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How to Get Your RV Fridge Smelling New Again
How to get rid of those funky smells in your RV fridge.
Words and Images by: Jessica Palmer

Have you ever emptied the fridge in the RV and parked it in the garage, only to realise two months later that you forgot to crack the fridge a little, and now it looks and smells like mouldy socks? Please tell me I’m not the only one.

Or maybe a yoghurt exploded and you didn’t realise until it was too late, and now it smells like sour milk? Maybe even your other half didn’t cover the prawns properly, so when you hit the corrugations, they danced all over the fridge? Again, I can’t be the only one!

Regardless of how it happened, you now have a fridge that smells terrible. Here are some tips on how to get rid of those funky smells in your RV fridge.

Credit: Pexels – Igor Haritanovich

COFFEE TO THE RESCUE

Ground coffee or coffee beans do a great job of soaking up and covering smells in your fridge. Lay the coffee grounds or beans on a piece of newspaper inside the fridge or just sprinkle them around and vacuum them out later. It doesn’t really matter how you spread them around, as long as you leave them in there for a few days to work their magic.

PURRFECT SOLUTION

Kitty litter is great at absorbing odours as well. Use the same technique as the coffee beans but leave it for a bit longer to maximise your chances of it working.

LEMONS AND ONIONS

If your fridge is only a little bit on the nose, a few cut lemons left in the fridge for a day or two to work their magic may be enough to chase the odours away. Some people use a peeled onion but only do this if you think you can handle the smell of onion every time you open the fridge.

THE OLD-FASHIONED WAY STILL WORKS

Mix vanilla essence extract with a bit of water and use it to wipe down the inside of your fridge. The more liberal you are with the vanilla and the stingier you are with the water, the better your fridge will smell afterwards.

CHARCOAL AND BAKING SODA

Place activated charcoal in an open container in your fridge to absorb the bad odours. You can usually get it at pet and aquarium supply stores, as it’s used in fish tank filters to help clean the water. Some people also swear by baking soda.

MIX IT UP

Squeeze a lemon into a spray bottle and add some vinegar. Now, set to work spraying it all over the inside of your fridge. Let it sit for a while before washing it off.

DON’T FORGET YOUR FRIDGE SEALS

Make sure when you clean your fridge, that you don’t miss the seals on the door too. Not only does odour seem to hang around on the rubber, but mould congregates there as well.

Category: Features
Written: Mon 01 Jan 2024
Printed: January, 2024
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