I know this is not stricktly about camping but it could happen to your caravan fridge.

When we came back last Sunday we were greeted with a strong odor. Our kitchen fridge had tripped out and all the meat had become rotten. After emptying and cleaning the inside with Domestos and Handy Andy and viniger the fridge still smells rotten.

How does one get rid of the smell?

Bicarb in a dish.

we have always had a plastic polar bear that gets filled by bicarb. This filters/cleans the air.

Goodluck.

Hope the rotten juice did not seep into the rubbers of the doors. 

One we misjudge the eggs inside the fridge and the "scrambled eggs" seeped into the rubbers. I had to replace the rubbers.

We put charcoal inside the fridge and also cut 4 x lemons in quarters and spread them out inside the fridge. 

Best of luck on that one

Cut 4 - 5 Lemons in half and stick Cloves into the Lemons and leave the fridge off for 1 - 2 days.

The more Lemons, the better.

Also place a bucket of Citro Soda in the fridge.

Forgot to mention.

You can also place a small bucket of Vanilla Essence inside the fridge.

Not long ago, I had a very bad smell outside my vehicle.

After inspection, I found a dead Rottan between the front Stabilizer and Sump Gaurd.

I bought a small bottle of Vanilla and spread it to the point and the smell dissapear within 2x days.

We had the same experience with a freezer. We have tried everything that was already mentioned above.  Eventually bought a new freezer.

Thanks for all the advice. I will try the lemons and bicarb.

What I thought of also doing is to leave the door open and obviously the fridge unpluged for the duration of our Kruger trip....two months. If that does not work we will have to replace the fridge.

That might work.  Odours do not last forever.  Do update us on the outcome.

The odour is now as good as gone. 

We removed all of the contents and drawers and shelves. Then washed the inside, drawers and shelves with bicarb in water. We then let it dry with the doors open and left the drawers and shelves in the sun. Then we placed plates with 500g of activated bone charcoal and another with bicarb and another with ground coffee on the shelves and left the doors closed during the day and open at night. During the day we ran the fridge. Every day the odour became less and the coffee smell became stronger. We continued doing this for 7 days. This morning you could only smell the coffee so I washed out the inside with undiluted vinigar. Closed it and ran the fridge for 3 hours. Now it smells like coffee and vinigar. We have now started putting the food back. Yay!

I should maybe have done the vinigar wash earlier.

Well done Paul saved yourselves a new fridge :)

Great job. Fridge as good as new! ! ! !