By Trisha Marsh
For The State News
When the garbage disposal broke at Chris Mykytiak's rental house, he decided not to fix it. Soon the dishes piled up and the food pasted to them and rotted.
"When it started to get warm out again little bugs started to show up, and it smelled like something had died in the sink," said the international relations and psychology senior.
Garbage disposals are the biggest problem among students living off campus, said W. Paul Wigman, owner of J&J Plumbing & Heating in Lansing.
"College students are famous for grinding up all kinds of stuff and only running the water for a few seconds, then not running it again all day, which causes it to either get clogged or start to smell because the food particles begin to rot," Wigman said.
There are many smells in college dwellings, from that lingering body odor scent to that overwhelming rotting stench from who knows where.
Wigman said other problems might appear in homes when dry traps, the drains for sinks, laundry units, floor drains and bathtubs are not used on a regular basis. It brings a musty, rotting smell, he said.
Also, plugged vents and backed-up floor drains all cause similar odors that smell like something is starting to decay.
"When you are dealing with any of these problems the best way to deodorize and disinfect is to use bleach," Wigman said. "Bleach becomes a college student's best friend because it's cheap and easy to pick up just about anywhere."
To prevent these problems from happening, it's a good idea to run water down all traps every day and run bleach down them every four to five months, he said.
"Students also want to make sure that they are cleaning all these areas in the home on a regular basis with basic household cleaning supplies," Wigman said.
Mykytiak now lives at Sigma Chi fraternity house, where each week a detail manager assigns chores.
"If those chores aren't completed on time we get fined," Mykytiak said.
Odor problems aren't only found in off-campus situations.
"My room starts to smell when my roommate and I don't take out the garbage or don't vacuum," said accounting sophomore Garret Mausolf, who lives in Wonders Hall.
He said they take care of the problem by vacuuming weekly and spraying Lysol or Febreze in the trash.
Even though some students keep their areas clean, it could be a different situation with a roommate there.
"My roommate and I go back and forth sometimes because she always leaves dirty dishes on the stove and they start to smell," said civil engineering sophomore Shadaya Brown.
Communication is key with roommates, said Holden Hall Complex Director Josh Gillespie.
Gillespie said students should approach roommates respectfully to discuss the problem so the situation doesn't get out of hand.
