I smoked, a lot. Now I don’t. I used to restrict smoking to one room in the house, the one with the computer, if you care to know. It still reeks like a bowling alley in here. Is there a “hints from Eloise” sort of recipe I can wash the walls with? I don’t really feel like painting, and all that does is lock the smell in. Leaving out dishes of white vinegar doesn’t work. Trust me, I Googled this, there doesn’t seem to be any sure-shot-one-time-stink-is-gone solution.
Any ideas out there?
I’d give “Febreeze” a try. It is advertised as a fresher upper for fabrics. A lot of the smoke stain may contributing to the odor and a spray liquid cleaner may do wonders for that on surfaces not affected by water or getting wet. Both should be inexpensive except for the labor involved. Oh and BTW get some paper towels to clean up with so you can trash them along with the stain and odors.
Glass cleaner (“Windex”) will get the scum off your walls. Not sure about the stink, but it will make smoked-up white walls white again. We use it at my parents’ house where everyone smokes.
Don’t know about the smell tho, as we like to smoke as we wash our walls
If you have curtains, take them down and wash them. Fabreeze and fabrics that can’t be machine washed. Fabrics really hold in the smell. Open the windows and leave them open for a couple days, if possible. Fresh air will do a lot to help, too.
A few words of advice if you DO start smoking again:
1.) Smoke an electronics don’t mix. If you’re gonna smoke inside, the room with the computer is probably the worst choice.
2.) It’s easier to get rid of the smoke smell if it never has a chance to sink in. If you do it with a window open, febreeze immediately, and dispose of the ashes safely, nobody will probably ever know you smoked there.
Especially if the electronics has lots of moving parts. I lent my VCR to my father, got it back a couple of years later, and it was too gummed up to work. Cleaning was required.
Sorry I hadn’t gotten back to the thread sooner, long weekend. Great suggestions all. Lets see:
** spingears ** said
I have tried Fabreeze, it makes the room smell like Fabreeze then in a day or so, the smell is back, I even tried the new and improved version, it made the room smell like my
first grade teacher for a while, then back to smokey smell. I think I would need to use it in conjunction with the other stuff mentioned.
** ZipperJJ ** said
Heh heh.
** StGermain ** said
I did this, and all the coats and such in the closet too, it helped some, I also used woolite on the carpet. Still smells though. I’m convinced it’s the walls and ceiling.
** Enola Straight ** said
Now we are getting serious! Chemicals! What is “sudsy” ammonia? I have never messed with it - does it foam naturally? What about with warm water? Straight sounds pretty direct, I like this idea!
** Electronic Chaos ** said
I have heard this for years, for months I was running the computer with out a cover, I haven’t had a problem YET, but I know better. BTW, whenever I smoked in here I always had the window open and a fan going, the fan was oriented to blow out the window, and take the smoke with it. Maybe that’s why I am so lucky. I never used air freshener though. Should I start again, I would just take it outside.
** Annie-Xmas ** said
I tried the dishes idea, it really isn’t working as well as I had hoped, washing the walls with seems like a good idea, would cut the oily goo off the walls, and that’s where I think the nicotine is stored, and I am convinced that’s what smells. What would happen if I mixed ammonia with vinegar? Would I end up with my own little toxic cloud?
** Sunspace ** said
Ewwww!
Well, I think the idea is to wash the walls with something that will “cut the grease” the walls are not exactly dripping, but they are yellowed, its hard to say how much because the room is sort of an Almond color. I will give the things mentioned a go this weekend and report back; we may be on to something here. I still wonder about the vinegar/ammonia mix.
You have to get it out of your computer, too. It is in the power supply, on the motherboard, in all the drives, and the smell will permeate the room whenever the computer is on. Clean it out of the computer, and it should help (but you may not be able to eliminate it entirely).
Don’t mix ammonia and vinegar. At best they will neutralise one another but it may release ammonia into the atmosphere and the stink of cigarettes is preferable to that. Try washing the paintwork with mild sugar soap but try a small area first, and rinse with clean water afterwards.
Just leave the computer running 24/7 for about a week, it will clean itself of the smell. I brought one home from work that absolutely stank. Put it in a spare room with the window open and the computer running, was fine after about four days.
Wow, I didn’t even think about that! The smell gets stronger when the computer is on! All the fans sucking in smoke! I have an old case with a power supply, (it’s clean), I will change it out and blow all the dust away and wipe the stuff down that I can.
We discussed this recently in this thread. The consensus there was that washing the walls with tri-sodium phosphate (TSP) and/or sealing in the smell in with Kilz (or a similar sealant) and then repainting will eliminate the smell.
I know you said that you didn’t want to repaint, but based on my own experience, I can say that the combination worked on extremely heavy smoke residue. You could try starting with TSP, and if that doesn’t work completely, Kilz plus repainting can be the method of last resort.
Annie’s gonna hate this suggestion, but having been the default painting helper for my many smoking relatives and friends, I say use Trisodium phosphate. It’s the best for washing smoky or greasy walls down. Available at any hardware store near the painting and/or cleaning supplies, simply follow the dilution directions and be amazed at how well it cuts thru the film.
Do remember to wear gloves, though it’s not particularly fumy having the windows open will help things dry quicker. Depending on the paint quality under the gunk, you may be able to get away with not re-painting, try starting with a bit of a weaker solution first to be gentler on the paint if that’s your goal.
You didn’t mention how long ago you stopped smoking. If it’s only been a few days or weeks, in addition to laundering and cleaning anything fabric, you may just have to give it time to outgas. You’d be surprised what can take on the smell of smoke. For example…you’re keyboard…did you smell it…still smells like smoke doesn’t it. Some of this stuff will just take time.
It’s been my experience that old, heavy smoking smells never go away. You’ll have to replace the carpet–which holds more nasty smells than any wall ever could–and you’ll have to paint the walls. I never did any pretreating before painting. Cleaning your walls from head to toe will take a lot more effort than just painting them.
Sounds like you’ve already washed the drapes, which is a good start.
Sorry to be a naysayer, but I’ve had to deal with this situation many, many times (lifelong renter).
Ok … I need to think about this. It’s only been about a month. The computer/stink machine is a problem for sure. That I can fix. I also like the direct approach, that is; napalm the place! I smoked in here for about a year and a half, always with the window open and the fan on, sucking air outside, so it cant be that bad. I will do a “road test” of TSP, (which I hadn’t thought of), Acidic Acid (vinegar) and Ammonia, individually, around the upper corners where the walls and ceiling meet. Whichever sponge comes away with the most glop wins! Then, I will move all the stuff in the room to the center, and wipe it all down with the winning chemical; I will then wash the walls off using a new sponge mop. (the kind that has a handle and folds in half to empty when you action it). While the walls are wet, I will soak the place down with Fabreez. Then I will close the room with the window open and a fan blowing air IN. Let it sit like that for a few days and see what happens. Obviously it’s going to be work. If that doesn’t work, the place will have been prepped for a new coat of paint, I read you can put vanilla extract in paint and that kills the smell too. I will keep you all posted! I want to come up with a sure shot method, opinions are all over the place, but I have yet to find a “magic bullet”. I bet a combo of things will do. I intend to take a scientific approach to this as well, I will post results of each cleaner, and a diary of what went on. Thank you all for your input. When I opened this thread I had given up. Now…. This should be interesting.
