I have an obsession with making sure our house always smells really nice. House that smells really nice= six or seven of those scented oil plugins all over the house. The problem with having all of these is the cost to maintain them.
My first solution was to find the generic versions at Aldi. They had lots of scents to choose from and they are only $1.67 per plugin. That was a better deal than most places, but times that by six each month and that was quite the cut into the grocery budget.
I was reading a list of tips from Mary Hunt, that are provided by her readers, and I saw this tip. This is one of those tips where I literally smacked my head and said, “Why didn’t I think of that sooner?”
The tip was to take scented oils, from cheap places like your local Dollar Store, and refill those puppies yourself.
I went to our Dollar Store last night and picked up an apple cinnamon scented oil. I brought it home and took the oil refill apart. The generic ones basically come apart by being pulled. I am sure the brand name ones probably can screw apart. I then took a small funnel and poured in the new scent. I dipped both ends of the scent-stick-thingie in the oil, just to give it a good start, put it back together & plugged it back in.
Total cost, about five cents a pop! Isn’t that such a brilliant idea? I just love when I find a good idea like that!
Oh, and our house smells like a dream. I did get a few weird looks from my husband as I was performing my science experiment, but whatever!
Be sure to visit Rocks in my Dryer for more great solutions!
Essence oils, though a bit more expensive, have some great smells. I love lavender.
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Great idea, I have a few of them but I too couldn’t justify the cost of refilling them every month. Thanks for the tip.
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Great idea! I have recently gotten several of Glade/AirWick air freshener dealies free either with a coupon or by rebate. These are very expensive to maintain, that’s for sure! Thanks so much for the tip. I will definitely try this.
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Snap idea. Now this is something I could and will do.
Thanks for sharing and for visitng my site.
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Sheer Brilliance! My husband has the same obsession, and you’re right, it takes such a chunk out of the grocery budget! I just grabbed 2 empty ones out of the wall and filled them with some oil my husband bought the other day!! LOVE IT! As always, you are making my life easier and cheaper! Love you gal!
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Wonderful tip!!!!!
Thanks for sharing.
Linda
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I have to tell you, that those scented air products are not healthy for you or your kids. Hate to be a downer about it, but there has been research done about it.
If you really want to scent up your place, I’d suggest using fresh fruits cut up, such as lemons or oranges, etc. I’m sure you could find some natural ways to scent up your house which would be healthier and less costly at the same time. Try searching on google for it.
An excellent site to start is here, at http://www.ehs.utoronto.ca/resources/HSGuide/Scent.htm
And here is some helpful scenting advice. http://www.rd.com/content/openContent.do?contentId=24084
Just thought I’d pass this along, by the way I LOVE your site and visit everyday!
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Awwww, Amelia, that is so sweet! I am glad that it worked for you too! Isn’t it great to figure stuff like this out. I wish I had a super cheap friend that lived in our city so that I could call her at ten o’clock at night to tell her how to do this and she wouldn’t think I was weird for doing so
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Wow that is a great savings, I can’t wait to try this.
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I would suggest using natural essential oils instead of chemicals. Natural essential oils also have different properties such as lemon is an antiseptic and antibacterial agent.
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Do you have to use (oil) or can you use the scented liguids. how long does a refill last?
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I found a few of the empty ones sitting around the house that I was too “cheap” to refill. An idea hit me: everything is on the Internet! I bet someone has an idea on how to refill these things cheap! Sure enough, you do! Thanks a bunch!
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Amy Reply:
September 5th, 2011 at 1:29 am
So glad you could use the tip, Bethany! Have a wonderful day!
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