I would take a handful of fresh coffee beans and keep them in there for a few days. They should suck up the remaining smells.

In addition, I've found putting crumpled brown paper bags and/or newspapers help absorb frig smells. Good luck!

coffee grounds, and a open box of baking soda.

you can try a half full cup of milk ( put it in you're fridge for 2 or 3 days), it absorbs the smell.

charcoal worked in my case.

Ignoring the snark...

In addition to your previous efforts, coffee beans, charcoal and newspaper sometimes work as others mentioned. You say the lingering smell is 'near the bottom'. Wondering if you've thought to check the condensate pan UNDER the fridge? It's not uncommon for odors to originate there, especially if a fridge has been without power for a time. A long shot perhaps, but worth checking out. Good luck.

Turn off the fridge, take out all the drawers, shelves, etc. and run them through the dishwasher (or wash them by hand) and then wash down the entire fridge with soap and water. If the fridge is off and some type of mold is in your fridge you will be able to find it and clean it easier than if the fridge is on (meaning it will grow in a warm environment vs. cold environment). Check under your fridge as well, sometimes liquids pool under there and create a horrible smell.

I dealt with this after a hurricane a while back. The newspapers and charcoal finally did the trick, but I had also taken EVERYTHING out of the refrigerator and freezer, cleaned the box and all the parts with baking soda solution and left it open to air before starting up again. Checking the condensate pan is a very good idea.

In addition to all the other great ideas, check under and behind the fridge. We had a bad smell coming from the fridge and found a dead mouse stuck in the back. (so gross)

don't waste fresh coffee beans! take used grinds after your morning coffee (filter and all) put them in the fridge. repeat as often as you remember. it will soak up the odors.

You should also be careful that you don't have an ammonia/coolant leak in the condenser. We once had a small fridge that had a sharp "bad" smell even after being emptied and thoroughly cleaned with soap and water. My brother tried cleaning it with a bleach and water solution, only to end up with a massive headache. Turns out the bleach fumes were mixing with the leaking ammonia, which could have been deadly!

Just keep a cup of baking soda in there so it can go on absorbing the smell.

Blot some vanilla on a few paper towels and leave them in the fridge for a day or two!

great ideas..especially the dead 'broccoli' and mouse..very sorry.. : {

I'm with Discerning: is there a tiny little drain hole under the crisper drawers, probably in a back corner? You may have to figure out where it goes and squirt some kind of cleaner down there, if you can't get to where the hose leads to, pull it apart and drain/clean.

Exactly, m'elizabeth, is think there must be something left somewhere. Many years ago we had a small refrigerator with an additional freezer storage in it. My boyfriend had the good idea to pull the plug on the fridge while we were gone on a long vacation. When we came back we realized that he had forgotten about the freezer section - there had been fish and spinach in it. You can't imagine.... we NEVER got the smell out, because some of the stuff had leaked into that small hole and we couldn't reach everything there. Aaaand the smell had gotten into the teeny tiny holes where the sealing gasket is being fixed. We were students, quite broke (long vacation, remember) and eventually moved out because we couldn't afford a new fridge and the landlord anyway was a heavy smoker who couldn't smell a thing and was therefore disinclined to allow any change to the apartment being made.

Have you removed the seals aroundthe door and cleaned them? Something might of spilled in the fridge and leaked into them.

I've had sucess with some thoroughly whiff-eriffic camping coolers by using by wiping every surface down with straight vanilla (a la annieh, but more so). This after cleaning every part of them to within an inch of its life, of course.

And ditto checking the fridge back & undersides, along with any drain holes, etc. If you haven't vacuumed the coils yet, that might help - & it'll be good for the fridge regardless.

Many fridges have an evaporator tray under the bottom of the fridge. Moisture runs down a drain hole in the insdie and collects in the tray to be evaporated from the heat of the coils and machinery.

A lot of times the nasty gunk from the spoiled food will get in there as well. Most folks forget to clean here. Also check around the bottom of the fridge on the back and underneath.

Check the seals and under them.

Sometimes stinking liquid spills against edges and corners, then leaks inside the walls and soaks into the insulation. There's no way to get to the source of the stench and remove it without destroying the refrigerator. That may not be the situation here, though.

as suggested by other posters, it could be something stuck under the fridge. sometimes break out the harsh stuff, like ajax or vim.
also, try a tray of kitty litter around the area to absorb the smell. just make sure you use clean litter.

If it's just a bad smell from spoiled food, remove everything that can be removed, wash thoroughly, then wipe down with a solution of Borax (the 20 mule laundry additive Borax) and water. Rinse thoroughly, dry, and replace. Every refrigerator and freezer will benefit from a bowl of baking soda.

I once moved in to a place where the previous tenant had left/spilled milk in every crack, which then seeped down to the coils are the bottom. I was broke and unemployed and even I considered "chucking" the fridge. Seriously, anyone who has not had this problem doesn't understand. You cannot put food you intend to eat in a fridge like that. I could barely open the thing without vomiting.

Anyway, all these suggestions are right, but definitely UNPLUG the sucker and clean then air it out for a while. I scrubbed every corner with and tried every organic version of "soaking up the smell" (coffee beans, coffee grounds, trays of baking soda, trays of vinegar, etc etc). In the end, it was taking out the trays and shelves and scrubbing them EVERYWHERE and then propping the fridge open to let it air out for a few days that finally did the trick. And of course that pan under the fridge. Definitely chuck that and get a new one at the hardware store.

I agree with missmilla!

We had a whole pig (parts thereof) frozen in our brand new freezer when the power went out. It went on again in a few minutes, but we did not realize that the freezer had not gone on again for two weeks in July.

It was bad.

First, I cleaned it very well, paying special attention to cracks and joins. Then, I rinsed it many times, and let it sit over night with water mixed with a lot of baking on the bottom. I did that for several days, cleaning it out and then putting in more water/ baking soda. And I let it air out with the door opened. It's fine now.

Your problem probably isn't as bad, but the baking soda/repeated soaking and rinsing would probably help. Plus leaving boxes of opened baking soda in the fridge for a while.

We had a terrible odor from spoiled seafood in a big built-in Kitchenaid fridge. Thoroughly washed ALL parts, inside and out, and below. Then turned it off, propped door open and blew a fan into it to disperse the odor molecules. (Yes they are specific little molecules) Then ran it but put in activated charcoal containers from Fridgit, as well as bowls of ground coffee. The principle is that the molecules stick to the multiple sides of the coffee or charcoal. It finally worked but took a while to be totally clean -smelling. It was a pain but eventually worked. Good luck

If it's possible try to spot the precise place the smell is coming from.

It can come from something left to rot next to the fridge wall or left on the bottom, which could have been absorbed by the plastic lining (Huge problem!!). The smell can also come from the rubber borders around the door.

It could also come from inside the cooling system or within the walls. In which case, once found could be easier to deal with.

YOU NEED TO EXACTLY SPOT WHERE THE SMELL IS COMING FROM. If not, it's possible that whatever you do to mask the smell is going to be useless.

The best material you can use to absorb odors in general for a fridge is activated charcoal (the one you use for fishtanks).