I just received my brand-new (to me) Alienware laptop, bought on eBay. Unfortunately, the person I bought it from is apparently a smoker.
I can de-stink the various carry bags with Febreeze or the like, but how do I get the smoke smell off of/out of the laptop itself?
I want to play with my new toy, but the smell is driving me away! And for some reason, it’s also making my hands itch after contact with it.
The keycaps should be removable - although sometimes their mounting mechanism can be a bit delicate - so if you do try to remove them, exercise extreme care (take a photo of the layout beforehand) - they can be washed in warm water with dish soap, rinsed and dried thoroughly before replacing.
My Grand Niece somehow removed several keys from my Toshiba Laptop. It took me a week to replace them. They are really complicated to restore. So, be careful removing your keyboard. Better to find an expert to do that.
I’ve worked on a few computers exposed to a lot of cigarette smoke. the plastic case absorbs the smoke and it doesn’t clear up. One of those still stunk a couple years later. It stinks even worse when they heat up. You probably will smell that for a very long time. Changing the case doesn’t do any good, because the electronics are covered in the same residue that you see on ceilings and walls. Caveat emptor!
Speaking of caveats… was there any mention of it being from the home of a smoker in the listing? I thought that was generally considered a necessary declaration in the listing details.
No mention that it was a smoking home, but (obviously) also no mention that it was a non-smoking home. I suppose I could have inferred that the absence of “non-smoking home” meant that it was coming from a smoker’s home, but it honestly never occurred to me.
I wonder if wiping it down with a Clorox wipe or the like would help. I’m not going to try removing the keys!
I’ve had units owned by smokers before, and I the plastic itself is typically not porous enough to strongly to “hold” a smell. Where the smell actually comes from (and it can seem like the plastic is exuding it) is the fact that cigarette smoke acts like an adhesive film, and will coat every interior and exterior surface of the unit that smoke could wind it’s way into with a pungent tar. If you want to disassemble the unit you can destinkify most of the unit using Q-tips and paper towels that are made slightly damp with isopropyl alcohol. It’s a tedious job to wend the damp Q-tips across all the interior and exterior surfaces, but it will get rid of most of the tar. DO NOT ever get impatient and spray alcohol directly on the unit, then wipe it up. The alcohol is is simply to wet the paper towel or Q-tip so it can cut the tar and lift it off. The surface under the keys is quite difficult to get to without popping the key caps off. Some notebooks allow you to do this, however on some that are not designed for this a snapped off key may not be aable to be replaced.
If you can, open the case and wipe all the surfaces you can. Remove any components and cards you can and wipe them too. (on preview, what astro said) Of course, be careful about static.
If you can find some deodorizer that actually reacts with the smoke scent molecules, you could try spraying a cloth with it, and then put it and the laptop in a plastic bag for a few days. For example, the ads at the bottom include one for Vamoose, which is supposed to eliminate odors.
(There’s another ad for a “Homeopathic Powerful Odor Eliminator” :eek: Better stay away from that one)
astro, would a lint-free cloth or microfiber cloth be better than a paper towel or Q-tip? I’m concerned that using the paper towel or Q-tip might leave fibers behind.
As an aside, I’ve checked the Alienware site, and while they don’t specifically address cleaning to get rid of tobacco odors, they do cover how to get into the laptop and remove and reinstall the keyboard. This should be do-able, despite my being a trifle nervous about it. I’m used to digging around my desktop, but I’ve never owned a laptop before.
Email the seller and tell them you are not satisfied with the purchase and would like a refund. If they are good Ebay sellers (and I’m sure they are - otherwise you wouldn’t have made the purchase in the first place. Right?) they will be happy to refund your money. You may have to eat the shipping cost, but consider it a learning experience. Next time ask questions if you have any doubts about an item.
Start smoking. After a week you won’t even notice.
I’ve had a few like that to tinker with.
I leave them running in the spare room for a week, with the window open.
Take a google for fire damage repair places. Some of them have ultrasonic cleaning gear that can be used on electronics designed for cleaning up smoke damage from fires that can probably handle this in a snap.
Thanks, all, for the advice. I’m going to try a combination of solutions, starting with rubbing alcohol on surfaces I’m not too chicken to get to plus setting it up, running, next to an open window for a couple days. I think I have a cooling rack I can set it on so the fans aren’t blocked, too.
If that doesn’t work, I’ll try drachillix’s solution, although I hope it isn’t necessary.
A computer exposed to extensive cigarette smoke – isn’t it a candidate for an early death?
A few stray paper fibers aren’t going to disturb a notebook’s electronic surfaces. Just wet to slightly damp (not saturate) the paper towel & wipe. You can get the q-tip a bit wetter than the towel if necessary. The reason I favor paper towels is that they are disposable. Once the tar is lifted off and on the towel you want to throw away the cleaning medium, not re-use it. Make sure the battery is out of the unit before doing this. The more nooks & crannies you can get to the more effective the de-stinking will be. Make sure to pay special attention around the air intake grill as that is where the film will be heaviest, and do the little fan blades (if accessible).
Re taking the notebook apart just remember to never force anything. If sections won’t come apart double check for extra screws or locking tabs holding things in place.
With enough tar build up, it is a candidate for spontaneous combustion. With all that nicotine it should be bug free.
I seem to recall being told in the early 1990s that smoking around a computer would result in particles drifting into the machine and ruining it.
In theory you can dunk unpowered electronics in 99% alcohol for cleaning/soaking crud out of them. I have never done this with a laptop and would do more research if I was going to consider doing it.
Oh, I have no intention of dunking it. Wiping it down as suggested by astro, though, sounds like it might work. It’s worth a shot.
And, astro, lucky me, Alienware provides very comprehensive instructions on taking things to pieces. I have a project for the weekend, at least.