How can I deal with smell from commode while cleaning it?

A commode with a tight fitting lid works best. Place the lid on while you are carrying it to the bathroom. This will help contain the odors. If you want to pay a lot more money, you can buy commode liners that are plastic bags with absorbent material inside. The bag will tie off immediately as you are removing it from the commode. Once the bag is tied off the odors will be mostly contained.

Has anyone suggested a COMMERCIAL GRADE face mask? Like the ones painters use to block off paint and thinner fumes?

I will research the site here, oh! I just remembered a product advertised on TV, supposedly drop one drop b4 using the toilet and no odor.
I will be back asap. Mom's Frank Sinatra DVD ended................aaaahhhhhmmmm!

M88

Product is called

POO PURRI

All scents, sizes, prices, and the imitation too.

My mom, 90.7 yrs old is still continent, but when I need it, I am going to have to buy some.

M88

Just wanted to clarify. The holmes odor eliminating air purifier units cost between $25-$70 at target. The less expensive one would be for a very small unit for a small room or small space. The more expensive one would be for a larger unit for a larger room. There are several in between for small to medium size rooms. Odor eliminating filters to with these are between $10-$18 and need to be replaced every 2-4 months, depending on which machine. The small $25 machine comes with one odor eliminating filter. Most of these holmes machines let you choose between the strong odor eliminating filter versus the hepa type filter. There is one hepa type filter that also has baking soda for odor control. I used the one with the odor eliminating filters and found it to be extremely helpful. I got best results when using it with a citrus magic odor eliminator and also a little odor eliminator both in the room and spraying directly on the commode contents before attempting to empty.

I totally agree! A HEPA FILTER would be best. HEPA=High Efficiency Particle Air filter. So, that would be super helpful. And one of the products of your choice that smell good, or absorb what the filter did not. Put on a face mask, and try it. Tell us what worked best. Thanks.
M88

As a big bleach fan, I'd take the bedside toilet outside and pour some bleach and water in the bowl and let it soak for several hours for so. Meanwhile, if you have a spare bedside toilet handy, you can bring that out in place of the one that's soaking. If you don't have a spare handy, then I guess the patient will just have to use a regular toilet for the time being until the portable one has been sanitized.

Since I'm a bleach only user, I would highly recommend taking the commode outside and mixing a solution of bleach and water and let it soak for several hours or so. Bleach will kill all odor causing bacteria.

* If you have a second bedside commode handy that happens to be already clean, you can bring it out and set it where the other one was before it needed cleaned. If you don't have an extra one handy, the patient can temporarily use a bedpan (if bedridden) or a regular commode (if not bedridden).

You can't just "cover-up" bad odors that linger, you must get to the root of the problem and eliminate the cause of the odor, because allowing it to remain will only make you and others sick

Replace the plastic receptacle.

Replacing a bedside commode receptacle can run pretty expensive when a gallon of bleach is much cheaper. As we all know, medical equipment is already very expensive, including bedside commodes. Replacing the receptacle would be nice if you actually had extra money to throw around, but if not, the cheaper alternative would be soaking and sanitation. This is why I highly recommend a strongly enough bleach water solution because bacteria gets down into the plastic, and bleach will penetrate the plastic and eliminate all odor causing bacteria, therefore sanitizing the object. This is a far cry cheaper than trying to replace and already expensive piece of equipment

Robertacapecod, Wear a mask. Add some mentholatum to your nose and lips prior to changing the bucket. Adding bleach to the bucket (while in the bedroom) is going to make the odor disperse into the air more, increasing the odor to a toxic gas. Not healthy for the patient either.
There is something less toxic you can add to the commode bucket.
Maybe others can figure this out for you.
Thinking RV toilet additives?

There are excellent ideas here about stopping the smell and you can also buy some masks to wear when you're cleaning the toilet area for the day. That might help keep current smells from bothering you.

Also, what type of surface is the commode sitting on?
Tile? Grout may be harboring bacteria and smell
Carpet? Need to protect the permanent carpet with something washable.
Wooden floor? Same as tile, harder to sanitize.

Try the Shark floor cleaner, it uses steam cleaning, light and easy to use. Not terribly expensive and it disinfects with plain water

Waterproof the commode's surroundings.

Febreeze, comes in a few scents.

Lemon juice....... oh, baking soda and vinegar together. It will work for the garbage disposal nicely. Cheap!

M88

You may have to have a plumber come out and replace the ring at the bottom of the commode. It could be harboring mold or other stuff that causes smells. If nothing else, replace the commode as well and start with new stuff after you scrub the tile or flooring around the ring. That should eliminate all odors. good luck.

Here's what I do: I empty the commode each time it's used and work quickly. Dump, wash, rinse, disinfect, and refill with about an inch of water to make the next cleaning easier. I light balsam incense to help eat odors during use - but clear that with her doctor, especially if she has any lung problems - and be VERY careful to put it out properly. You can also put a menthol cough drop in your mouth and push it to the roof with your tongue, near your nasal cavity. To deal with the Depends, I bought a covered swing-topped trash can, which I put in the bathroom and line with the force-flex bags. Wrap the Depends in the Chux before you toss them. The main goal is to empty often, work quickly - and always wear gloves! Hope this helps.

Southerngirl's comment about using mouthwash not making the room smell as if a cover-up scent was used reminded me of something that hopedly will make everyone laugh. I once worked with a company where one woman had bad breath but used rather strong perfume--her office smelled like a bathroom that someone had used and then sprayed!

Pathologists, I gather, put a little dab of menthol rub under their nostrils. Ask your pharmacy for one that won't damage sensitive skin.

First, get some masks to put on your face when you have to do cleanup work. You have many good answers here such as putting a small amt of water in the bottom of the container for her so it won't be as hard to clean. I use the spray bleach foam cleaner to take smells away when cleaning. spray some in the commode. when it foams up, whatever you put down in there shouldn't be a problem smelling. The baking soda and vinegar is always a good choice but do use a mask so you won't ingest the odors that are permeating the air when you pour something down the toilet. Every time you flush the toilet, some of the odors come back up and get back in your nose if it isn't covered up. You can buy a hundred masks for about 10-12 bucks at home depot or lowe's. I also had a bidet installed (about $60) on my toilet because of the spray of water I felt I wanted to feel clean. If needed, I could have installed a spray shower head with tubing coming from the spigot I had installed down below the toilet in case I needed to turn the water off immediately. It might cost about a $80-100 to install the bidet, tubing, shower head but if it's for a person on medicare or Medicaid, talk to them about reimbursing you for it. If not, it would still be a major help to you as the caretaker to clean up after your mother.

If nothing else helps, some Coroners and other people who sometimes have to deal with long dead bodies, put Vicks under their nose so they can't smell the body.

If I am correct, the original poster's mother has passed. Out of respect, others can start a new question for themselves, imo.

The CNA's at the nursing home told me to breathe through my mouth instead of my nose when I was changing her. I also put a Himalayan salt lamp in her room and it seems to make the room smell fresher. I leave water in the bedside commode with a little Odo-Ban in it. I empty it every time she toilets. It keeps down the smell as well as making it much easier to clean.

Peppermint Essential Oil. I use Young Living in a oil diffusing necklace I got on Amazon. Some hospitals/care facilities just use a cotton ball dabbed with the oil...It really helps!!!

I hate to say this but perhaps it is time to face the fact that this patient has to be put in a facility where they deal with this daily. It is horrible to have to live like this. Sorry, but this is how I feel. And were I the patient doing this, I know I would have no choice but to be "removed".

Can you wear a tight face mask? And perhaps put Vicks under your nose above your lip? I think this might work so you don't gag.

My mom is stage 7 now and totally incontinent. I will share a few things we have learned/done. I use the arm and hammer bags for baby diapers, and bag each brief in one when it is removed and tie the top then put in trash which is emptied every day. That keeps some of the smell down. We use a plug in deodorizer in the room plus spray and candles when we need a boost. When she used the bedside commode, I emptied it immediately after each toileting and rinsed with a vinegar wash.
For particularly smelly jobs, spray a bit of shaving cream on it. The smell is instantly better. I learned this trick on another chat site. It workef in the commode and on her body at this point. I do have masks too and have been known to wear one with a bit if essential oil rubbed on the inside ;-) while changing an extreme job.

My husband used to tease me when I was gagging that I could change baby and toddler diapers with no problem...ugh. But it is true, we had five children and the eighth grandbaby coming...hahaha...very different.
I also use baby wipes on mom...the scent helps.
Hope this helps.

What I would do for a smelly portable commode is first have a clean back up handy. Take the dirty one and dump it into your regular toilet then take it outside and fill it with a strong bleach water solution and let it soak for at least a few hours or so. Give the patient the clean back up while the other one is being cleaned.

Wear a dust mask, like you would wear while painting. Put a dab of peppermint oil inside of it. This is a trick I earned from a dental hygienist!

I use a product called Odo-Ban... I get it at Home depot. I comes in aerosol...spray bottle....or by the gallon.
It come in 3 really nice fragrances... I swear by this stuff.. Its pretty amazing. It removes any odor of urine..feces..vomit etc...It can be used in the laundry also as a rm freshner. It is also a disinfecting cleaner. I have an incontinent elderly father. So believe me i have found no other product that works so well.

New posters should be informed that the relative of the original poster has died, so this should now be regarded as a general information-sharing thread.

I notice few people are addressing the problem of feeling sick while emptying and cleaning the commode. In mediaeval Europe, hygiene was almost non-existent. People used facemasks, nose masks and nosegays (heavily scented small flower bouquets) and pomanders to plunge their noses into to escape evil smells. Why not buy ordinary facemasks from chemist or DIY shop, spray on non-toxic flowery perfume or even just a mist of cider vinegar, and wear that while cleaning out. For the rest of the house, look at all the other posts for good tips! I have an incontinent old dog whose pee and poo on the kitchen floor also need the same attention as your commode!!

Poo-pourri works, period! It some how "eats" or eliminates bm odors. Also, keep a bit of water & chlorox bowl cleaner in the bucket before & after it is used. It works wonders! Even during the bm. It cuts the odor way down.

They make masks for paint fumes. I use one. Cant smell nothing. Bleach can hurt the sinuses so that isn't a good thing to do. Try an RV mixture. That works awesome. You're lucky she can poop!