Remove Smoke Smell - The Definitive Guide
Are you expecting visitors and want to quickly free your apartment from smoke smell? Perhaps you bought an old cabinet that smells like smoke? Or you were at a barbecue party and now your clothes smell smoky? We address these and other problems related to removing smoke smell in this article.
Generally, this approach helps against all types of smoke smell. This includes nicotine or cigarette smoke smell, cold smoke smell, fire smell e.g. from a fireplace, smoke smell from charcoal (e.g. from grilling), and smoke smell caused by burned food.
In this article, you’ll find all the steps to remove smoke smell with instructions for apartments, cabinets, and clothing. The focus is on smoke smell caused by tobacco. Further below, you’ll also find references to articles that explain burn smell and smoke smell in clothing in detail.
Why Is Smoke Smell So Persistent?
How smoke smell is created is self-explanatory. But why does it last so long? After a barbecue or an evening by an open fire, clothes sometimes smell for weeks. The reason for this is resins, soot, and tar.
Anyone who has dealt with resin or tar knows how stubborn these deposits are. These substances are extremely sticky and hard to remove. So you can imagine how clothing, wallpaper, or other surfaces are affected.
The microscopically small particles settle in every open pore. Especially clothing offers the perfect collecting place. Like a filter, it absorbs a large part of the tar and resin and collects it between the fibers.
Wallpaper, walls, and wood also easily absorb these odor particles. Even if the surface looks smooth, it’s very porous with many tiny indentations. Therefore, plastic, glass, and metal can also become sources of smoke smell.
How to Remove Smoke Smell Properly
Removing smoke smells from the apartment is not magic or impossible. Removing smoke smell depends on how clean you can get the surfaces. This is easiest with metal, sealed wood, and high-quality plastic. Oiled or raw wood, textiles, or stone/masonry are a bigger problem.
Smoke Smell After a One-Time Incident
In cases where smoke smell was caused by e.g. an open fire in the apartment, burned food, a reversed chimney draft, or similar incidents, we have a special solution for you.
Our Burn Smell Remover helps against this type of smoke smell. It works especially well when the smoke exposure has not accumulated over a long period.
It’s important that these cases are not a permanent condition. If smoking is regular in the apartment or an open wood stove is present, you should read on.
Products Against Smoke Smell
Everyone prefers a different method. We present our favorites and also explain why we chose them.
Ozone Devices Under Criticism
According to a study by Berkeley Lab at the University of California, ozone devices are a dangerous thing. Especially when used against smoke smell in rooms and vehicles. They came to this conclusion back in 2010.
“We found not only that nicotine from secondhand smoke reacts with ozone to produce ultrafine particles – a new and surprising finding – but we also found that some oxidized byproducts of ozone and nicotine have a higher asthma hazard index rating than nicotine itself.”
We believe that using microorganisms is most beneficial for health. Based on the current state of science.
Our Favorite: Microorganisms
Professional odor removers with microorganisms against smoke smell are, in our opinion, worth the investment. The effort to remove smoke smell without these products is simply much higher than the cost of the products.
Both from a health and financial perspective, microorganisms are the ideal solution. They cost less than many other options and have been considered completely harmless to health according to current science (for more than 10 years). The microorganisms are non-pathogenic, meaning non-infectious to cells of humans and vertebrates of any kind.
Expert Recommendation
For quick AND permanent relief from cigarette smoke smell, our Odor Removers are most helpful. Especially New Fresh Air against smoke smell and Destral against smoke smell.
The difference between the two products is: Destral has a stronger long-term effect, New Fresh Air has a stronger immediate effect. Both products enable quick and permanent odor neutralization.
Remove Smoke Smell Quickly
Smoke smell can be temporarily removed with the right methods. However, permanent odor removal requires a bit more effort.
Here’s a list with a few methods and home remedies that provide relief in an emergency. These are the quick variants. If you’re looking for a long-term solution, look further below.
Smoke Smell in the Apartment
To get smoke smell out of the apartment, there are many approaches and tricks. Smoke smell in the apartment settles especially in textiles and wallpaper.
Remove Ashtrays
Remove all ashtrays and utensils like open tobacco pouches and the like. Ashtrays should be emptied and cleaned.
Wipe Down Surfaces
Wipe down all easy-to-clean surfaces. Window frames, heaters, tables, and cabinets should be wiped. A household cleaner helps loosen tar and resin.
Don’t Forget Windows
Window panes can become a source of smoke smell. Even if they look clean at first glance, they should be thoroughly cleaned.
Ventilate Well
Simple, but often forgotten or done incorrectly. Just tilting the windows isn’t enough. Especially opposite windows should be opened for 10-15 minutes for cross ventilation. Even if it’s cold outside.
Candles and Incense Sticks
Replacing one smoke smell with another may sound bizarre at first, but it’s very effective. Simply choose a candle or incense stick with a more pleasant scent and light it for a while.
Vinegar
Vinegar helps absorb odors but doesn’t smell pleasant itself. In an emergency, this can be a solution.
Fill a bowl with vinegar water (1 part vinegar to 10 parts water) and leave it in the room. However, it may take a while before a difference is noticeable.
Air Out Furniture Outdoors
Put furniture outside. As long as they’re not too heavy, this is an effective method. The intensive ventilation loosens odor particles from the fibers and carries them away with the wind.
Baking Soda
Baking soda, the king of home remedies. You can sprinkle carpets and furniture with baking soda and let it work for up to 3 days. Baking soda binds odors quite effectively. Then simply vacuum it up.
Steam Cleaning
Steam cleaning helps especially well against deep-seated smoke smells in upholstery and carpets. The warmth and moisture bind odors to water molecules, which then evaporate and are thus removed from the material.
Wash Curtains
Curtains and drapes work like filters that absorb all kinds of odors. If you feel like the smoke smell just won’t go away, it can often be due to the curtains.
Wash curtains more frequently if you want to curb smoke smell.
Remove Smoke Smell Permanently
To permanently remove smoke smell, you need to proceed systematically. This description assumes an apartment affected by smoke smell. The suggestions progressively apply to more extreme cases.
Remove and Clean Loose Textiles
Loose textiles like curtains, pillow and upholstery covers, tablecloths, small carpets, and rugs are removed first and at least washed. Optional but recommended is the application of an odor remover before washing.
Thoroughly Clean Smooth Surfaces
Smooth surfaces, including wood, glass, plastic, and metal, must be thoroughly cleaned. Even if they appear clean. Natural wood and plastic should also be treated with an odor remover.
Apply Odor Remover
At this point, an odor remover is the most effective method to possibly make the expensive subsequent steps unnecessary.
We especially recommend Destral for permanent results or alternatively New Fresh Air if speed is especially important. For cases where it’s not cigarette smoke smell, there’s the Burn Smell Remover.
The odor removers are distributed sparingly in the rooms. Surfaces, furniture, and walls are lightly misted with the product and left to work. The application should be repeated every few hours (2-4 hour intervals). The microorganisms then slowly break down the odors.
Steam Clean Carpets and Furniture
All hard-to-move objects are to be treated with an odor remover and then steam cleaned. Steam cleaning is one of the most effective methods to loosen solid components like resin and tar from fibers.
Important: Many large furniture pieces like sofas and armchairs have a cavity accessible from behind or below. This must urgently be treated with an odor remover. If this doesn’t happen, the smell can come back through from the inner upholstery.
Replace Wallpaper and Apply Nicotine Barrier
If smoke smell keeps coming through despite everything, wallpaper should be addressed next. Wallpaper works like a filter since it’s designed to let air through. This naturally means a lot of smoke settles in it.
Treat Bare Walls
After removing wallpaper, it’s especially recommended to apply an odor remover. This helps remove remaining smoke smell from plaster and masonry.
If the wallpaper has been replaced, you should work with a nicotine barrier (available e.g. on Amazon). This also prevents odor from walls from coming back into the apartment.
When Smoke Smell Comes Back
Wallpaper absorbs smoke smell very strongly. It also allows smoke smell to penetrate into walls and masonry. After treatment with odor removers, you may perceive the unpleasant smell again after a few days.
This happens through fluctuations in humidity. These cause emissions from walls that have absorbed resin, tar, and nicotine like a filter and now slowly release them into the air.
This can be brought under control with long-term treatment with odor removers. Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee at this point.
Prevent Smoke Smell
Removing smoke smell is one thing. Prevention helps avoid the problem in the future. We’ve compiled a few tricks and approaches for you.
Ventilate Regularly
Daily cross-ventilation, especially in winter, is very important. Especially when it’s freezing outside, more smoking happens indoors instead of outside. Ovens and stoves are also heavily used during this season.
As a rule of thumb, you should cross-ventilate at least 2 times for 10 minutes every day.
Smoke Outside
If avoidable, smoking should be done outside. This is self-explanatory. Anyone who wants to especially protect their apartment and guests avoids cigarettes indoors.
Keep Doors Closed
If you smoke in the apartment, you should keep doors to other rooms as closed as possible so that smoke smell doesn’t spread uncontrollably.
Apply Nicotine Barrier
You can paint walls with a nicotine barrier (e.g. from Amazon) for prevention. This reduces nicotine deposits on walls and thus suppresses odor formation.
Avoid Open Cabinets and Shelves
Avoid open cabinets and shelves. Especially when books or clothing are stored in them. Books and textiles absorb smoke smell like a sponge.
More Frequent Cleaning
Especially clean curtains, textiles, and wood surfaces in a smoker’s apartment more regularly, even if they don’t appear dirty.
Switch to E-Cigarettes
E-cigarettes work with vapor instead of smoke. The deposits are therefore less stubborn. Fewer combustion gases and soot are also produced.
E-cigarettes have a weaker odor load as they produce vapor instead of smoke
Further Help
Do you have more questions on this topic or another problem? Contact us! We’re happy to help.
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Updated on 24.02.2023