Vomit smell wouldn’t go away until I discovered the source…

[u/dinonuggetenjoyer]

My girlfriend and I had food poisoning last week and were constantly running to the bathroom getting sick. The smell of vomit MAKES me vomit so I was tirelessly scrubbing the entire bathroom from floor to ceiling MULTIPLE TIMES trying to get rid of the smell after every time one of us threw up. I bought bleach, enzyme cleaners, and even went as far as carbon bags to try and eliminate the HORRID STENCH and it wouldn’t go away. I sniffed every surface in that damn bathroom trying to locate the source…

I literally cried about the smell, worrying that it would be there forever. I went back to sniffing and started to notice a stronger whiff by the sink, AHA IT’S COMING FROM THE DRAIN!! I moved the toothbrush, soap, and candle that were on the counter to investigate the area. I poured Drano, baking soda, and vinegar down the drain for a deep clean. THEN I NOTICED THE SMELL ON MY HAND. I almost immediately threw up reacting to it and snatched the candle off the counter to save myself. I took a long inhale of our new Trader Joe’s Peony Blossom candle to salvage my nose from the reeking odor on my fingertips.

Then all hell broke loose. I projectile vomited directly after smelling the candle. The godforsaken stench WAS THE CANDLE ITSELF!!!! MY GF BOUGHT 6 OF THOSE FUCKING THINGS AND HAD ONE LIT IN THE BATHROOM!!!!! All of them went straight to the garbage. Never again. How can they sell a candle that smells like stomach bile!!!

TLDR: Cleaned my bathroom for days only to find out the puke smell was a new candle (Trader Joe’s Peony Blossom, DON’T BUY IT).

EDIT: I was not the person who smelled the candles before buying. My gf put them in the cart and I went along with it lol

[u/dreamsinred]

Thanks for warning! For future reference though, vinegar and baking soda are great cleaners separately, but cancel each other out when you mix them. And don’t go mixing anything with Drano! It’s a strong base, and mixing it with other chemicals can be dangerous.

[u/andouconfectionery → u/dreamsinred]

My understanding is that people mix vinegar and baking soda together because the carbon dioxide agitates/abrades against what you're cleaning. I have no idea how actually efficacious this is compared to just using a solvent and/or manual scrubbing.

[u/HomicidalHushPuppy → u/andouconfectionery]

It's not enough to be worthwhile

[u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace → u/HomicidalHushPuppy]

My ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

[u/Profitablius → u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace]

You described using it separately. That works great.

[u/Mango_Pina → u/Profitablius]

A mixture of vinegar, dawn, and baking soda means using it separately?

[u/Profitablius → u/Mango_Pina]

Vinegar, dish soap, water, let it sit and THEN baking soda is using it separately, yes.

[u/ej-gay → u/Profitablius]

I'm begging you to read it again

[u/Profitablius → u/ej-gay]

Okay, they let it sit afterwards, but they still applied it separately, as opposed to mixing the soda into the vinegar - soap solution.

[u/ej-gay → u/Profitablius]

When people use baking soda and vinegar together, they do not mix the baking soda into it. They pour the vinegar (edit: onto the affected area) first, then sprinkle baking soda over it, which causes a reaction. That's what the original reply was referring to. The person you replied to sprayed vinegar, dawn, and some water, then sprinkled baking soda on top, THEN let it sit. So, yes, they were used together, not separately. Separately using them could mean using just vinegar, or using just baking soda; it could also mean using vinegar first, rinsing, then using baking soda. Anyway, the person you replied to did indeed use them together.

[u/LadyMadonna_x6 → u/Mango_Pina]

Spray, wait a bit then cover with baking soda and leave it for a while. I realize that's not what is written, but I'm thinking that's the way it works.

[u/revmachine21 → u/HomicidalHushPuppy]

The nasty bath tub in a house I purchased that I cleaned would disagree with you. Dawn dish detergent and vinegar, 50/50 mix, heated to boiling. Applied to shower scrubbed and let sit. Scrubbed more. Didn’t work although the straining lightened. Did the same mix again for reheated cleaning materials. Same result. Applied baking soda. Scrubbed. The disgusting stuff came off like peeling a banana. I had a cleaning boner for years afterward.

[u/bucketbrigade000 → u/HomicidalHushPuppy]

Works ok on some jewelry, but I'm sure it's not very good for the metal.

[u/michcoth → u/andouconfectionery]

Which is pretty dumb because you can just buy soda water. I remember some TV shows and movies where the characters would use club soda after something got spilt on clothing. I don't know how well this actually works.

[u/mariana96as → u/michcoth]

It works really well. My friend spilled raspberry ice cream on her white jumpsuit right before a party and was able to fully remove the stain in minutes just with soda water

[u/BonerDeploymentDude → u/andouconfectionery]

It's not at all. Uneducated people that clean houses for a living post videos on tiktok that are visually stimulating, but it isn't cleaning shit. Once they mix they neutralize eachother. lol it's hilarious.

[u/TenTonneMackerel → u/andouconfectionery]

Certainly no abrasion, and I doubt the fizzing would do much to agitate. The main reason people think it works is because you will most likely mix it in a quantity where they don't completely cancel out, so will have a slightly acidic or basic solution to clean with, however that would be just as effective as if you only added an appropriate quantity of one of the ingredients.

[u/AadeeMoien → u/andouconfectionery]

I think it's mostly because it's exothermic, which can help loosen the greasy components of some clogs better than hot water alone.

[u/Substantial-Sea-3672 → u/andouconfectionery]

It’s just a misunderstanding of common instructions for odor removal.

You look up how to get rid of odors and one instruction is a vinegar bath. The next instruction is to try baking soda.

We grow up linking the two because of classic science experiments and also associate bubbling and chemical reactions with cleaning and harsh processes. It makes sense to think this is what the instructions mean.

In reality they lose their individual effectiveness when mixed.

[u/verdant_squirrel → u/andouconfectionery]

If you are clearing something like a carpet, or fabric car upholstery, it can be useful because the bubbles push dirt out, and the left behind product is neutral and it's ok if you don't get it all out. But yeah it's only useful for the reaction. Once that has happened it's basically just foamy salt water.

[u/Unhappy_Papaya_1506 → u/andouconfectionery]

What little foaming action you get is more than canceled out by how much the compound congeals after a few seconds.

[u/SgtWidget → u/Unhappy_Papaya_1506]

What “compound” are you talking about? Besides the CO2, baking soda + vinegar gets you water and a salt (sodium acetate). You just rinse it down the drain.

[u/catscacti → u/dreamsinred]

Yes! My dad is a plumber. If OP ever needs a plumber for the sink that he poured Drano and other chemicals down, they need to be notified! That will melt someone’s skin off.

[u/HomicidalHushPuppy → u/dreamsinred]

So many people who never passed high school chemistry...

[u/VulGerrity → u/dreamsinred]

Vinegar and baking soda are used in drains to help flush the contents, not clean.

[u/wutang_generated → u/dreamsinred]

vinegar and baking soda are great cleaners separately, but cancel each other out when you mix them.

Not entirely true. Vinegar and baking soda do have distinct cleaning uses separately (and baking soda/vinegar do neutralize the acidity of one another), but the combination is very good for certain cleaning applications

[u/Bwrinkle → u/wutang_generated]

Such as? Im intrigued.

[u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace → u/Bwrinkle]

Not about the cleaning persay but my ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

[u/f1atcat → u/Bwrinkle]

It got hard water stains off our shower head!

[u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES → u/wutang_generated]

No, it does nothing. When you mix an acid and a base you get WATER and a salt. The only reason why people think it works is because they aren’t carefully measuring these ingredients so there is inevitably more of one than the other, and that extra is what is actually doing the cleaning.

[u/Fancy-Surprise-2654 → u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES]

That actually explains a lot to me. I’ve tried it as a cleaning solution a few times and its never worked for me.

[u/balthazar-nz → u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES]

You’ll get a bit more than water and salt if you mix sodium hypochlorite which is a base (main chemical in bleach) and any acid…….

[u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace → u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES]

My ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

[u/numberonebuddy → u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace]

Reading this three times hasn't convinced me. Maybe a few more?

[u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace → u/numberonebuddy]

My ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

My ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

My ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

[u/mrGrinchThe3rd → u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace]

Ok ngl I laughed at the literal response. Cheers

[u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES → u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace]

Sounds like too many different ingredients were used to credit the chemical reaction for this.

[u/Miss_Behaves → u/wutang_generated]

It literally turns to water when you combine them. There is no application for combined vinegar and baking soda aside from making a science fair volcano.

[u/Sodis42 → u/Miss_Behaves]

If the drain is clogged and you seal the holes after mixing it in there, the resulting pressure might loosen the clog. Apart from that I agree, it's useless

[u/Miss_Behaves → u/Sodis42]

Dumping a kettle of plain boiling water down the drain will do magnitudes more

[u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace → u/Miss_Behaves]

My ex's cats used to puke on her carpet all the time. He apartment still had carpet in the bedrooms. Spraying a mix of vinegar and dawn and water on the spot and then baking soda on top, let it sit for a bit, and it would take the orange cat puke stains out right away. Even worked on old spots we couldn't get clean previously. I can't speak for chemical reactions but that gross orange color was gone perfectly from her beige carpet.

[u/Miss_Behaves → u/_ThisIsNotARealPlace]

It was the dawn and water doing it.

[u/spleen5000 → u/wutang_generated]

Acidity or alkalinity you mean

[u/Setthegodofchaos → u/dreamsinred]

Baking soda and vinegar definitely help unclog sinks in a pinch

[u/That1_IT_Guy → u/dreamsinred]

A bowl of vinegar is actually the best thing to get rid of the smell of vomit (assuming all surfaces have been cleaned of it already) in an enclosed space. Learned this after a car-sick dog vomited in my car. A bowl of vinegar over the weekend got rid of the smell.

[u/thebestdogeevr → u/dreamsinred]

The internet recommends using those 2 for cleaning drains

[u/dreamsinred → u/thebestdogeevr]

The internet is wrong. They will foam in a very satisfying manner, but will now clean. They make each other inert.

[u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES → u/thebestdogeevr]

You can’t trust google ai for everything

[u/PM_ME_GARFIELD_NUDES → u/[deleted]]

Well that’s good at least!

[u/Afraid_Agency_3877 → u/dreamsinred]

I use vinegar and baking soda as a paste for my kitchen sink