the thermos will be ready for use.
At the end, be sure to rinse the container under running water.
Saline solution.
Regular table salt has the property of neutralizing unpleasant odors. To do this, you need to pour 5 tablespoons of salt into a thermos and pour boiling water on top. Close the container tightly. The solution should act for 10-12 hours. After this time, the thermos must be washed thoroughly.
To avoid such trouble, after washing the container, dry it well and store it unsealed.
Rice grains.
No less effective is the method of eliminating the musty smell in thermoses using ordinary rice. This product has the property of absorbing all foreign substances and aromas.
Pour half a glass of rice into the container, then pour boiling water over it. Close the thermos tightly and shake the rice mixture vigorously. Then pour it out and wash the container thoroughly. For the best effect, it is recommended to keep the cooked rice inside the thermos for at least three hours.
Mustard powder.
Mustard is known to everyone as an effective remedy against old fat and dried food residues. But it also copes well with disgusting odors. If you pour mustard powder with water (you can even use cold water) and leave it for 8 hours, you can not only eliminate foreign odors inside the container, but also thoroughly clean it from scale and plaque.
Rinse the clean thermos under running water and dry well.
Acid.
As you know, lemon has antiseptic and absorbent properties. You can also remove a bad smell from a thermos with its help. To do this, squeeze the juice of the fruit into a container, fill it with water up to half, close and shake well. The acid will cope with foreign odors in a matter of minutes. After that, pour out all the contents and rinse the thermos.
You can also replace the juice of fresh fruits with citric acid.
Vinegar.
One of the most common methods for getting rid of a musty smell in containers is rinsing with a vinegar solution.To do this, fill the thermos with up to half the volume of water and add 2-3 tablespoons of ordinary vinegar. Close the container and shake. Finally, wash it thoroughly under running water and dry.
Tea.
Tea brewing is a lesser known method of eliminating unpleasant odors. But few people know that this is one of the most effective ways. As you know, tea has absorbent properties and is able to absorb various types of substances. Musty smell is no exception. To fix the problem, you need to pour 2-3 teaspoons of tea leaves into the bottom of the container, pour boiling water over it and leave for a couple of hours.
This method also has one significant drawback - brewing, especially from black tea, leaves a coating on the walls of the thermos, which is quite difficult to remove. To do this, you need to wash it from the inside with the hard side of a sponge and soda.
Rose hip.
The rosehip infusion will not only absorb all the unpleasant odor, but will also fill the thermos with a pleasant aroma of freshness that lasts for quite a long time. To prepare the infusion, rose hips must be poured with boiling water and poured into a thermos. After 5-7 hours, the contents can be poured out. At the end, you need to thoroughly clean the thermos from any deposits that have formed.
Activated carbon.
This product has been used since ancient times to remove unpleasant odors. Until now, it is coal that is placed in all kinds of water filters and refrigerators to absorb various kinds of odors.
To eliminate the aroma of rot in a thermos, you need to add several tablets of activated carbon (depending on the volume of the thermos), close it tightly and leave for a day and a half.
Chemicals.
Many household goods stores now have special products designed to eliminate odors from dishes. As a rule, they are diluted with water and the container is rinsed with the resulting liquid. The smell is removed after the first use. True, such products have one significant drawback - they are made on the basis of chemical flavors (floral, fruity) and after rinsing, this smell eats into the walls of the thermos and negatively affects the taste of food or drink. This can be avoided if you use the products in small quantities. But this is not always a guarantee that “dish soap” will remove the smell of rot.
Coca Cola.
A rather specific method of combating foreign odors, but quite effective. Pour hot Coca-Cola into a thermos and cover it loosely with the lid. Leave overnight. During this time, the drink will not only eliminate the unpleasant aroma, but also cleanse existing plaque. In the morning, pour the contents out of the thermos and rinse it under warm water.
Bleach.
Such products are most often used to clean dishes from plaque and scale. But they also cope well with odors. True, this method is not suitable for containers with aluminum seams. The aggressive substances contained in bleaches can corrode the seams and, therefore, the dishes will become unsuitable for further use.
Prevention
Eliminating an unpleasant odor from a thermos, which has lingered for a long time and has become embedded in the walls of the vessel, is not so easy. Therefore, to prevent the problem from happening again, you need to adhere to several basic rules:
- After each use, it is necessary to thoroughly wash the container with detergent under running water;
- if the container has a thin neck, you need to clean it with a special brush. In any case, you can't just rinse the container under warm water. Dried particles on the walls can be the main cause of foreign odors;
- do not hide wet dishes in the cupboard. Let the thermos dry well beforehand;
- store the container exclusively in the open. Blocking the air supply can lead to the spread of bacteria inside the thermos, which most often collect in hard-to-reach places of the flask. By the way, special attention should be paid to its cleaning.
