A fruitful catch after a fishing expedition is top of your priorities when you set out to the waters. But that comes with a funky smell on your hands after handling fish all through, from cleaning your catch and packing them up in the box.
There are many ways to get the fish smell off your hands, and each works differently for different anglers. Again, some of these ways apply to different situations depending on where you are.
Below is a comprehensive list of getting the fish smell off your hands.
10 Ways To Get Fish Smell Off Hands
Most of the things you will need to get the smell off your hands are already in your home, and the ones that are not are available in your nearest stores.
1. Ketchup
Tomato sauces have been used to clean up stench from various sources, and fish smell is no exception. The high concentration of tomato sauce in ketchup makes it ideal for getting rid of the smell [1].
Pour a generous amount on your hands and rub it in for a few minutes. Pay attention to the spaces between your fingers and your nails to ensure you clean every part. After rubbing it in, wash your hands with soap and warm water.
2. Toothpaste
The same way toothpaste clears our breath is how it gets rid of the fish smell off your hands. Most kinds of toothpaste come with active ingredients to clear just about any smell while cleaning the surface of the dirt.
Rub a generous amount of toothpaste on your hands and make sure you spread it inside the nails too. Rinse it off using warm water and soap to clean your hands afterward. This will clear not only the fish smell but also the toothpaste smell.
3. Baking Soda
Baking soda is not only a helpful ingredient in a variety of baking recipes but also a valuable substance for cleaning surfaces. Baking soda comes with a balanced pH that actively removes odors while cleaning dirt off [2].
Mix baking soda with a bit of water to make a paste. Rub this paste on your hands and massage it in vigorously. Leave the mask on your hands for a few minutes to give the baking soda time to work.
After a while, clean the mask off with warm water. The smell should be gone, and if not, repeat the process; afterward, wash your hands with soap and water.
4. Lemon Juice
Lemon juice is not only a versatile ingredient for many foods but also an active ingredient to clean surfaces and mask smells. Most cleaning supplies use lemon extract as one of the primary ingredients, thanks to the lemon’s dirt and smell-stripping ability.
The smell of lemons also masks pungent smells; therefore, helpful in getting rid of the fish smell off hands. Squeeze a generous amount of fresh lemon juice on your hands and massage the juice all over your hands.
Wash your hands with warm soap and water to rinse off the lemon juice and clear the odor completely.
5. Salt
Older generations of anglers used salt to get rid of the fish smell off their hands. Salt, like baking soda, is a great cleaning agent and a useful product to get rid of pungent smells. Add a generous amount of salt to your hands and scrub, paying attention to the spaces between your fingers.
Rinse the salt using warm water, then wash your hands with soap and water to remove the odor completely.
6. Coffee
A spoon or two of coffee can do the trick and get the fish smell off your hands. Coffee has a distinct rich aroma that is nice to smell in your morning cup and valuable to clear the smell of fish off your hands.
The best coffee to use for this is ground coffee, as it has the richest and most active granules. Get a spoonful of freshly ground coffee and rub it into your hands. Wash it off after a few minutes, and you will notice the fish smell fade away.
7. Stainless Steel
Stainless steel is an excellent alternative for removing pungent smells and has been known as a valuable trick to get rid of garlic smell. The good thing is that you most definitely have a stainless steel surface tool in your home that you can use.
After working on fish, clean your hands as usual, then rub them on a stainless steel sink or pot. Rewash your hands, and you will notice that the fish smell goes. You can get a stainless steel soap bar, especially if you fish regularly [3].
8. Hand Sanitizer
Hand sanitizer helps kill germs and is an active product for removing smells. Most sanitizers come with rubbing alcohol as one of the significant ingredients. The purpose of rubbing alcohol is to kill bacteria and get rid of smells that go with that.
Rub a generous amount of sanitizer on your hands and massage for a few minutes. As the sanitizer dries out, the fish smell will fade away. Keep a bottle of hand sanitizer in your tackle box when you cannot access other things to get rid of the fish smell.
9. Herbs
Herbs like cilantro, parsley, and mint come with a pleasant scent that can help remove the fish smell from your hands. The pungent smell of herbs can clear the smell by rubbing a few leaves on your hands for a few minutes.
10. GOJO
GOJO is an industrial hand cleaner that people in construction use to clean their hands. The substance is designed to strip all kinds of dirt such as oil, grease, diesel, etc. It works well at removing pungent odors, so it can work well to remove the fish smell off hands.
GOJO has a strong scent that will clear the fish smell in minutes. However, the smell will remain on your hands for a bit. You do not have to worry about this as it will clear the more you clean your hands.
The Bottom Line
The funky fish smell can be unbearable, but you can get rid of it instantly with these ways. All these ways are effective and have proven to do the job. And, you most certainly have one or more of these things in your home; therefore, convenient and economical.
