Bissell Steam Mop Smells Like Fish | Maintenance Tips

To clean the floors and stairs of your house, you may use different types of mops. Steam mop is one of the commonly known mopping systems. Bissell is a brand that is renowned in the market for producing steam mops of many designs, models, and sizes. At some point, you may also have used the steam mops from Bissell.

But once in a while, you may also wonder why the Bissell steam mop smells like fish or fish water. It is possible to have many reasons behind this serious and unbearable problematic situation. But, the root of this fish or fish-water smell problem is not taking proper maintenance of your Bissell steam mop.

Finding the Location of Fish Like Smell in Bissell Steam Mop

The whole steam mop body and the handle will not produce that unbearable fish and fish water-like odor. This disgusting smell will be produced from any exact place or part of the steam mop body. In maximum cases, the fish smell comes from the mop pads in the mop head, and there is a reason for that as well.

The mop head gets in touch with the water frequently, and this part also needs to deal with the dirt. When those water and dirt somehow remain in the mop head for a long time, horrible odors start to come from that part. The water tank and the nozzle can also be the source of the unbearable fish-like odor.

Not cleaning the mop pads, mop head, water tank, and nozzle properly and not letting it dry well are the prime reasons for this fish-like smell. When you will find out the horrible odor source, the next thing you should do is finding out the reasons behind this problematic situation.

The Reasons Why Bissell Steam Mop Smells Like Fish

There may be various reasons for causing your Bissell steam mop to smell like fish. This smell generally comes from the lower part also known as the mop head. Sometimes, it also smells like fish water, which is unbearable. The prime reasons behind this fish-like smell are:

Not Emptying the Water Tank

You may think not to empty the water tank of your Bissell steam mop as you can use it later. But this is a very wrong decision for the mop as this can produce bad odors and even can damage the whole tool. 

If you leave water in the tank after cleaning, that will remain in there until your next cleaning session. It can be the reason for growing molds in warm and damp areas. These molds are highly capable of producing fish and fish-water smells.

Not Cleaning the Water Tank

If you don’t clean the water tank, it can be another reason for producing horrible fish like odors. Dirt and grimes may gather at the lower part of the water tank when you will not clean the tank regularly. With a small touch of water, the dirt and grimes can produce a highly unbearable fish-like odor.

Dirt in the Nozzle

You may need to use a nozzle when you will use this steam mop to clean the furniture. Dirt and grim will go through the nozzle, and some can attach with the nozzle body as well. That’s why the nozzle needs regular cleaning. When you will not do it, dirt and grimes will mix to make a deadly combo.

After a bit of time, the nozzle of the steam mop will start smelling like fish or fish water. The disgusting smell will create a horrible problematic situation for you to bear.

Wet and Filthy Mop Pads

Mop pads are situated in the mop head of this cleaning tool. This detachable part of the tool gets the closest touch of the dirt, grimes, water, and different types of cleaners. These mop pads become much dirty while cleaning as dirt, grimes, and water mix up and attach with the pads.

When your floor cleaning session will be over, you need to clean-up the whole steam mop body along with the mop pads. But when you let the dirt and grimes sit on the wet pads, that causes bacteria to breed. This situation of the mop pads can produce a terrifying fish and fish water-like smell.

Any perishable objects can also attach to the mop pads. When you leave the mop pads in that situation, those objects will get enough time to rot. After rotting, those objects will also produce an unimaginable fish-like smell.

How to Get Rid of the Fish-Like Smell of the Bissell Steam Mop

The situation will be unimaginable for you when fish-like odors will start to come out from your Bissell steam mop. The key solution to this problem is to clean the whole steam mop body regularly following the step-by-step process. The processes are:

Step-1: Unplugging the Steam Mop

The first thing you should do is detaching the connection of the steam mop by unplugging the cord. 

Step-2: Emptying and Cleaning the Water Tank

After the floor-cleaning session, you need to empty the water tank of your Bissell steam mop. Detach the water tank from the main body, and drain every drop of water out from there before you clean this part. Prepare a solution mixing hot water and vinegar, and pour the water tank in there.

Clean the water tank well to make sure no dirt is left in there to cause the fish-like smelling problem.

Step-3: Nozzle Cleaning

You should clean the nozzle as well. The solution you made to clean the water tank; you can use it to clean the nozzle too. In the same way, pour the nozzle into the solution and rub it to eliminate the dirt and other particles. Continue the cleaning procedure to make sure no dirt and grimes are left.

Step-4: Rinsing the Mop Pads

The mop pads should be cleaned as well by using the proper solution and then with normal water. After eliminating the dirt and grimes, you should let the mop pads dry with a dryer or by keeping them under sunlight. To get rid of the bad-odor, you can replace the mop pads as well.

Read next: Bissell Power Fresh Steam Mop

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why does my Bissell steam mop smell like fish?

The presence of moisture and bacteria in mop pads are the key reasons for fish-like smell. Unclean water tank, nozzle, and mop head can also be the reason for this horrifying smells.

What should I do to eliminate the fish-like smell from the Bissell steam mop?

To get rid of this fish-like smell, you need to clean the mop head, water tank, nozzle, and mop pads. You can use vinegar and water solution or the other cleaning solutions for this process.

Conclusion

A steam mop is a well-known floor cleaning tool that you can use both in your office and home. While cleaning your floors and stairs, these cleaners can get dirty as well. You may even have to face the situation when Bissell steam mop smells like fish, and that will be highly terrifying.

To get rid of this problematic situation, cleaning all the parts of the steam mop is highly required. Regular cleaning of the mop head, water tank, handle, nozzle, and mop pads will keep the bad odors away. Thus, you will be saved from fish-like smells while using the Bissell steam mops.