Common Causes of Bad Smelling Carpet

Carpet odour causes can be as obvious as pet stains and as subtle as the grease laden steam coming from your kitchen. They all invite bacterial infestation that leads to a smelly carpet.

Carpet odour causes may be inevitable, but the process that perpetuates nasty smells can be controlled with a regular carpet cleaning and maintenance routine.

Mildew is the hardest carpet odour to clean. Mildew develops when water stains or floods the carpeted area. A mildewed carpet typically smells like moulded fabric. This type of stain requires a heavy cleaning and drying process. Once the carpet becomes mildewed, it may be impossible to remove the stains and smells from the underlying padding.

Household pets are a leading cause of carpet odour. This can typically be attributed to the pet hair, urine, and dirt the animals bring into the home. Several cleaners can remove pet smells from carpets, and it is important to clean the soiled area as quickly as possible. This will limit the long-term damage to the carpet.

Tobacco smoke is another common cause of carpet odour. When a person smokes in a building, the smell of the smoke is trapped and causes the walls, draperies, and carpet to smell of smoke. This smell can be easily removed with a simple carpet-cleaning product.

Most of the problem is still present with the spilled material dried out but remaining in the carpet fibres. Now, here is why some lightly smelly carpet smell a lot worse after proper cleaning. Sometimes deep dusting and properly washing rugs doesn't remove old, inactive and dormant bacteria that are anchored to fibres. Adding water during washing process provides the opportunity for an explosion in growth of these bacteria, lots of gases being released and therefore lots of odours, more than prior to cleaning.

Dirt and motor oil can make a carpet the smell like petroleum. This smell is difficult to remove and often requires the replacement of the carpet and underlying pad. Dirty motor oil can permanently stain carpet and cause a foul gas smell. This odour will smell similar to the odour often found in car service stations.

Beer and alcohol can cause carpet to smell like a hospital. This is a difficult odour to remove from carpet and padding. If large amounts of beer or alcohol are spilled onto a carpet, it should be cleaned with a steam cleaner to ensure the stain is removed from the padding and carpet.
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Old carpet has an odour similar to old rotting clothing. This dusty smell happens when the fabric in the carpet begins to break up and deteriorate. It usually is not possible to clean carpet odour out of old carpet, so typically, carpet that smells like this must be replaced. This type of carpet can cause excess dust in a home, which may lead to allergies.