My brother-in-law has a hard and fast rule when it comes to leftovers: three days and theyâre out, regardless of how tasty they were to begin with, or whether theyâd make a good lunch on day four. When I visit, Iâm always in awe when I peek into this militant refrigerator (which, I should add, services a family of five) to reveal a clean, tidy space filled with healthy produce, a diverse array of non-ancient perishables, and scant clues of meals past.
My refrigerator, on the other hand, tends to get attached to its food. My husband, the primary cook in our house, is guilty of serving leftovers for days on end. Individual items linger, too. Cilantro from taco nightcream cheese
What can I say? Iâm a neat freak, but I donât clean the refrigerator nearly as often as I should. As a result, sometimes our fridge smells less than fresh. And the little box of baking soda in the back right corner is working overtime, replaced just a few times a year if itâs lucky.
Knowing I’ll never run a totally tight ship when it comes to refrigerator cleanliness, I tried out a bunch of products marketed to prevent odors in the fridge. Here are the ones that worked best for me:
Chilly Mama
You know whatâs not going to be passively forgotten? This ladyreally going to eat that take-out box of tater tots?
Chill Bill
Chill Bill
The Best: Remodeez Aqua Refrigerator Deodorizer
While most of the products I tried are simply vessels for that old odor-absorbing stalwart, baking soda, this one uses activated charcoalâand is half the price of the two other models I suggest. Charcoal is known to be far more effective an odor absorber than baking soda because of its porous surface area, which allows for more absorption. This means that a single Remodeez will last much longer than anything full of baking soda (though the baking soda models can be refilled). Basically, you only need to replace it every six monthsâwhich is about five months and 27 days longer than your oldest leftovers. As for its odor? It doesnât have one. True to its purpose, Remodeez soaks up everything around it, leaving your fridge smelling…like nothing. Which, honestly, is exactly how it should be.
