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The only true way you can understand how to control, combat, and eliminate odor is to understand some fundamental facts and factors. There are four primary principles of odor control that you need to understand:
- Remove the source
- Clean the source area
- Recreate conditions of penetration
- Seal the surface
Remove the Source
The initial and most fundamental principle of odor control is removing the course of the stench. Indeed, the number one reason that odor control doesn’t succeed is because of a failure to fully and completely remove the source of the problem.
Take for example an odor situation involving a dead mouse, a rodent whose remains are somewhere in the ductwork of a residence or business. A layperson nearly always lacks the skill, experience, and resources necessary to access the ductwork at a residence or business. Consequently, if a rodent such as a mouse dies in the ductwork, it may prove impossible for a layperson to access let alone remove the source of the odor, the mouse remains.
The issue with removing the source of odor needs to be taken a step further. There are situations in which fabrics and other soft items or objects in a home or business become contaminated by or infused with a particular stench. On some level, these soft goods become an added source of the odor.
The possibility does exist that a professional may be able to eliminate an odor from a source object like sofa cushions or a mattress. However, it is also possible that even a pro may not be able to accomplish such a task. As a consequence, a stench cannot be fully eradicated from a location if contamination of this nature exists unless the malodorous object is eliminated.
Clean the Source Area
Oddly, the principle of cleaning the source area, scrubbing the location where the odor originated, is a step in the odor elimination process that oftentimes is overlooked. Many people have an understandable inclination to launch forward to the final principle discussed here once the source of the odor is removed. (The final principle is to seal the surface where the odor had existed.)
The example of the dead mouse in a home or business is helpful here as well. Assume in this instance that a mouse died on the floor of a storage closet in a home or business. A decomposing mouse will result in contamination of the surface upon which it rests. That contamination can include odor infestation.
Once the source is removed, in this case the dead mouse, the area must be fully scrubbed. The area must be deeply scrubbed to ensure that any trace residue of the cause of the odor, (in this case, biomatter from the dead mouse) is completely eliminated.
Recreate Conditions of Penetration
The third principle is known among professional odor cleaning companies as recreating the conditions of penetration by the original odor being combated. This is accomplished using suitable deodorants or a combination of deodorizing agents, to the full extent possible.
In order to completely eliminate a foul stench, more than simply masking it needs to happen. The surest course of removing a foul odor is to engage the services of an odor remediation professional. An odor cleaning company has access to commercial-grade deodorization agents and equipment necessary to accomplish the remediation of a foul stench at a home or business.
Due to the nature of a foul stench, the only truly sure way to access commercial-grade agents needed to accomplish this objective is through the engagement of an odor remediation company. Yes, there is a cost associated with hiring a pro. However, when that expense is offset against the “diminution in value” (decrease in value) of a property because of a persistent foul odor, engaging a professional typically is deemed as being an appropriate investment and reasonable expense.
Seal the Surface
The final principle associated with odor control and elimination is sealing the surface. Hearkening back to the example of the mouse, once the mouse remains are eliminated, the area cleaned or scrubbed, and the area deodorized, the final step is to seal the surface. The sealing of the surface involves the use of a suitable sealant to “lock-in” any molecular remnants that may remain in the aftermath of the trio of proceeding tactics.
There are commercially available sealants that prove highly effective at “locking in” any lingering molecules associated with the initial cause of a stench contaminating a home or business. As is the case with other aspects of the comprehensive odor remediation process discussed here, there are commercially available sealant projects that prove far more effective than what a consumer can get his or her hands on even after undertaking a diligent search for the most suitable, effective sealant.
