After the peak hosting season, entryways can smell a little musty. But it isn't always your shoes to blame.
Dirt, dust, and debris accumulate along baseboards and around heat vents, resulting in lingering musty odors. The surprisingly simple fix? Your vacuum.
It's a quick job with immediate results, making your home smell nicer in seconds. Here's why this oft-overlooked task causes such a problem for your home fragrance, and how to clean an entryway correctly to prevent these musty odors from making themselves at home again in the future.
Why Vacuuming Dust Tackles Musty Entryway Odors
While your first instinct might be to blame stuffy coat closets or your shoes for odors in the entryway, the most common reason a house smells musty is dust.
It might seem innocuous, but Rhonda Wilson, quality lead cleaner at FreshSpace Cleaning, explains, 'Dust is made up of tiny porous particles, so it behaves a lot like a sponge and pulls moisture right out of the air.'
As a result, it holds onto unpleasant odors.
'Naturally, it will settle in low airflow areas like baseboards, shelves, vents, and under furniture where moisture will linger instead of drying out,' she continues. 'And since the air is slightly damp, the dust becomes sticky, trapping even more moisture and smells. This is why neglected homes or areas often smell musty at first.'
That is why simply tackling the overlooked spots you're forgetting to dust is so effective, and is one of the things people with nice-smelling entryways always do.
The easiest way to do this, Rhonda says, is to vacuum your baseboards and the heating vents or radiators in your entryway. Simply use the long hose attachment and run it along the trim. A brush attachment for vacuum hoses, from Amazon, can make collecting all the dust and debris easier.
'Keeping up with vacuuming along baseboards, especially near radiators and vents, stops it from spreading. It also helps your heating and cooling system work better, moving air more smoothly and preventing those stubborn stale spots from sticking around.
'My pro tip is to open a window or door 10 to 15 minutes before vacuuming to get fresh air flowing and push out the old air,' she adds. 'Keep just one open while you vacuum so the dust you kick up gets carried out rather than settling back in. After you’re done, leave it open for about 10 minutes to finish airing out the space.
'For best results, open on opposite sides of the room to get a cross breeze going,' she concludes. This also acts as shock ventilation in winter, helping to prevent mold in your home at the same time.
Besides vacuuming baseboards and vents, it is also wise to organize an entryway in such a way as to reduce clutter and minimize hiding spots for dust. The clear floor policy is good for this, not only making cleaning your entryway floor easier, but also reducing potential tripping hazards.
Using raised shoe racks such as this tiered rack from Wayfair is ideal for this, or, to reduce visual clutter in an entryway, the BRUSALI Shoe Cabinet from IKEA is my personal pick.
What to Shop
This sleek and understated glass vessel matches the fragrance it exudes perfectly – refined, fresh, and unique. They're authentically made in Japan. Strength: 4/5. Read our fuller review.
I use this closed shoe cabinet in my entryway dining space to minimize visual clutter and keep my floors clear in the multi-purpose space. It has an open back design to allow shoes to breathe, preventing trapped odors.
This extending handle duster is ideal for dusting low and high points without having to bend and crawl. The electrostatic pads means dust cling to them, so you don't just spread dust around your home.
The Damp Duster is great for allergy sufferers as it removes all dust, pollen, pet hair, and more. Better yet, it is easy to clean – simply rinse the sponge with water to remove dust and grime and reuse.
The ScentFill plug-in air fresheners are non-toxic and are designed to neutralize odors in the air rather than just cover them up. They are ideal for busy areas of the home, such as entryways.
Our home fragrance pro, Ottilie Blackhall, says 'there's no beating Diptyque's Feu de Bois.' It smells warm and woody and is perfect for winter scenting. Available in five sizes. Read her full on this popular candle.
Meet the Expert
Managing dust is just one part of a multi-layered approach to making a home smell expensive, and what people with nice-smelling entryways always do.
Adding in quality home fragrance and choosing a signature scent is the next step to a home that will have guests taking a deep breath when they step through the front door.
You can light one of your best candles, as long as you're keeping an eye on the open flame for safety, or turn to one of the best reed diffusers for gentle and constant scenting in your entryway.
