We inherited a nice leather recliner that reeks of cigarette smoke. How do we remove the odor? I don't want it in my house until this is done.
Yvonne from Portland OR
I would call your local "ServiceMaster" or similar cleaning business & seek their advice. They have to deal with removing smoke odors after fires, etc. So they should know. (12/31/2004)
By Jeanette
I have heard that vinegar and water work well. If you put apple cider vinegar in a bowl and let it sit it will absorb the odor. Also after my house fire we used Orange Glow cleaner to clean our wood products and paneling and it really helped (01/08/2005)
By Jennifer
I am in the same boat. I bought a couch at a yard sale, and it smells awful of cigarette smoke. I have shampooed it twice, once with a product that was guarenteed to remove the oder, which it did not. I am thinking I am gonna have to get rid of the couch, cuz it is stinking up the whole house. I don't know what to do. Good Luck (11/12/2005)
By Linda
We had a wooden dresser from my in-laws when we got married. It stunk of smoke. I put about 5 charcoal brickets in each drawer for a full week. After that, I put a new dryer sheet in with our clothes in each drawer for about a month. That worked alright. But if it is not a dresser, like a rocking chair I have this problem with, I don't know if charcoal will absorb the odor. (11/28/2005)
Anything with Cinnamon will neutralize heavy smoke order: going through a 3-level apartment fire, we came out with heavy smoke and water damage. We saved our Enduro suede couch by covering every inch with "carpet fresh" baking soda that included cinnamon. We left it on for a minimum of twenty-four hours, then vacuumed it. That was one year ago in April, and the smell never returned. Scope (two capfuls in laundry) will also remove the heavy smoke odor without perfume, it is the TSP (trisodium phosphate. I think) that is what the American Red Cross gave us. I never came across the smell on my wood, but I aam wondering if you spray the scope, then wipe it down? I also washed down all my wood with Murphy's oil soap after we moved (to remove dust/ash and leaves) so maybe that helped. (08/06/2006)
By Kelly
Because wood is porous and soaks up odor the only 100% way to remove odor from wood is to seal the odor into the wood using shellac or blowing the furniture up. :P This is very inexpensive and will do the job everytime. A quart will run around $8-12 depends on where you buy, but make sure you buy clear shellac and not anything tinted if you wish to keep the same color of the wood. Just apply the shellac like painting any peice of furniture.
If you need smoke removed from your house or apartment you absolutely need to seal the walls and ceiling. I personally recommend BIN becuase it is shellac based and it dries within 10-15mins after application, however if the odor is not strong you might get away with Killz. A gallon of sealer can be $20-26 (BIN being more expensive, but WELL worth it!) 5 Gallons will cover around 2400 Sq Feet.
You may still have smoke odor in your cabinets, those will need to be shellaced. You can use either Parson's cleaner or Murphy's cleaner to prep the areas first.
The vents will have the smoke odor also, however depending on the what material the duct work is. If fiberglass duct work was used the smell is in here for good unless you rip it out. You can minimize the odor by getting a better air filter.
By sealing the walls, ceilings, and cabinets you should be able to remove 95-100% of the smell.
(10/25/2006)
By Brian Jarrett
I bought a dresser form a garage sale and it smelled so badly. I used Orange Glow and it worked for a while but I find the smell keeps coming back, but it's no longer that strong. Please advise what can I use to get rid of the smell totally. (09/03/2007)
By Siza
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