You dutifully scrubbed every surface until it shined to prepare for guests and now your hands smell overwhelmingly like bleach. The house smells fresh as it sparkles from your efforts, but your hands smell like a heavily chlorinated swimming pool. The odor of bleach on your hands smells antiseptic, off putting, and might even engage your gag reflex as you sit down for dinner.
How do you remedy hands that smell strongly of a job well done?
Bleach contains chlorine which is a strong alkali. The pH of alkalis neutralizes naturally when combined with any acid. However, in combining both alkali and acid it is possible to release harmful gasses. To reduce the chance of producing and inhaling a harmful gas, prior to applying any of these smell reduction methods be sure to rinse your hands throughly with tepid or cool water for a few minutes to reduce the amount of physical chemical remaining on your skin.
While all of these methods with eliminate or reduce the smell of bleach on your skin, many of the offered remedies carry their own odors. Select the solution that best meets your needs!
How to Get Rid of Bleach Smell on Hands
1 Splash with White Vinegar
Natures all purpose acidic cleanser neutralizes the bleach smell quickly and easily. Simply soak hands in 1:1 vinegar and water solution to reduce and remove bleach odor. Your hands may smell a little like vinegar after treatment, however the familiar salad dressing-like odor evaporates from skin more quickly than the heady chemical smell of bleach.
2 Lemon or Orange Squeeze
Similarly, the acid of lemon or orange juice helps to neutralize the chemical components of the bleach making your hands smell fresh and citrusy. Rub a sliced lemon or orange directly on your affected skin, or squeeze lemon or orange juice into a bowl of lukewarm water and allow your hands to soak in the mixture for a few minutes. Give yourself a full spa treatment and add some rose petals or basil and natural salts to give your hands a luxury bath.
3 Coffee Ground Rub
Use a palm full of dry coffee grounds to remove the chemical bleach odor and replace it with a warm, organic smell. The acid in coffee grounds both cuts the alkali of the bleach chemicals and the grounds absorb the offending odor. Rub the coffee grounds into your skin like an exfoliant, then dust of the grounds into the waste bin. Rinse any excess coffee into the sink. Your hands will smell of coffee, but in a pleasant and homey way far superior to the harsh smell of bleach.
4 Soap with Citric Acid
Lather up with a soap that contains citric acid to most effectively remove a bleach smell. A soap containing citric acid proves a gentle and effective solution for neutralizing the bleach smell, and leaves hands smelling clean and fragrant. Use a high quality hand soap with added moisturizers to relieve your hands of any dryness or chapping created when cleaning with the bleach solution.
5 Coconut or Almond Oil
Moisturize your skin with a subtle, yet fragrant all natural oil like coconut oil or almond oil. While these oils do not chemically neutralize the chlorine in bleach, they do offer a silky smooth scent to mask the odor of the bleach. Unlike store bought moisturizers, natural oils absorb deeply into your skin. Allow time for the oils to saturate and repair the affected area and reapply until skin appears hydrated and the bleach odor fades.
6 Flower Petal Squeeze
Pluck a few rose petals from your garden or centerpiece and rub them between your fingers until your skin absorbs the essential oils. The natural oils and fragrances from the petals serve to mask the bleach odor with a pleasant, natural perfume. Be sure to use nice smelling blooms like rose or honeysuckle, not all flowers smell so sweet!
7 Wear Gloves when Handling Bleach
Don’t forget to wear gloves next time! In the future a good pair of rubber gloves prevents your skin from absorbing the harsh chlorine of bleach in the first place. Not only will wearing gloves as you clean prevent unwanted hand odors, the gloves also protect your skin from the harsh irritation of the chemicals present in bleach cleansers.
Bleach smells strongly and the odor may linger on fingers and palms for days if left unattended. Prevent the absorption of strong bleach odor into skin initially by using gloves and using an appropriate bleach to water ratio to dilute the chemical cleanser. After use, employ your preferred method from above to remove, absorb, and cover the sometimes overwhelming odor of bleach.
Splashing hands with white vinegar can be a great solution for getting rid of gasoline smell within hands. The chemical properties in vinegar will work to break apart the gasoline bonds that hold the gasoline residues together. For best results, rub the vinegar between palms and fingers for a minimum of 30-45 seconds before washing hands off under the faucet.
The citric acid within lemon juice can have a powerful effect in elimination the entrenched gasoline odors within your palms. Mix a solution of lemon juice and water in equal parts inside a cup and proceed to rub the moisture through your palms and finger for a minimum of one minute. During this time, the lemon juice will work to cut through the troublesome gasoline aroma and replace it with the gentle scent of freshly cut lemons.
The use of detergent yields a similar result on gasoline residues as it does in breaking apart the chemical bonds in grease. As a preliminary step, pour 1-2 teaspoons of salt within a cup next to the kitchen sink. Wet hands and later palms and fingers dish detergent and then pour the salt within hands. Continue to rub the materials between palms for another minute before rinse hands clean and enjoying freshened hands.
The use of hand sanitizer or rubbing alcohol can work well in neutralizing difficult gasoline odors within one’s palms. The high percentage of alcohol in both these solutions will provide similar results. Pour small portion of either of these options within your palms and proceed to rub it within hands. For best results, be sure to continue to rub this solution in until all of the alcohol solution has evaporated away.
The use of the household deodorizing powder can provide fantastic odor absorption for benefits within hands. Begin by creating a paste of one part baking soda with three parts water inside a cup. Pour this solution within palms and rub the solution through your fingers and palms for an entire minute. Finally, if any odor remains after your first application, you can try this for a second or third time until all of the odor has been eliminated.
This cleaning and disinfectant solution is safe to use on your hands and can be used of a variety of odors within the home. Mix a solution of one part hydrogen peroxide wot three parts water within a large bowl. Proceed to submerge hands within hydrogen peroxide for 1-3 minutes until the gasoline odors have been wiped away. If any odors remain after this period of time, try dipping your hands for an additional period of time until the gasoline odors have been removed from your hands.
If you regularly work with gasoline, and regularly find your palms soaked in the chemical compound, you may wish to invest in specialty mechanics soap. This product solution can work wonders in eliminating challenging gasoline odors from hands and return them to freshness. For best results, keep mechanic’s soap close to your gasoline work site and deodorize as soon as possible.
Although you may have already given this a try, washing hands with regular hand soap under a faucet will usually do the tick in removing any unwanted latex odors. For especially pervasive latex odors, you my want to consider one of the following solutions.
Besides being a useful hand cleanser on the go, the high level of alcohol within this solution can work well at cutting through latex odors. If you find that you need to wear latex gloves on a regular basis, you may want to consider carrying a bottle of hand sanitizer with you for deodorizing purposes.
The citric acid within lemons makes the fruits juice very effective at cutting through difficult latex odors in your hands. To apply, squeeze a small amount of this juice within your palm and proceed to rub the juice through your palms and fingers. Once completed, the lemon juice residues can be rinsed from your freshened hands under a faucet. As an additional note, using the juice from oranges and limes can have a similar positive effect as lemons, because they all possess citric acid.
Although this solution may sound strange, many claim that the use of shampoo is far more effective on latex hand odors than using regular hand soap. Simply apply the shampoo as though it were a hand soap and proceed to wash hands under the faucet to eliminate the rubbery latex odor within your palms and fingers.
When rubbing alcohol is not available, the use of vodka can provide similar results. As always, make sure that hands have been washed with soap before using this method. Begin by pouring 1-2 teaspoons of vodka within one palm, and proceed to rub it within hands until the alcohol has completely evaporated away.
This solution does more than clean and deodorize your teeth. Splash hands with mouthwash and proceed to rub the solution through your palms and hands. Rub for 20-30 seconds before washing the mouth wash residues away from your hands.
Tomato juice can have a similar effect on one’s hands as it does while deodorizing the fur on cats and dogs. Pour a small portion of tomato juice within your hands and proceed to rub it through hands for several minutes before washing your freshened hands clean under the faucet.
It may sound silly, but rubbing a stainless steel utensil under cold running water is a tested method that works to remove that smell of garlic from one’s hands. Turning on the faucet, and rubbing for a minimum of 20-30 seconds has a somewhat mysterious molecular reaction that combats the odorous garlic oils. Allow though any stainless steel utensil will work for this home remedy, a stainless steel spoon is recommended because you are less likely to poke yourself while rubbing.
Rubbing an ice cube under cold water will have a similar effect as using a stainless steel utensil. Grab a large cube of ice and rub the interior of you palms and fingers under the faucet. If melting takes place simply continue with a new cube until you have rubbed all affected areas over the course of 60-90 seconds. The cold water will have the effect of tightening your pores within your hand while the water and friction from the ice cube loosens the oils and washes it away.
Rubbing salt between palms under cold water can have the effect of wiping out garlic odor within one’s hands. Pour 1-2 teaspoon of salt in hands and rub between palms and fingers for a total of 30-60 seconds under a cold faucet. It is important that enough salt is poured prior to washing to avoid the salt be liquid and carried away prematurely.
Many claim that using olive oil to helps diffuse the natural garlic oils and remove the smells from one’s hands. Pour a teaspoon of olive oil in hands and rub between palms and fingers for 30 seconds. After this time has passed, place hands under a cold running faucet and wash with dish detergent to remove both type of oil.
The strong acid within vinegar works well in striping garlic odors from out hands. This household acid directly lifts the natural garlic oils from palms and eliminates the source of the stench. Pour a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar within hands and proceed wit rub between palms and fingers for 30-45 seconds. Once complete, wash hands under faucet with dish detergent to remove any existing vinegar odor.
This method may not completely remove the garlic odor from your palms, but many stand by it’s ability to mask the stench within your hands. Select a small bunch of parsley and wad up and rub between palms and fingers for 45-60 seconds. The fiber will work to strip some of the garlic oils while the parsley juices cover up the garlic smell.
As a preventative method, latex gloves can be worn prior to handling garlic cloves. It can be a bit of a hassle to if you regularly find yourself cooking with garlic cloves, however it is 100 percent sure to keep garlic oils off of your hands. Warning: If you are serving to any one who may potentially have latex allergies, you may need to go without using this preventative method.
This product solution works under the same principle used while rubbing a steal utensil under cold water. The increased benefit of rubbing stainless steel within bar form is that it will allow for faster deodorizing due to it’s ability to come in contact with more areas of your palms and fingers.
These fruit have wonderful natural properties at eliminating unwanted odors. The citric acid within lemon, oranges and limes works to eat through odor causing properties of squid residue. To apply, cut open the fruit and squeeze juice within palms. Continue by running moisture through knuckles, fingers and nails.
If you have a speed stick handy, roll it over your hands. This works well on short notice, when antibacterial soap is out of reach. If you have time, rinse hands to remove chalky deodorant substance left on hands.
Spraying perfume into your hands is another last minute solution for covering up odors on the spot. Also spray your body as this will cover weed odors within clothing as well.
If there is time to create a mixture of baking soda and water, this formula is effective at eliminating odors within your hands. Mix a cup of water and 3 tea spoons of baking soda, and rub into hands thoroughly.
As a last resort, you can splash your hands with nail polish removal to strip away any residues from your hands. Be sure to follow this by washing your hands with antibacterial soap to rinse this harsh chemical compound away.
Under the presumption that any smell is better than weed odor, you can use onion or garlic when the above options are not available. Cut either of these in half, and proceed to rub the interior on all areas of your hands. It’s better to have a stinky hands, than incriminating ones.
Pour fresh coffee ground within hands and rub the substance through hands intensely for 60 second under the faucet. This has the effect of removing the onion smell and replace it with the aroma of fresh made coffee.
The chemical composition of peanut butter works in covering up several smoke and organic odors. Apply peanut butter to palms and work the substance through fingers and into palms for 2-3 minutes. Next, run your hands under water and wash hands with dish detergent to remove all traces of peanut butter.