Best ways to get rid of the smell of smoke of a house
I remember the story of old Uncle Ben, who smoked since his teens and thanks to that habit, he passed away leaving his relatives take care of putting his house on the listings. Of course, part of preparing the property for sale means that they also have to clean away all the nasty tobacco odor Uncle Ben left behind. What’s challenging about smoke is that the smell sticks to everything in the house: carpet, leather furniture, curtains, walls and clothes. Luckily there are ways you can do to get the smell out... and they're pretty cheap too! Vinegar. The white kind that you usually have in your kitchen is great enough for cutting through tar and accumulated grime in surfaces. Just add 3-4 tablespoons of vinegar in a spray bottle with water and spray it to leather, walls, ceilings, stone or wood furniture. Wipe the surface dry after a minute or so. To neutralize any odor in fabric, wash them as usual then add 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar in the rinse water. Don’t worry about the smell of vinegar, it will evaporate as the surface you are cleaning dries up.
Baking soda. This classic all-around cleaner that is proven effective to smoke, even with pet poop. Simply sprinkle the powder on furniture and carpet (the ones that are hard to clean) and let it settle for 5-6 hours. This will give time for the soda to absorb the smell and the moisture around. Vacuum it up afterwards. Repeat the process when needed.
Carpet Shampoo. It is obvious that doing the cleaning yourself will save you money. You can rent a carpet steam cleaner and shampoo the carpet on one sunny morning. Just select the cleaning agent that is made for removing odors. Remove as much furniture away from the area as possible. Also, a lot of people think that using the carpet cleaner machine is just like a regular vacuum cleaner- making quick lines. You will just leave soap residue and make you carpet smell funnier. The secret is to take if slow and be patient in order not waste your effort.
Ammonia. It may not smell quaint as any “pine” glass cleaner, but it will sure do good way to clean-up glass and porcelain, like windows, figurines and chandelier. Simply add ad a part of household ammonia to a bucket of water or use a spray bottle and clean them the usual way.
Activated charcoal. Just like soda, charcoal has a capability to soak up odor. Leave a couple of chunks in unreachable places such as on the cup board or top of a closet for a few days. You can also leave some charcoal on the air vents then retrieve them after 3-5 days.
Replace furnace/AC filters. Appliances like air exhaust, furnaces and air-conditioning units will most likely be tar-black in a smoker’s home. No matter how you clean the house, it will just be a waste of effort if you will leave the filters dirty. Clean up exhaust fans, replace or clean the filters according to maintenance instructions. Keeping these appliances well-maintained will not only make the room air fresh, but having such appliances working swell will add value to the property as well.
The key to a fresh-smelling home is to clean all corners and nooks of the house as letting air circulate. Open the windows and doors for a couple of days, leaving it smell better than a restaurant smoking area. These tips will most-likely to succeed if you will take time and have patience as you do the job. If you are still not sure, you can always pick up the phone and pay someone to do the dirty job for you.