Garbage chute odour control and scenting
Garbage chute odour control starts in the bin room. Most chute odour comes from the bins at the bottom, not from the chute itself, and that odour rises to every floor. The Garbage Doctor® neutralises the odour at the bins and in the chute, 24/7, with a fragrance in the chute if you'd like one.
How odour gets from the bins to every floor
The bins give off odour day and night, and the odour rises up the chute and out into the hallways. When the Garbage Doctor is on, the machine's ozone breaks the odour down at the bins and inside the chute, before the odour can rise.
How the Garbage Doctor Ozone works: UV ozone travels through conduit to the bins and into the garbage chute, so the odour is neutralised before rising.
Why does a garbage chute act like a chimney?
Warm air rises. A chute is a tall shaft that's open at the bottom, so air from the bin room keeps rising up the shaft, and many chutes also have an exhaust fan at the top that pulls air up day and night. The air in the bin room is the air that travels up the chute.
Chute doors never seal completely. A little air escapes at each one, and much more when someone opens the door. That air brings the bins' odours into the hallways, and the complaints follow. Garbage chute, rubbish chute or refuse chute: each works the same way.
Where does the smell start?
In the bins. Wet waste gives off odour as the waste breaks down, day and night, in the bins under the chute and in every other bin in the room. Heat makes the waste break down faster, so the smell is often worse in summer. Grime on the inside of the chute adds to the odour, and so can a compactor, a grease trap, a floor drain or spills on the floor, but while the bins hold waste, they're the main source.
Neutral or scented: two ways to treat the chute
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Ozone at the bins and in the chute
UV ozoneCarbon filterA neutral chute and bin room
UV ozone targeted at the bins or compactor, and into the chute, neutralises the odour at the source. Customers usually notice a difference within about 15 minutes of installation. The Garbage Doctor Ozone is our most widely used system, economical and reliable.
See the Ozone -
Ozone at the bins, a fragrance up the chute
UV ozoneScentingCarbon filterA scented chute and a neutral bin room
The ozone still neutralises the odour at the bins, and a fragrance of your choice goes into the chute. A little escapes around the chute door on each level, so residents notice a pleasant smell as they use the chute.
See the Duo
Customers love the scented option, with excellent feedback from residents and building managers. But scent mixed with the smell of rubbish isn't pleasant, so the odour in the bin room has to be neutralised first, before the odour can reach the chute. The Duo does both from one system. If you already have a Garbage Doctor, Garbage Doctor Scenting adds the fragrance to your system.
How the Garbage Doctor® is installed
Our systems are installed at the base of the chute, in the bin room. Once the machine is on the wall, our technicians run PVC conduit or silicone hose to release the ozone as close as possible to where the odour starts: usually the bins under the chute, or the compactor. A second line takes ozone, or the scented vapour, into the chute itself, where the ozone or vapour rises with the air.
The Garbage Doctor has been installed by strata and body corporate committees in chutes from all manufacturers, including Elephants Foot, WasteTech, JJ Richards, James Hardie and JD MacDonald, and our technicians install and service the machine throughout Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Airlie Beach, Tweed and Auckland.
See how garbage chute odour control is installed
This example shows a bin room and chute with the Garbage Doctor Duo installed, and the Duo's fragrance going up the chute. The second shows the Garbage Doctor Ozone, which sends ozone into the chute too.
Choose an installation example
Tap a number to zoom in on each part, or press Next to be taken round in order.
Stainless steel, mounted on the bin room wall. Inside, UV lamps turn a small amount of the air's oxygen into ozone. The main unit also holds the scenting controls, which are connected to the scent tank.
Air enters through a carbon filter along the bottom of the machine.
Grey PVC conduit runs along the wall where the bins are kept, with small holes to release the ozone just above them. Targeting the ozone at the source neutralises the odour before the odour is drawn up the chute.
Flexible silicone hose carries the ozone down into the bin under the chute, where the odour starts.
Mounted on the wall near the chute, and connected to the main unit by a small blue hose. The tank holds your choice of fragrance.
The scent tank sends a scented vapour through a white pipe into the chute. The vapour rises through the chute, and a little escapes around the chute door on each level, so the building's waste system feels clean and pleasant to use.
Tap a number to zoom in on each part, or press Next to be taken round in order.
Stainless steel, mounted on the bin room wall, usually at the base of the chute. Inside, UV lamps turn a small amount of the air's oxygen into ozone.
Air enters through a carbon filter along the bottom of the machine.
Grey PVC conduit runs from the machine above the bins, with small holes drilled wherever ozone is needed. Treating the air as close as possible to where the odour starts breaks the odour down before the air is drawn up the chute.
Flexible silicone hose carries the ozone down into the bin under the chute, where the odour starts.
The conduit carries ozone into the chute itself too. The chute pulls air upwards like a chimney and lets the air out at the chute doors on every floor, so the odour is broken down before reaching the hallways.
Garbage chute installation examples (high rise and apartment buildings)
What's the difference between the Duo and the Ozone?
Our explainer video compares our most popular systems: the Garbage Doctor Duo, with ozone in the bin room and a fragrance in the chute, and the Garbage Doctor Ozone, for a neutral bin room and chute.
Questions about garbage chute odour
Does the Garbage Doctor replace chute cleaning?
No. Cleaning is an important part of your waste management plan: cleaning removes the grime inside the chute. But even the cleanest chute does nothing about the odour from the bins, which is drawn up the chute day and night. The Garbage Doctor neutralises that odour at the source, 24/7, between cleans.
Why is the smell worse in summer?
Heat makes the waste in the bins break down faster, so the bins give off more odour.
Why does the smell reach the hallways?
Air from the bin room rises up the chute and escapes at the chute doors. A little leaks out at each door all the time, and much more when a door is opened.
What else helps?
Keep bin lids closed. Ask residents to bag wet waste before the waste goes down the chute. Wash the bins and the bin room floor regularly, and clear the floor drain. Have the chute cleaned as often as your cleaning company advises, and fix chute doors that don't close properly.
Talk to us about your building
Call 1300-ODOURS (1300 636 877), or send us photos of your bin room and chute, and we'll recommend the right system.