While any basement can get a musty odor, really hard-to-get-rid-of basement odors usually emanate from objects in the basement rather than the basement itself. Here are six simple tips for getting rid of musty smells from the objects that can keep your basement smelling funky.
Musty smell in drawers: Place bowls of charcoal inside the drawer and close for 24 hours. (The charcoal must be in a bowl, not piled in the drawer.) The charcoal absorbs odors from the drawer, but still can be used to grilling.
Sunlight treatment: Move odor-affected furniture into a sunny room, and leave there for several days. Sunlight will kill many of the bacteria, fungi, and molds that cause odor. You will still need to use other methods to remove the odor.
The Kitty Litter Cure: Unused kitty litter placed in a bowl is a good way to get rid of musty odors in wardrobes, armoires, and cabinets. Place a bowl of fresh kitty litter in the furniture for 2-3 days, then remove to be used in the cat's litter box.
Baking soda for musty odors: Open a box of baking soda and pour into a bowl. Allow the bowl of baking soda for 24 to 48 hours to absorb odors, then discard.
Moldy or musty odor in wood furniture: Deodorant products won't remove a moldy, musty odor from furniture that has not been cleaned properly first. Murphy's Oil Soap is a good choice. Furniture polishes can cover moldy or musty smell on wood furniture, but they cannot remove it.
Sometimes the best solution for getting the odor out of wooden furniture is simple soap and water.
If washing fails to remove the smell, it may be necessary as a last resort to sand and refinish the wood. This is usually only required if the mold has gone quite deep into the wood. If you refinish furniture to remove mold or mildew, be sure to wear a protective mask so you will not inhale the mold or mildew particles.
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