My fridge has a bad stink that has been getting worse lately. I can clean it out and temporarily fix it with vinegar ,bleach, and/or baking powder, but these are not long term fixes. When the water comes back, the stink eventually does too. I'm not sure if the vinegar or bleach isn't just evaporating. I wonder if getting one of those urinal mints would be a good solution? The fridge seems designed to dump condensate in this area and evaporate it by close proximity to the hot compressor. Any ideas?
Update: I'm getting the best results yet simply by putting in those little chlorinater tabs for the pool floaties. Don't put too many in though, because it is very strong. Kills all the odors and smells real clean.
Best Answer
If it's a recurrent problem, I'd go with Copper sulfate over bleach. The stuff is used as a herbicide, fungicide and pesticide, and 25 grams or so dissolved should render the tray lifeless. You can get copper sulfate at greenhouse supply stores and some hardware stores. If you can't find CuSO4-6H20, Bordeaux mixture should work as well.
Bleach and its breakdown products are strong oxidizers, and will corrode your metal tray. Copper sulfate isn't an oxidizer, and won't do that.