TWO HINTS ON KITCHEN SMELLS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XI, Issue 46, 18 November 1893, Page 430

TWO HINTS ON KITCHEN SMELLS.

Cedar sawdust and chips sprinkled on the top of the range drown the smell of cooking. Charcoal also has the property of absorbing many times its own weight of gas, and if in sufficient quantity will do the same to culinary odours. Bread or toast boiled with greens will prevent the sickening and unpleasant smell from pervading the house ; while Condy’s fluid, poured down the sink immediately after such refuse water, will do much to abate the smell. For these as such, unless they arise from absolute bad management, there is, I fear, very little help. But kitchen smells are in many cases distinctly (thongh no doubt unwittingly) encouraged. For instance, it is a great and common mistake to pour down the sink any water in which greens have been boiled, which is one of the causes of a most objectionable odour. Whenever possible, this water should be thrown away outside. The washing-up should be done promptly too, and the refuse ought to be burnt while the fire is very hot, a thick layer of hot cinders being placed on the top. By the way, a great amount of rubbish can be satisfactorily disposed of in this manner. Baize doors and suitably arranged ventilators are also a great help ; the latter especially, when conveniently placed and regularly opened, make a vast improvement. Any good builder, if called in, will advise as to the best way of locating them. Some people hold that Condy’s fluid kept exposed in the kitchen will have a good effect; but, personally, I have found that care and cleanliness are the best helps in this universal trouble. In some houses the floors are so faulty that the smell must inevitably rise if the kitchen is underneath, in which case the boards should be looked to, and thick brown paper or cedar felting placed under the carpets, which might also lessen the noises complained of.—Robin.