Bathroom Air Freshener For A Sensitive Nose

July 21, 2011 9:50 PM

I need suggestions for a bathroom air freshener solution that won't make me sick.

So, I'm in the middle of a stupid bathroom politics thing at work that's threatening to get ugly, and I need some help coming up with a creative solution that will keep everyone happy. Someone in the ladies room at work has put in one of those super-fragrant Glade-type air fresheners that fills up the three-stall bathroom with the fragrance. I happen to be extremely sensitive to the odors these things put out, and I'm getting extremely nauseated when I go in the bathroom. I already had a talk with HR about it this morning and they removed it, but this afternoon, someone had put in another one.

Before I have HR send a company-wide email forbidding it, touching off who knows what kind of a potty room feud, I thought maybe we could find an air freshening solution (this is a work environment, so I'm looking for a commercial solution, not like a bowl of baking soda or anything) for people with my kind of sensitivities. That way, I'm at least offering an olive branch to whoever thinks the normal bathroom odors are so stinky. Any ideas?

posted by twiggy32 to health & fitness (11 answers total)

Put a bottle of Citrus Magic in every stall. 100% natural citrus fragrance oils!
posted by hapax_legomenon at 10:07 PM on July 21, 2011 [2 favorites]

Just keep removing it. Whoever is putting it in there will get tired of buying them sooner than you will get tired of removing them.
posted by Bruce H. at 10:27 PM on July 21, 2011 [2 favorites]

Ich, yes. Horrid, sickly-sweet scents are worse than what they try to cover. Seconding the matchstick suggestion, but thinking it probably won't fly with your co-workers' - er - delicate sensibilities.

Alternative: L'Occitane has room sprays made with natural/organic ingredients, and many of the scents are not obnoxious. I use the Verbena for this. Pricey, but one bottle lasts us for around two years. In a higher-traffic public restroom it will not last as long, but as you really only need one squirt, it should probably get you through a year.
posted by likeso at 1:03 AM on July 22, 2011

I also hate manufactured smells, but I've found that I can tolerate one of those bottle and wood stick diffusers with NATURAL essential oil perfumes. This company makes some nice scents.
posted by jrichards at 6:49 AM on July 22, 2011

What gets rid of odors is air circulation. you need a fan in there, maybe something that'll automatically turn off after 5 minutes.
posted by lemniskate at 6:56 AM on July 22, 2011

I can't stand ANY chemical fragrances. They nauseate me at best, trigger an asthma attack at worst.

For me, sprays are out of the question, as are any kind of glade solid kind of thing. The only thing I'm able to tolerate are essential oils. You can get one of those lamp rings, amphora pots, etc.

They probably won't be what the stinky-loving person wants, but if you offer up the compromise and explain the health issue, it'll probably go over better.
posted by pixiecrinkle at 7:16 AM on July 22, 2011

How about a Febreze air freshener? They have both plug-ins and sprays, and I find the scents much easier to tolerate than Glade or other brands.
posted by anotherkate at 7:27 AM on July 22, 2011 [1 favorite]

I was at Bed, Bath and Beyond last weekend and saw these at the checkout counter. They did have a very mild smell, but only when I actually picked it up and sniffed. It wasn't fakey to my nose, and I'm pretty smell-averse myself.

There are also options like this that work well and involve no smells added to the room.
posted by Madamina at 7:35 AM on July 22, 2011

I saw this (Poo-pourri, lordy) in a specialty hardware store the other day. I have no idea if it works, but it's intriguing and they have a money-back guarantee.
posted by Sweetie Darling at 8:00 AM on July 22, 2011

Our work bathroom has a little bottle of spray in each stall, so it's not a constant barrage of chemical perfumes, just a bit as needed. For home use, I love Oust (I am also pretty scent-sensitive).
posted by desjardins at 9:34 AM on July 22, 2011

Dear Metafilter, I never thought I'd be writing you about this, but:

You guys, I bought the Poo-Pourri (shamefully - I had to walk around the hardware store and put things in my basket so it wasn't the only thing I took to check-out) - and it is kind of amazing and awesome. You spray it into the toilet before you use it, and it seems to coat the water with an oily film. The kind I bought smells like grapefruit and while you might get a whiff while you are, um, in action, after you flush there is absolutely no trace of poo smell.

Our store had a couple different varieties, all with absolutely awful poo-based puns for names (I bought "Shhh... It Happens," but they all seem to be based on citrus essential oils.

(Not a shill for Poo-Pourri, I swear, although if they are hiring ...)
posted by Sweetie Darling at 1:04 PM on July 27, 2011