'Didn't Know Until I Was in My 30s:' Man Buys Air Freshener. Then He Realizes You’re Not Supposed to Remove It From the Package

“You mean I’m not supposed to expose the whole tree and get choked out every time I get in my car until it loses its scent a week later??”

Photo by: TikTok

Stacy Fernandez

By: Stacy Fernandez

Jul 10, 2025 at 9:00pm ET

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It seems no one stops to read the directions on their car air freshener tree.

Turns out, there’s a science to getting the air freshener to last as long as possible—and the instructions are easier than you’d think.

Did You Know?

In a viral video with more than 4.5 million views, life hacks connoisseur Sidney Raz (@sidneyraz) shared something about your car air freshener that you probably didn’t know.

“Here’s something I didn’t know until I was in my 30s,” Raz said.

It turns out that you shouldn’t remove car air fresheners completely from the packaging.

Instead, you’re supposed ot pull the plastic down to expose the top of the tree and expose a bit more as each week passes. This not only increases the longevity of the air freshener, but it also lets you control how strong you want the fragrance to be.

“What?!” Raz said in the caption.

Are These Instructions Real?

If you’re still in denial about this, we’re unfortunately here to burst your bubble.

Little Trees, the leading tree-shaped air freshener company, wrote in a product description that its trees can last up to 7 weeks if you follow the instructions, which are to “Open top of bag along dotted lines. Pull bag down to expose top of tree. Each week, expose more or less of tree to adjust fragrance strength. Hang freely!”

The History Behind Scent Trees

In 1952, chemist Julius Sämann spoke to a milk truck driver complaining about the smell of spilled milk. To help the matter, Sämann combines fragrances with a blotter material, thus inventing the first car air freshener, according ot the company’s about page.

He shaped it like an evergreen tree to honor his years extracting aromatic oils in Canada’s pine forests.

There are now dozens of scents available, with Black Ice being a fan favorite.

And the little fragrance trees aren’t just for cars, they’re also used in places like lockers, closets, and even bathrooms.

Commenters React

“No wonder I almost faint every time I ride a taxi with one of those hanging on the rear view mirror!!” a top comment read.

“You mean I’m not supposed to expose the whole tree and get choked out every time I get in my car until it loses its scent a week later??” a person said.

What do you think?

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Comments

“Could they at least make it look aesthetically pleasing?” another wrote.

Motor1 reached out to Raz for comment via email and TikTok direct message and to Little Trees via email.