This summer I moved into an new apartment-building. It's old as hell, and made of concrete so it often has this basement-smell, but also other bad smells because I live with 3 other people, with varying food-habits and hygiene. So I wonder if anyone now of anything natural to have in both in the bathroom and bedrooms so it smells nicer. Anything as long as it safe to breathe in the bedroom when you sleep etc.

Hope someone can help me out. It would be nice to feel more relaxed at home!

Feel free to come with any suggestions you can think of. I am open to anything, even girly, newage-y hippie stuff!

Thanks!

Odd thread.... Well, you could just keep the apartment (and yourself) clean. Also, why not talk about this with your housemates? If they smell bad/don't clean up their shit, they should do something about it. and the most important thing is: ventilation.

I do keep the apartment and myself clean. And the people I live with are not the main problem, I've taken care of that to some extent... and ventilation is not the problem it is the actual building that smells like a basement. Especially in the bathroom. So unfortunately it's not much to do other than to "cover" the smell with something nice!. SO that's what I'm actually asking about, Something that smells nice that you can breathe in while you sleeping etc. without any health-factors involved.

Yes, it's an odd thread, but thanks for your answer. hehe

I dunno, weed perhaps? I'm almost serious, too, if it's your kind of thing.

My guess is that your building is infested with mold, and the wisest thing you could do is move. Long-term inhalation of that stuff, even in relatively small amounts, can have unpleasant long-term consequences. Covering up the smell will just make you forget that what you should be doing is getting the hell out of there!

Young boys, young girls, etc.

Yeah, that's probably much better advice than mine really.

This talk about mold reminds me of that King of the Hill episode, where Hanks house has a tiny bit of mold inside his drywall, and they use it as an excuse to gouge him and make his home disqualified from the parade of homes.

Really though, have you tried flowers?

I'd look into getting a good air cleaner. There are many of them to pick from out there. One that includes a UV light for killing mold spores would probably be a good choice.

You might also want to try something like this:

I haven't tried it, but it sounds promising.

Febreeze works wonders man, but you could try just burning incense

Not to sound like an alarmist pain-in-the-ass, but I figure I'd give you a fair warning.

A suggestion: Any species of Zygopetalum should suit you nicely.

If your place has a serious mold or fungal problem man,get the fuck out of there, or at least see if the place is salvageable.

If this is the problem, which it sounds like it is, I'd seriously move out quick. This demonstrate just how serious the long term problem could be. I hope for your case it isn't mold causing the problem.

Provided you don't have to get the hell out of there because of the mold, you could try mint or pine.

Candles help eliminate smells, some can be bought for this purpose, one in each window would look cool, though be careful as I'm practically banned from anything needing matches.

I had a g/f once and she lived in a damp apartment, I mentioned her clothes smelt really bad and it wasn't good for her health either.

I use incense at all times. Incense in every room of my apartment. there is also incense in my jam space.
There are different incense flavors. I prefer the cheaper ones that come in big quantity, not only for the price, but because I can light 4-5 in the same time and it's still not overwhelming. On the opposite, fancier ones like "pagan spell" might be too strong.

Fill a pot up with water cut up an orange and put the the peels in the water. Mix in Cinnamon sticks and cloves and put on the stove at a low temp. Use this all the time to get rid off the weed smell when my family comes to visit.

Seriously though, look into the mold thing. I'd recommend mentioning it to your landlord, and if he doesn't do anything, calling the health department. Since it's a full-on apartment building, the health department should handle the whole inspection.

If they don't find mold, good, if they find mold, they'll tell your landlord to stop being a dick and fix it.

Light an incense stick or a scented candle? Or perhaps even a cigarette or two.

wall mart has these little oil burner for about 5 bucks, you just light a little tea candle under neath and it his up the oil and smells great and lasts awhile,

oil defusers (those little bottles with reed sticks) last for months and seem to work pretty good.

also walmarts incense is great and extremely cheap.

Whatever you do, don't own eight cats and keep them in the house. They will shit everywhere.

My girlfriend,but you can't have that. Well,not unless you're willing to pay a hefty sum.

Buy some bleach and dilute it with hot water. Then scrub the whole damned place down to clean and disinfect. My wife and I have got loads of plants in the house so it creates a nice ambiance, promotes breathable air, and makes the place smell good even with an indoor doberman (he gets showered twice a week). And tell your friends to fucking cleanup after themselves and take a shower. I've had enough roommates and I am glad that phase of my life is done. People are intolerable; especially it you allow it.

Alternatively you can just smear feces on the walls. Feces looks especially nice on windows and it smells great. Yeah, turn it up a notch for your filthy roommates and splatter feces whenever and wherever.

Well, all mold is being taken care of, so that won't be a problem... I've gotten a second plant recently and I've been looking for scented candles. I don't own any pets so that's not a factor. I'll try the other recommendations you guys have come with, if they are possible. I'll keep the feces smearing in mind in case of an emergency!

Don't forget to piss in the corners!, mark your territory man!
....On a somewhat serious note heard baking soda can suck that stink up good, if you drink coffee just use the old grounds instead and swap it out every now and then. Or buy some of those coffee packets and toss a couple of those around.

Incense is shit, it gives me horrible migraines. I advice you, if you have a carpet or something similar, to put lots of dried lavender under it, it gives off a very relaxing smell, and helps reducing humidity. I also put some inside my pillow, it helps me sleep faster.

Lavender candles are something I love to inhale scent wise. I suggest them to anybody who asks.

agreed. filling your residence (and lungs) w/ any kind of smoke is a bad idea healthwise.

look into essential oils and a diffuser.

Check out some of those Glade products. Either the Plug Ins or the Sense & Spray Automatic Freshners. I understand that they work rather well.

Cut up, rotting, decaying bodies will freshen things up a bit.