# Help me get rid of this "burnt" smell. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 26, 2009, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031 "2009-01-26T07:13:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/1 "2009-01-26T07:13:31Z")
Crap! I’ve just put the stink in my brand new living space. I have one of those neck pillows filled with various herbs; you microwave it and it feels lovely. I’ve always microwaved it for 5 minutes and nothing bad ever happened. Tonight, the microwave beeped and I got up to retrieve the neck pillow. Smoke was coming out of the 'wave and there was a burnt spot on the pillow. Shit! I immediately threw the pillow in the sink and doused it, as well as throwing some water in the microwave. I was in an absolute terror that the smoke alarm would go off and I wouldn’t be able to shut it off and the neighbors would be pissed (it is after one am, after all!) Thank God, it remained silent. Anyway, now my new living space reeks! How on earth can I get rid of this smell? I sprayed some Glade, but it didn’t make a dent. This is awful! ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/2 "2009-01-26T07:43:16Z")
I am serious! This is rank…worse than burnt popcorn. Is is going to stick to the furniture? Shit! It’s not going away! Can someone please offer me some hope? ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/3 "2009-01-26T07:53:19Z")
My mom uses candles to neutralize “burnt” smells. If that doesn’t work, you could set out pans of vinegar for a few hours? ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/4 "2009-01-26T07:59:03Z")
**Hazle** , Do you have a fan and can you set it in front of an open window? That’s what **I** do when I burn shit. Well, I don’t actually \* burn\* my **shit** , but I am likely to forget things like popcorn and one time some stuff I was cooking in a pan stunk up the place and the fan helped. I also once jerked the damn fire alarm out of the wall went it went off and I couldn’t get the sumbitch to shut up, so I jerked the battery out of it and then it started beeping at me because of the missing battery, so I stuck it under a bunch of towels and sheets and stuff, and then forgot about it till one morning when I musta been _really_ “with the program”, and I kept hearing the friggin’ beeping and said to myself “where’s the friggin’ **beeping** coming from?” I’m a lot of fun these days, as you can tell, right? Hope I made you smile a little? 😉 Try the fan. It’ll be cold for a while, but it will suck the stuff out and stink up the neighborhood at least… Q ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/5 "2009-01-26T07:59:21Z")
I’ve had a Yankee candle lit all evening, didn’t seem to help. I’ll run out for some vinegar tomorrow. I seem to remember my Mom setting out pans of vinegar and that seemed to work. I certainly hope so. This is awful… ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/6 "2009-01-26T11:43:26Z")
The only thing that covers up a nasty smell is another strong smell. Fry up some bacon and those molecules will cover the smoke ones. You’ll be smelling bacon for a day or two. Otherwise you’ll have to wash the carpets, drapes, and upholstery to get rid of the smell sooner, which I bet is not worth it. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/7 "2009-01-26T12:13:03Z")
[QUOTE=Quasimodem;10743266That’s what **I** do when I burn shit. Well, I don’t actually \* burn\* my **shit** [/QUOTE] Glad to hear it. I once saw a fellow get sentenced to jail time for burning a bag full of his own shit. His mistake was his choice of location – the doorstep of a little old lady’s home. ---
**Author:** ![Karyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/fbc32d/32.png) [@Karyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Karyn)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/8 "2009-01-26T13:55:34Z")
Most air fresheners make me sneeze but I’ve found that [this stuff](http://www.amazon.com/Orange-Mate-Mist-Air-Freshener/dp/B0002VE4PE) will take care of almost any odor and just leave a light citrus scent behind. It comes in orange, lemon, lime and grapefruit. You can buy it in some hardware stores out here but most grocery stores don’t carry it. If you can find some locally today that might work. ---
**Author:** ![XJETGIRLX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9fc29f/32.png) [@XJETGIRLX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XJETGIRLX)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/9 "2009-01-26T14:33:46Z")
Go pick up some activated carbon. It’s probably the best way to remove odors - not just cover them up. Failing that, leave out some containers with vinegar in them to absorb the odor. Edited to add: We were helping an out-of-state friend sell their house and used both these methods to remove the dog smell from the house after having the carpets steam cleaned. It worked very well. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/10 "2009-01-26T15:59:49Z")
Fresh ground coffee–don’t brew and drink it, place a healthy measure of it in a shallow, open container and leave out for a few days. I swear, this will help. I also had an unfortunate incident with a microwave oven. (Burnt soap and burnt plastic don’t smell very good at all.) ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/11 "2009-01-26T16:08:56Z")
My sister melted a coffee mug in my microwave. That put the\* stank \*of \*satan \*on my house! Open windows and a couple days’ time cured the problem. Oh, and those Swiffer wet pads that have the Febreeze scent…that scent lingers forEVAH. Maybe you can pick some up and do your floors with that. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/12 "2009-01-26T16:28:37Z")
[This](http://www.majesticsolutionsinc.com/odorshot.html) stuff works great. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/13 "2009-01-26T20:24:36Z")
> [@Fubaya](#): > > [This](http://www.majesticsolutionsinc.com/odorshot.html) stuff works great. I _knew_ it! I _knew_ ‘new car’ smell was a product of the marketing department! > [@the OdorShot web page](#): > > Available in Mountain Air, **New Car** , and Original scents. ---
**Author:** ![Skara\_Brae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Skara\_Brae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skara_Brae)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/14 "2009-01-26T20:45:04Z")
Is it the microwave that smells, or everything? Acetone free nail polish can be used to clean out the microwave. I also like to boil orange and lemon peels on the stove to get rid of bad smells… ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2009, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/15 "2009-01-27T07:35:23Z")
Boy, thanks everyone! If the stank is still in the house tomorrow, I’ll just go down the line until something works. ---
**Author:** ![stargazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb8c5e/32.png) [@stargazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stargazer)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2009, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/16 "2009-01-27T19:06:05Z")
Here’s an easy solution, and it should be cheap, too: put a small saucepan of water on your stove, and put a few cloves and a cinnamon stick in there. Cardamom pods, too, if you have 'em. Mulling spices will work if you have those kicking around. Bring it to a boil, then turn it down and let it simmer for a few hours (while you’re home, of course!). That’s what I do when I burn something or cook something that smells good while cooking but smells yucky the next day. I just keep putting more water in if I want to keep it going longer – don’t let it boil dry, or you’ll have more stink! If you have some strongly-scented tea, I bet you could use that instead. ---
**Author:** ![LadyMack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4491bb/32.png) [@LadyMack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LadyMack)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2009, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/17 "2009-01-27T20:06:36Z")
> [@Skara\_Brae](#): > > Is it the microwave that smells, or everything? > > Acetone free nail polish can be used to clean out the microwave. I also like to boil orange and lemon peels on the stove to get rid of bad smells… I _hope_ you meant polish REMOVER. When I burn popcorn in the microwave, I take a glass bowl of vinegar and heat it in there for several minutes, then wipe down the inside with it too. The stank gets into nooks and crannies of the microwave itself. Then I add the vinegar to ingredients of a pot on the stove, as **stargazer** just said. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2009, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-get-rid-of-this-burnt-smell/483031/18 "2009-01-28T15:22:38Z")
Besides citrus and odor soakers like grinds/carbon, I also find steam to be useful. You might try putting your shower on super hot and letting it run for awhile, and putting a few pots of boiling water on the stove.