Scent product masks mold and mildew smells

Posted on Apr 03, 2009 by Susie Collins in Blog, Products, Susie Collins

Fragrance added to paint is said to cover up “musty or mildew smell.”

mlive.com reports on a new fragrance product targeted to people taking over homes that have been closed up for some time and become “musty” : before you paint, add the packet of scent and it will remove “even a musty or mildew smell.”

How many levels of wrong is this? Adding any chemical scent product to your home is compromising the Indoor Air Quality right off the bat– for example, home scent products such as air fresheners contain many toxic chemicals. But to sell a toxic product to cover up mold or mildew, which itself may be toxic, is unconscionable. Any indoor air quality expert will tell you mold growth indoors can and should be prevented and removed if present, not masked with a toxic scent product. And what adds insult to injury with this scent product is that the targeted consumers are people taking over homes that have fallen to foreclosure.

It’s sickening.

“It’s fantastic,” said Shore, who added a packet of “Fresh Air” in a gallon of taupe-colored paint when she painted the walls in her Jackson home’s family room.

“It’s light and has altered the smell of the house. And I enjoy the fragrance,” said Shore about the Paint SCENTsations.

People like Shore, who recently bought a home that had been closed up for at least two years, are turning to scents ranging from citrus to lavender to cut odors.

The scents can remove even a musty or mildew smell.

And if previous owners smoked, they also will help remove the lingering odors from cigarettes and cigars.

Typically, the scents last from six months to a year.

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Tags: Air, Chemicals, Children's Health, Fragrance, Indoor Pollution, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, Perfume, Products, Sick Building, Toxic

2 Responses to “Scent product masks mold and mildew smells”

Jeanne

08. Apr, 2009

Susie,

This is disturbing on many levels… as you pointed out.

Jeanne

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meg

09. Apr, 2009

I thought paint covered up scents well enough? Isn't the smell strong enough?

I tried to comment on your story about the editor, MCS, and green building article, but couldn't So I will just say here that I thought your reply was well written, consicse, and most import, intelligent and not insulting.
I also thought the argument in the comments about science was interesting – it is so true. Science knows very little about almost everything, since for however much they know, there is much more to learn. And technically, things can't really be proven 100%, every good scientist I have seen or heard has admitted that. It is very, very complicated. In regards to health, it is almost impossible to do an effective double blind study, since they a) do not go for 20 years or longer (like what about the next generation) to see long term affects, and b) no two people are alike, so what bothers one to another is going to vary based on how much else their body has to deal with, their genetics, etc. It is the best study there is, but once you look into it, it seems almost useless.

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