Getting home to be greeted by the smell of skunk is not something anyone wants to do, unfortunately, this can happen and this does happen.
Skunk smell is very strong and offensive, if you can smell it in your apartment where is it coming from? and how do you get rid of it? This article looks into it
Smells like skunk in apartment
Skunk in the area:
A skunk is unlikely to find its way into your home, especially if you live higher up in an apartment, but because more and more skunks live in urban areas, there may be a skunk living near your apartment.
Skunks in urban areas live wherever they can find food, food is usually close to humans.
If a skunk lives close to you, and decides to spray, the spray can waft into your apartment. Skunk spray can be detected up to 20 miles from where it was discharged
What to do:
You’ll have to take measures to get rid of the skunk smell from your apartment, do this by thoroughly cleaning your apartment, if the scent is very strong, then you may need to clean your home a couple of times to get rid of the odor.
Start by opening windows and doors to let sunlight and air in, sunlight helps to oxidize skunk odor.
Steam clean any furniture that the skunk smell absorbs into, also scrub your carpets using a solution made up of water, baking soda, and vinegar.
Create a mixture using 9 parts water and one part bleach and then spray your hard surfaces with it. Wipe your surfaces down after spraying
Leaving bowls filled with vinegar all-around your home will also help to get rid of the skunk smell in your house. Leave these bowls out for 24 to 48 hours, the vinegar will help to absorb the skunk smell.
Dead skunk in your walls:
The majority of skunks are bad at climbing. Not all skunks are able to get into your home, especially if you live in an apartment.
Striped skunks aren’t the best climbers but, spotted skunks can easily climb, they are known to be able to scale walls, fences, and trees, and will do this to find food, escape predators and look for places to inhabit.
If a striped skunk gets into your apartment, and dies in your wall, it will very likely release its skunk spray when it dies, it will also release a foul odor as its body decomposes.
What to do:
Using a room deodorizer in your apartment may help to improve the smell of skunk in your home.
The only permanent way to get rid of a skunk in your wall is to cut the wall open and get the skunk out.
We don’t recommend you do this yourself as it will be hard to figure out exactly where the skunk is. Hiring a professional wildlife removal technician would be a better option.
The technician will find the skunk in the wall, cut the wall open, remove the animal, neutralize the smell, and put the wall back together.
Rotten food:
If your apartment smells like skunk, but there are no skunks in your area, and there are no skunks in your walls, then what you may be smelling is rotten food.
Foods in the allium family will smell of skunk when they start to rot and decompose. Sources of this stink can be onions, garlic, or root vegetables
What to do:
You’d need to look in your pantry and fridge to find the source of the smell. When you find the food, dispose of it in a metal container or a glass jar if you can.
Place the glass jar, or metal container, in an opaque black plastic bag and then throw this bag in the trash, bury the bag or throw it in your local landfill
Natural gas leak:
If your apartment is heated with natural gas, and you start to smell skunk, then you may have a leak.
Natural gas has no smell, this can be dangerous because if the gas were to leak, it would be undetectable.
For this reason, gas companies add a chemical called mercaptan, which smells like skunk, to the gas. When the gas is released in your home, this smell alerts you that you have a gas leak.
What to do:
Contact your local natural gas company as soon as you smell skunk in your apartment and right after you evacuate your home.
A natural gas leak can cause your apartment to explode if left unattended
Cannabis smoke:
It is said that we perceive smells differently. Some say that certain cannabis strains smell like skunk.
If this is how you perceive these cannabis strains, and you don’t smoke cannabis, but smell it in your apartment, then your neighbor’s smoke may be wafting into your apartment making it smell like skunk.
What to do:
If your neighbors are cannabis smokers there isn’t much to do outside of asking them to smoke close to windows.
Waiting for them to move may have you waiting forever.
Other solutions to this problem include maintaining proper ventilation and using incense in your home.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other skunk related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Natural Ways To Get Rid Of Skunk Smell On A Dog, Bathroom Smells Like Skunk, Why Do Skunks Spray Under The House?