My boyfriend has just given up smoking and I want to get our house fresh again!?

Question

We have owned our own house for four years now and my boyfriend has been a heavy smoker the whole time. He has just given up (I'm very proud!) and was wondering if anyone had some good tips for freshening up the house? I leave all the windows open as much as possible and have washed the curtains etc. I have used an odour neutraliser on the carpets but may still shampoo them. I have heard of white vinegar doing wonders but does anyone have any other ideas? Thank you!

By the way, I'm not going to move house! All that paperwork for the mortgage was enough hastle for a year or two more yet!

Just to add I'm in the UK and we don't generally have air conditioning in houses over here! Heating is also done with radiators not air vents.

Answer 1

Some of the best ways to remove smoke smell are cheap but require some work. You can use small bowls of white vinegar around the house, wipe the walls down with it also, or repaint to really get it gone, clean all fabrics (pillows, curtains, cushions), shampoo carpets, using coffee grounds in small portions in bowls around the house or in the carpet if dark colored and no chance of getting wet. Let sit for a few hours to a few days, vacumm up. Too bad your BF didn't think to take it outside so everything you own doesn't smell like smoke. All furniture will need to be cleaned with heavy cleaners, as the smoke leaves an oily film on everything. Try Greased Lightening or orange oil (good solvents and leave a clean smell). Glad to hear he quit and wish him the best of luck in staying quit. BTW, if he starts again, make him take it outside, not fair to make everything and yourself smell like smoke.

Answer 2

Congratulate him for me, that is great! You are off to a good start. What you need to remember is smoke gets everyplace. So to fully get the smell out you need to clean everyplace. The odor neutralizer is good, but I would use it on things you can't wash/clean and go ahead shampoo your carpet and any upholstered funiture (couch, chairs) and don't forget the mattress and foundation. You washed the curtains but do you have any blinds? They will need throughly cleaned and I guess you probably got the nicotine off the windows but don't forget the window sills. Your walls need cleaned also, if wallpaper wash them if painted you can also wash or if you want to re paint get something that will seal your walls first, Kilz is one brand but there are others. Wipe down all hard surfaces whether on your walls, doors, furniture, appliances whatever and wherever. If you have any cardboard boxes that you store stuff in get new boxes and throw the old ones out, they will stink forever. It is a lot of work but it doesn't all have to be done in one day. I am still running into things months later (like storage boxes for Christmas stuff). Unless you paint though the most expensive thing is shampooing the carpet and furniture but it is worth it, it gives a really clean fresh scent to your house, because it is clean. As for the other stuff, yes white vinegar works wonders, use about 1/4 cup in a quart spray bottle and fill the rest with water or mix 1 cup with a gallon. I would use gloves because it does work on oil and will dry out your hands, but it isn't harmful and it is cheap, usually under $2 a gallon. So if you can't wash it, wipe it, if you can't wipe it, toss it or maybe the neutralizer will work. BTW if you need to close up the house before you have the odor under control charcoal does help absorb you can either get the stuff for fish tanks (it is more expensive but works best) or use briquettes like for BBQ but don't use the ones that have starter already on them you could kill yourselves, if you need a quick freshen up put some real vanilla, not artificial on cotton balls or even tissue, it will make the house smell nice, also a dryer sheet over your furnace/AC filter, (the side facing you not the furnace) then while air pases through the softener sheet will scent and it will go throughout your house. Be happy for your boyfriend and for yourself.

Answer 3

EVERYTHING -- right down to your Mattress and Box Springs -- Cabinets, Drawers, Clothes, Ceilings/Walls, Fans/Blades, Vents/Air Return Ducts -- they all have Tobacco Residue on them -- so it is going to be a long, long haul to remove the stench and residue from long-term heavy Tobacco use in the home.

FIRST -- keep the windows open as much as possible. Start by putting the Mattress/Box Spring outside on the Rear Patio (or other secure location) for a few days. This airing out will get rid of a lot of the stench -- but the real important point here is that it is impossible to remove Tobacco Residues from Sofas, Chairs, Mattresses/Box Springs, or other heavy Furniture. Febreze/Oust will cover the stench for a few hours (or days), but it will come back.

Maybe get a thorough Whole-House Cleaning (Carpets, Sofas/Furniture, Ducts) will help some.

Make sure that ALL your linens are washed -- SEVERAL TIMES -- with Bleach that is color safe in it.

Clothes are notorious for holding Tobacco Residue -- and being an Asthmatic -- I HAD to endure smoke filled meeting rooms -- and I can tell you that I THREW out the outfits after a few wearings -- because no matter how many times I washed/cleaned the clothing -- the Tobacco Residue affected my health and remained in the clothing/material.

TSP is a good cleaner for Walls/Ceilings -- go to your local hardware store -- and the mixing instructions are on the container you purchase. Then after you clean the walls/ceiling with TSP -- you ARE going to have to repaint -- and it is going to need a good sealer type for a base coat .

Sorry -- no easy way to do this.

Answer 4

wipe down the walls with solvents that are safe, or dish soap water, because the nicotine sticks to the walls and ceilings the most, and it's what's keeping the smell in the house. Leaving little air fresheners plugged into the outlets as well, like an oust fan (only do this after the wiping of the walls and furniture) and febreese and scrub the sofas and fabrics if you cant wash them in the washing machine. The quicker you get rid of the stale smell, the better because if it smells fresh and clean, he will be less likely to get the urge to light up again!

Answer 5

its so hard to get that smoke smell out of your things in you home but my friend kinda did the same thing her sister smoked and when her sister got her own place and moved her apartment totally smell of smoke what she did was rented a Rug Doctor believe it or not it does wonders she also rented the add on piece for her furniture what it does is removes odors from anything that is fabric like(sofa,dining table,beds,chairs,curtains,) another thing to do is wash as clothes you have that can leave the smell there and also set out a box of Baking Soda in each room it really works and if you can let the windows up for a few minutes,that really helped i mean she tried all those scented sprays and stuff but they did make it go away a Pharmacy work actually told her to do that and we couldn't;t believed that it worked and you may have a little smell come out when your AC turns on but then we used alittle Febreeze and changed the air filter and it was like a new house smell and since then she is a firm believer in Febreeze and has gotten me using it (and you may notice that i said we this and we that well i was called to duty to help lol) Hope you Get This Resolved Soon.

Answer 6

Leaving windows open is nice, but your going to have to wash everything and I mean everything. Nicotine gets into everywhere. you'll have to start from the top down, washing walls,woodwork,carpets,furniture, you could start with the walls and the woodwork, it's probably worth it to have a professional come in and do the carpets and the furniture.soak your nick-naks in either windex(works great) or run them through the dishwasher. you could use white vinegar on the walls but I found using amonia/with hot water works fantastic 1/2 and1/2. quick tip use a sponge mop instead of cloth or sponges on the walls.After all is said and done your house should smell fresh, even with the windows closed. Keep the mop, when he starts smoking again, you can hit him with it.

Answer 7

You're gonna have to wash your walls and ceilings in order to make the smell go away. If your ceilings are tile, 409 works great, otherwise use some sort of cleaner that is safe for your particular wall and ceiling surfaces. That will help a LOT. Also, sprinkling baking soda onto your carpets and rugs will help. Sprinkle it, let it set for a while, then vacuum it up. Good Luck!!!

Answer 8

OUST, the spray really works. a skunk sprayed the air outside our place the other evening and before we could close the windows it was all over the house. Fortunately we had several cans of Oust. We got rid of most of the smell that night, the rest the next morning.
You may also need to have your drapes, couch and carpets cleaned. Try FEBREZE on them before going to that expense, however.

Answer 9

The nicotine will be everywhere so make sure you clean every surface of your home especially all of the glass of your pictures and any electronic equipment. The sticky nicotine can gum up the inner workings of electronics.

But I digress – PAINT! That is your best bet to kill the odor – you will still have to shampoo your carpets and upholstery but a clean coat of paint should do the trick.

Answer 10

This is going to sound like alot of work, and it is, but you probably are going to have to wash the walls and paint them again. Your bathroom will show you how much nicotine is still in your house. Take a hot shower on one of these cool days and look at the ceililng...it tells all.