Rotten Crabmeat Smell in Cabinet

It has to be refrigerated! That's why it exploded! Of course I put mine in the pantry, too, and I was lucky because I saw that it's really puffy and when I opened it I almost threw up from the smell. So don't even expect that you're gonna get your money back if you didn't store it right.

This happened to us too, a can of 'chicken of the sea' brand crab bought from costco exploded in our pantry overnight, probably from botulism as one poster suggested. after one week, four thorough pine sol scrubbings, an entire can of lysol, two big bowls of vinegar, baking soda, and countless off-the-shelf odor neutralizers, that disgusting smell still has not gone away. It's a total nightmare. my mom went back to the costco she bought it from and the supervisor, after reading this thread, issued her a full refund and saw to it that they would no longer stock that brand. It's too bad they didn't pay for the (attempted) cleanup effort as well though, which has now totaled somewhere in the $50-$100 range. Like the poster under me said: if this happened to you as well, make sure you let someone know about it.

This is ridiculous! I too had a can of crab explode in my pantry like a grenade! It was in the back of my refrigerator and my wife took it out for disposal. We have an entry that connects our garage and kitchen where we stage our garbage.

The worst part is that Costco and Phillips Foods have chosen to do nothing! I don't have to explain the damage it caused, resulting in more than $12,000 in repair. The smell was so pervasive, my neighbors could smell it blocks away and my entire home was unlivable to about four days. After an initial cleanup by certified specialist (ServPro) who had to use bio-hazard suits and gas masks to remove the bio-burden, the vomit-like, death-like odor remained. The only remedy was to replace all of the contained drywall and flooring, so as to restore my pantry to it's original condition.

My immediate neighbor is a police officer and he stated that he has been on crime scenes with multiple rotting dead bodies, and he has never smelled anything so vial.

No doubt, the cause is botulism, which I consider myself fortunate for not eating this potentially deadly poison. The manufacturer's reply is that the can was expired. I ask, under any circumstances, who would expect a can of food to explode? Food should not explode! If this happens to you, please don't just let them off the hook. Otherwise they will keep letting this happen to people!

Shame on you Costco and Phillips Foods!

OMG, The Crab in the can exploded in my pantry and I was gone for almost two months so it sad there in this Seattle heat wave. How do I get rid of this smell from ____! We have scrubbed, painted, took the door off and threw it out, took the molding off, scrubbed with bleach and every other cleaner. Incense, candles. What the heck else can we do it still stinks in the kitchen and through the house?

That is so funny. The same thing happened to me last night. I had one of those big cans of crab meat from Costco that exploded in my pantry! The smell is awful! HELP! I can't get rid of the smell! Any suggestions? I will try that product from QVC. Email me frostypop13 AT aol.com

ARGHH this just happened in our house and it smells BAD!! I've tried lysol, bleach, comet, white vinegar, febreze, etc. and all have failed! How do I get rid of this horrible smell. Everyone in the house feels like hurling.

The exploding can of crab happened to us yesterday too and what a stink it was. Does anyone know what caused it and what if someone had eaten some of it before the can was visibly bulging?

Oh, dear! It happened to me as well. Can of luxory crab from Costco.
I woke up at 3am to an awful smell that I eventually tracked to my kitchen pantry. the kitchen is in the opposite end of the house, so the entire home was a stench!
I have spent 1.5 hours washing and shrubbing but it still smells awful.
I wonder, did any of you complain to Costco, and if so, what came out of it?

I am not a happy camper! I just bought the same crab from costco and it exploded in my 40 ft 5th wheel in my friends hand! It was like a shot gun blast and the confinded space almost dropped him. He was deaf for quite a while and threw up at least 20 times. You could not get within 100 ft of our tralier without wanting to hurl. It was all over the ceiling walls cupboards behind the stackable w/d in the stove. This all happen when I was to take pictures to SELL IT.
Well I have a strong stomach, so hair in a towel and garbage bag armor I had to hose down my trailer, at least 10 times, drill holes in the floor so it could drain outside, poured staight bleach and pinesol over the entire kithen etc. I have removed most of the odor but I have done my research and vinilla extract seems to be the best bet, and the smell is nice I am hoping it will soak into the wall boards that swelled a little and I will leave cotton balls in the floor holes. If you want to know if this works drop me a line tturcott @ telus . net

help: I need some advice about getting the rotten fish juice out of my car seat as soon as possible. I can hardly stand to drive my car.

thanks
toby from nova scotia

THIS STUFF SAVED ME FROM MOVING OUT OF OUR HOME. OUR BASEMENT TOOK WATER FROM OLD ROTTEN WATERPROOFING MATERIAL, IT WAS WORSE THAN SEPTIC TANK OVERFLOW PHEWWWWW. "DON ASLETT'S X-O PLUS+ ODOR NEUTRALIZER & CLEANER".IT'S ORGANIC& MAGIC!. QVC.COM OVERNIGHTED IT TO ME ,IT COSTS ABOUT $12-$14.00 FOR A BIG CONCENTRATED BOTTLE. GOOD LUCK!

Make sure to complain to Costco. Sounds like they got a really bad batch of crab! They usually will give you your money back on faulty products and may even help you with the cleaning in a case like that. Seal the can in a bag (so you don't have to smell it anymore) and take the whole thing in to them. That way they can recall the batch.
Susan from ThriftyFun

Oh my God!!! I too bought an expensive can of crab from Costco and it also exploded in my cabinet. The smell is horrible and we've tried everything to get it out. I did throw up several times. What kind of enzyme cleaner do you recommend?
Thanks,
Lin

You know, I figured this had happened to someone else. We just got back from Camping on Memorial Day and the house reeked something horrible. I had bought an expensive can ($15) of crab from Costco and put it in the pantry. It exploded... and your desciption is pretty accurate...wasbi mash potatoes (too funny!). It exploded, because, guess what? This 'canned' good is supposed to be refridgerated! I have 5 children and I have to tell you that was the most disgusting thing I've ever had to clean. I almost threw up several times. My problem is the same. We've cleaned it out...pinesol, bleach. Then we painted it (well my husband did, I would not have done that)...then we sanded it. Baking soda, Oust, Several other cleaners all to NO avail. I simply cannot get rid of the smell. Meanwhile my kitchen is full of everything that was in the pantry. I'll try some of the things you've all mentioned and HOPE it works. Otherwise...well I don't know what otherwise? lol Sue

Also check to make sure you wiped it off of anything else that was in the cabinet.

We live in Alaska and use fish a lot and many times we will suddenly have a rotten fish smell in the kitchen. I have to do a thorough cleaning job with Clorox Clean-up or bleach and usually it is because something that had fish in it, like a baking dish that was sat on the counter next to the sink got fish juice around the edge of the sink or on the countertop in an area that doesn't get wiped on a daily basis, etc. Or just from opening the package of fish, fish oil or fish juice can spray up on the cabinet, etc. and leave an odor.

You may also want to try lemon juice.

White vinegar (clear) and salt helps cut the fish smell
I would then use water and baking soda to rince it good and air dry.

A friend of mine had that kind of thing happen & the only thing that worked was a enzyme cleaner. Since then I have also used it for stains on my carpet & it works very well.

WOW what a mess. first try and get the the crab out of the nooks and crannies with a tooth brush, dipped in baking soda, I would have sujested white vinegar ...but not sure you should mix it with any bleach products. if you have other canned food items in the cabinet, check any paper labels as it might have been caught in the misfire. that could be causing your smell. if the cabinet is empty..set a bowl of white vinegar in the cabinet over night. Good Luck!