Have you noticed a recurring bad smell in your facility’s restrooms?

Smelly restrooms signal to the people in your building that the area is not properly maintained and they need to be cautious while using and interacting with the objects and surfaces in your restroom.

If the restrooms in your facility have a foul odor, people are more likely to believe that your entire business is dirty, despite having a clean appearance.

One way to treat and prevent odors in your commercial restroom is to install an odor control system in your restroom.

These systems are highly effective at controlling and minimizing the presence of foul odors.

In this article, we’ll review what a commercial odor control system is and how you can use these systems to create an environment in your restroom that smells clean.

What Is An Odor Control System?

Commercial odor control systems use fragrances to make sure that your restrooms smell fresh throughout the day.

These systems help combat the presence of unknown commercial restroom odors by propelling pleasant fragrances through natural air movement or mechanical action.

There are two different types of odor control systems:

• Active
• Passive

The most effective public restroom odor control programs utilize a combination of both active and passive systems.

Active odor systems spread fragrance throughout your entire restroom while passive odor control systems tackle odors in smaller areas.

Active Odor Control Systems

Active odor control systems are most effective in restrooms that are too large to rely on natural airflow.

In restrooms with significant odor issues, an active odor control system will be able to reduce the presence of odors in your commercial restroom.

Active odor control systems rely on mechanical propellants, like fans or aerosol sprays, to deliver fragrance in your restroom.

Generally, these systems are best used if you have a large restroom or significant odor issues. The use of a propellant helps the system spread the fragrance throughout the entire restroom.

Active odor control systems include:

• Aerosol Dispenser Systems
• Fan Propelled Systems

Aerosol Dispenser Systems

Active odor control systems can use an aerosol mechanism to release scents at pre-set intervals.

An aerosol mechanism releasing fragrance at pre-set intervals means you can adjust the amount of time between dispenses to best fit your space’s unique needs.

For example, if you have a particularly smelly restroom, you can set the dispenser to spray your chosen fragrance as frequently as every 5 minutes. They can also be programmed to spray during certain intervals of time during the day so that each dispenser only dispenses when there are people in your building.

When placing an aerosol dispenser system in your commercial restroom, you should ideally mount the system about 10 feet from the floor. This gives the particles released enough time and space to linger in the air and dry before they reach the ground.

If your dispenser isn’t placed properly, your floors may become slippery with oily residue or the aerosol could spray into your guests’ faces.

Fan Propelled Systems

Fan-propelled odor control systems use air movement created by a fan to release fragrance in your restroom.

This type of system directs air through the dispenser to spread the scent around the entire area.

Fan propelled systems are commonly used with dry fragrances to eliminate the risk of slippery floors caused by the excess residue of an aerosol odor control system. These odor control systems are compatible with gels and oil inserts.

Passive Odor Control Systems

Passive odor control systems are most effective in areas where there’s a lot of natural air movement.

These fragrance dispensers rely on the natural movement of air in your restroom to spread the chosen scent.

Passive odor control systems are best when placed near the doors, in stalls, and in other areas with a lot of natural airflow.

Some passive odor control systems include:

• Gels
• Solids
• Toilet clips
• Urinal screens
• Urinal blocks

Gels

Fragrance gels can be placed in a dispenser to deliver odor-controlling scents in your commercial restrooms.

Gels are commonly compact, dry fragrances that release odor-controlling molecules into the air.

These passive systems can be attached to the walls of your restroom or placed on surfaces to spread the scent as your guests pass them.

Depending on the restroom size, each odor-controlling gel may last anywhere between a few days and a few weeks.

Solids

Passive odor control solids are infused with your chosen fragrance and the surface of the dispenser provides adequate scent release as air passes.

These products can be small and compact or large, depending on the specific needs of your facility’s restrooms.

Solid odor control products can be placed in dispensers or mounted on the walls in your restroom to combat foul odors.

Since solids are dry fragrances, they can be placed freely without the worry of creating a slip hazard.

Solids can even come in toilet clips that can be placed inside of your commercial toilets to combat lingering smells.

Toilet Clips

Toilet clips are attached to the rim of the toilets in your restrooms.

When the toilet is flushed, the air and water from the toilet cause the scent to be released.

Urinal Screens

Urinal screens can be used to complement your commercial restroom cleaning schedule.