In the previous article, we covered methods primarily dedicated to ensuring health improvement conditions in animal grooming and housing facilities which were quite effective at assisting odor control as well by capturing certain odors through air filtration, increased efficiency on surface and enclosed area space by fogging, and reducing bacteria/fungal growth in the overall space by reducing indoor humidity levels. We also found a safe and automatic solution to end-of-the-day odor building in subsurface fabric and material absorption with the combined use of ozone and purification equipment.
The new grooming odor control method in the salon workspace continues with a mostly neutral or nondescript aroma waiting for that first deluge of water released on the day’s inaugural bath in the tub room. A familiar odor some might describe as dank or musty begins to form and the all-too-familiar pattern of strong odor buildup begins.
In the past, some grooming operators foresaw the unpleasant aromas overcoming customers, then employees, and finally the manager or owner themselves, and tried to get ahead of it by initiating odor defenses and creating a workspace condition that all could tolerate, maybe by lighting little scent candles or plugging in small, underperforming plug-in scent devices in the precious few wall outlets available in their commercial grooming building locales. Of course, the most frequent response to offensive odor building is the all-familiar pump- or aerosol-delivered, scented sprays periodically released into the space, and add to that flea sprays, dips, shampoos colognes, conditioners, tangle removers, etc. and we now have a chemical civil war spreading to every nook and cranny. To heck with the potential consequences to allergies or long-term health effects with such a chemical mix!!
Even though we may not be completely satisfied with any one solution to odor control in a working grooming salon, there must be a way to mitigate those customer complaints in a more effective way without a lot of fuss and bother. The past methods just haven’t kept pace with the technological improvements made in health, safety, and comfort issues covered in the previous presentations.
Again, I must refer back to personal experience in tackling an actual severe case of odor remediation and hopefully demonstrate a better, more effective approach to odor management and in making that change, help move the public’s perception from a negative to a positive, or at the least, “no comment.”
As covered in the previous article, the trashed, expensive motorhome’s air quality had been rendered to a state of non-offensive, mostly neutral status in its indoor atmosphere. However, the overall air was nondescript and somewhat stale. The recommendation to the cleanup crew was that they could probably or perhaps make the air a bit more satisfying with an improved ambiance by releasing a branded, signature scent more in keeping with such an elegant RV vehicle. They wanted a fragrance that was not sharp or brassy, and would linger, almost unnoticed except for the pleasance it exuded.
A previous development project with a remediation manufacturer had been quite helpful in making my recommendation as in the process of perfecting this concept has been discovered through frequent testing using trial and error methodology.
This company developed several odor scents by infusing crystals with scented oils that increased potency for wide area distribution. They then modified a series of enclosed air-moving fans with a unique, removable scent cartridge, allowing the fan to operate both independently for drying applications, as well as a wide-area, high air volume scent spreader.
The scents created were designed to be very pleasant without overpowering occupants and to increase scent longevity in the given indoor space. Some models were equipped with a negative ion generator producing millions of negative ions per minute. Ions exist in the air as positive, negative, or neutral. Positive ions are known to carry odor, while negative ions are associated with producing a lighter, less oppressive atmosphere, especially indoors. Negative ions overwhelm positive ions generally by crowding out the positive ions, pushing them up and against the surrounding walls.
This action, plus the potent scent, spreads more thoroughly and evenly into the room and penetrates wall and ceiling areas much more effectively, causing the introduced scent to linger much longer.
The high air volume delivery systems using the most potent scent oils delivers an outstanding result in a very short period of time, while greatly reducing the need for frequent use.
In the case of our motorhome, we ran the scent the first time after the last O3 use for only 30 minutes with a light and pleasant vanilla-scented fragrance, and then again a week later for 15 minutes for a refresher. The results were quite eye-opening and something worthy for any grooming operation to separate their indoor ambiance from competitors and create their own branded scent for much greater business success.
This ends our presentation on odor control solutions and where better results can be expected. We hope this information’s helpful. Any questions, contact us.
The next article will be aimed at a very important and popular area for discussion – How to understand and select the dryers that will lead to a healthier, safer, and more comfortable grooming environment for our animal care industry.
Till Next Time,
The Professor