The Heat Vent Hack That Uses A Kitchen Spice To Make Your Home Smell Sweet And Cozy
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When it's cold out, the heat's on, and it's close to holiday time, that's the perfect moment to infuse your home with a cozy, delicious scent. However, you don't need the excuse of the holidays to make your house smell like the best cookies on the planet, and that's just what will happen with this trick. You'll come home to the smell of cinnamon that subtly refreshes itself every time the heat is turned on. To complete this hack, simply dangle an adorable bundle of cinnamon sticks in front of your heating vent so the hot air wafts the scent around the space.
In case you weren't aware, commercially-produced air fresheners are pretty bad for our health. That's one reason we recommend natural, and often cheaper, alternatives. Air fresheners contain toxic chemicals like benzene, formaldehyde, and VOCs, or volatile organic compounds. They also contain phthalates, which can negatively affect hormones and cause asthma and allergies. Unfortunately, U.S. labeling requirements are so lax that even so-called natural (but mass-produced) products aren't required to list every ingredient, so it's hard for people to know what's in them. In contrast, cinnamon sticks are a simple, non-toxic, and low-drama room freshener that you probably already have on hand. If you don't, you could purchase a 1.25 ounce container of Badia Cinnamon Sticks at Walmart for about $9, or they can be found at just about any grocery store.
How to use this hack, plus a fun alternative
To create this lovely scent, gather several cinnamon sticks together, perhaps four or five. You can hold them together using twine or ribbon tied into a bow and then, with a binder clip, attach the twine and the whole package to a heat vent by clipping it onto one of the slats. If a binder clip won't work, connect it with a zip tie. The warmth from the heater will activate the cinnamon scent, and because the heater will come on and off in cycles, you won't get overwhelmed with a constant stream of the spicy perfume.
If the smell of cinnamon doesn't appeal to you, there's a great alternative that works the same way but involves essential oils. You can use any scent you prefer including citrus, lemongrass, jasmine, or a delicate rose fragrance. You could also consider using a rugged cedarwood oil, which you could purchase on Amazon, or a lavender essential oil , which is available at Walmart. Choose the scent you prefer, then purchase a wooden popsicle stick (available at Target) and add several drops of your favorite essential oil along the wooden stick. After you've perfumed the surface, attach a binder clip to the end that's too large to fall through the vent slats. Insert the stick inside the vent with the flat end of the binder clip facing outwards to allow the fragrance to permeate your home in the same way as the cinnamon sticks.