# Is there any way to make a room smell good semi-permanently? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 12, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475 "2014-11-12T20:29:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/21 "2014-11-14T21:00:24Z")
Are wax-cube melting systems cheaper than scented candles? ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/22 "2014-11-15T00:01:30Z")
> [@Soylent\_Juicy](#): > > If you can find a Scentsy dealer I totally recommend those. They’re plug-in warmers that use a light bulb to melt these wax scent cubes. They are really nice and not chemical-smelling at all, IMHO. But they’re sold by “Independent Consultants” similar to Tupperware and Pampered Chef. Warning: Incandescent light bulbs were great for warming these. CFs and LEDs, not so much. > [@Maastricht](#): > > Most rooms have some permanent ventilation system. It can be a small grate or vent near the floor or ceiling. Or a vent built in the window sill. Building regulations require one. But you might not even know it is there, or you might have closed it on a particular cold day and never opened it again. Find it and open it halfway. That will freshen up a room considerably. And might eliminate mould odors. I found out this the hard way, when I closed some vents because I thought they were just unintended gaps. If there is not one, the easiest way to install one is a small vent in a single glass pane window. Also adding a nicely scented dryer sheet to the inside of the vent can provide the sort of long-term gentle scenting that the OP seems to be looking for. Change them every six months or so. Also, let us know whether the room is carpeted or not? There’s a lot you can do with the right floor wax, or by adding stuff to carpet padding, but I’m not sure how to advise you on that. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/23 "2014-11-15T04:18:57Z")
[QUOTE=Maastricht] Most rooms have some permanent ventilation system. It can be a small grate or vent near the floor or ceiling. Or a vent built in the window sill. Building regulations require one… [/QUOTE] Must be a Dutch thing as that’s not the case in the US. Normally, the only source of outside air is to open the window. Although, I have lived in apartments with old and worn-out windows that there was a permanent air flow. Brrr… ---
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/24 "2014-11-15T12:30:54Z")
> [@by-tor](#): > > Thanks for the suggestions! > > FluffyBob, the room doesn’t smell bad. I just want it to smell good. No smell IS good smell. You seem to want ‘fake good’ smell. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/25 "2014-11-15T13:33:04Z")
If the OP wishes to permanently \*\*scent \*\*a room, that’s impossible. The volatile molecules that lift from surfaces in the room (and diffuse to your nose) will slowly escape, decompose, or react. This may happen slowly. But it will happen. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/26 "2014-11-15T20:58:23Z")
Well, the OP did say “semi-permanently,” which, of course, has no real meaning. How about a month? A month would be good. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475/27 "2014-11-17T16:41:41Z")
I burn a couple of sticks of Nag Champa incense a day in my den. The room has taken that scent on pretty much permanently [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-way-to-make-a-room-smell-good-semi-permanently/704475.md?page=1)