Sprays, hanging products, plug-ins, devices masked as home décor — there are hundreds of products geared toward freshening your home. But what if there were a simpler way? Read on to find out how.
![This Simple Trick Can Refresh Your Entire Home](https://www.familyhandyman.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/replacing-furnace-filter-GettyImages-1211073867.jpg)
This Simple Trick Can Refresh Your Entire Home
![This Simple Trick Can Refresh Your Entire Home](https://www.familyhandyman.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/replacing-furnace-filter-GettyImages-1211073867.jpg)
Let’s face it, it can be hard to keep your house smelling like flowers. Or lavender, or peppermint, or ylang ylang or frankincense.
Pet odors, cooking smells, furnace smells, lack of ventilation and other not-so-fresh daily occurrences can make it a challenge to keep our homes smelling great. Fortunately, there’s a better way than with aerosols, cone-shaped gels or even little cardboard trees.
Head down to your utility room, wait until your furnace or air conditioning stops running, and take out your furnace filter. Place several droplets of your favorite essential oil all over the pleats of the furnace. No need to soak it, but the more drops you place, the richer the scent. Make sure you reinstall the filter properly so the air flow is going in the correct direction. The little arrows on your filter indicate the right way.
Now, when the furnace or air conditioner kicks on, it will pick up the essential oil smell as it passes through the filter and carry it throughout your house. It’s like a whole-house air freshener.
The density of the filter will effect how much scent carries through, as will the square footage of your home. The larger the home, the less likely the scent will distribute throughout. Just refresh as necessary, or remember to sprinkle some on the next time you change out your filter.