# Microwaved a stink bug -- now what? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 3, 2016, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093 "2016-02-03T20:42:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/1 "2016-02-03T20:42:48Z")
Apparently the unexpected pop I heard yesterday was a now deceased and dried out stink bug. The microwave has been used a few times since, so the smell has penetrated throughout. Washing it out with a soapy rag hasn’t cleared out the smell. Anybody have any food-safe ideas? ☹ ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/2 "2016-02-03T20:48:46Z")
Wash it out again with a soapy rag, and when you’re done, wash it out again. Or you could put a bowl of water with cut up lemons in it and run it on high for a few minutes if you want to just kill the smell. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/3 "2016-02-03T20:49:51Z")
[5 Foolproof Ways to Get Burnt [del]Popcorn[/del] Stinkbug Smell Out of The Microwave](http://blog.bostonappliance.net/5-foolproof-ways-to-get-burnt-popcorn-smell-out-of-the-microwave/) ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/4 "2016-02-03T20:50:43Z")
The aldehydes that help stinkbugs stink might be converted carboxylic acids by reaction with water, catalyzed by acid or base. You could try white vinegar. Or a bicarb solution. The double bonds may be suceptable to oxidation with bleach. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/5 "2016-02-03T21:00:31Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > Wash it out again with a soapy rag, and when you’re done, wash it out again. Or you could put a bowl of water with cut up lemons in it and run it on high for a few minutes if you want to just kill the smell. YMMV. What I’ve done to remove food odors from the microwave is to put several spoonfuls of baking soda in a bowl and microwave that for several minutes. I did end up with the inside of the microwave with a coating of baking soda, but that came out with a damp sponge. And the resulting odor is relatively neutral. ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/6 "2016-02-03T21:13:34Z")
I’ll start with boiling some vinegar and letting it sit for a while, I guess. Don’t know if boiling bleach or baking soda solution might leave some corrosive salts on the electronics … it’s a pretty new, pretty expensive microwave and I don’t want to mess it up. Don’t have lemons or oranges in the house. Thanks, all. Will check back in a couple hours with the results of the boiling vinegar attempt. ---
**Author:** ![iceiso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@iceiso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iceiso)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/7 "2016-02-03T21:27:09Z")
> [@Turble](#): > > I’ll start with boiling some vinegar and letting it sit for a while, I guess. > > Don’t know if boiling bleach or baking soda solution might leave some corrosive salts on the electronics … it’s a pretty new, pretty expensive microwave and I don’t want to mess it up. > > Don’t have lemons or oranges in the house. > > Thanks, all. Will check back in a couple hours with the results of the boiling vinegar attempt. You might want to try immediately opening the microwave door and ventilating with a fan since I’d imagine the steam captures/“fluidizes” some of the odor. Leaving the door closed will allow the vapor and odor to re-condense inside the microwave. ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2016, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/8 "2016-02-03T23:18:44Z")
FWIW – the boiling vinegar covered the smell somewhat but even after washing my hands with vinegar the smell was detectable on my fingers. I’m going for leaving a box of baking soda in the microwave overnight. According to some websites the smell does dissipate on its own in a few days. ---
**Author:** ![Cardboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Cardboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardboard)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/9 "2016-02-04T00:51:33Z")
Microwave a bar of soap for 10 seconds. ---
**Author:** ![donkeyoatey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47c2d/32.png) [@donkeyoatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/donkeyoatey)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/10 "2016-02-04T01:50:51Z")
No, but I want to know how the microwave gets used several times without noticing there’s a (dead) bug in it. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/11 "2016-02-04T02:15:33Z")
> [@Cardboard](#): > > Microwave a bar of soap for 10 seconds. If you want to see something that looks like an indoor firework or ash snake. ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/12 "2016-02-04T02:26:33Z")
Stink bug smell is pungent, but fleeting. leave the microwave door open for a day, and it will go away. I speak as one who knows. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/13 "2016-02-04T02:36:16Z")
Profit? ---
**Author:** ![Cardboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Cardboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardboard)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/14 "2016-02-04T04:31:41Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > If you want to see something that looks like an indoor firework or ash snake. You have to do it for a while for that to occur. Like a minute or something. ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/15 "2016-02-04T16:43:21Z")
Still stinks after box of baking soda overnight – now going for “leave the door open”. Washing hands with dish detergent, bar soap, vinegar, and Febreeze did not remove the smell. How did the bug get nuked more than once? Unit is below eye level, only the front half of the turntable is visible without bending down. Once it stopped with the bug at the front and I bent down to look inside the stink became noticeable. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/16 "2016-02-04T16:48:48Z")
I didn’t think leaving the baking soda there would do much. You really might try boiling a bowl of water with some baking soda in it. I don’t think it’s going to create anything destructive. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/17 "2016-02-04T17:40:55Z")
We made some amazingly delicious venison stew last winter. Dining by candlelight (as we often do) my gf snipped parsley into our bowls. As we began eating, she noticed movement on her bread plate. In the leftover bunch of parsley was half of a stinkbug. We each poked around our bowls for a few minutes, looking for the remaining half stinkbug before going back to eating. It was never found. ---
**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2016, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/18 "2016-02-04T17:58:42Z")
Gross, gross, gross and gross. I’m interested in how a SB got nuked in your `wave, but I can live without knowing. I can tell you that I wouldn’t close that MW door for a week or more. Gotta air that baby out! Eating one -as Kayaker mentions- has to be better than exploding one in your MW. Though I can’t imagine there’s much of a gap there. ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2016, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microwaved-a-stink-bug-now-what/745093/19 "2016-02-05T17:12:54Z")
The stink is gone. It appears time and/or leaving the door open did the trick.