Cleaning Question

A friend of mines Dad smokes in his home... his Family is going to be coming to his house for Christmas BUT the Daughter in law said she wouldnt come if the house smelled of smoke... so.. does anyone know of any good cleaning tips to rid the house of the smell? Besides the obvious... I told him to smoke in one room only,, we are going to wash all the walls and globes on the light fixtures, wash all the curtains and stuff like that... any tips would be helpful... Thanks

I know I know dont invite the Daughter In law and he wouldnt have to worry about it .. but I think he would like it to smell clean also..

clean carpets buy scented candles

What's going to be done about the furniture? You can clean all the walls, carpets, area rugs, curtains, blah blah blah... you want, but the smoke smell will still be in the furnishings. I guess you could Febreeze them and cover them with clean sheets, but the odor will always linger.

move

smoking not only ruins your health but your homes also

I am a smoker, but only smoke outside, I don't allow smoking in the house. Winter sure cuts down on my smoking!

Yeah I dont know what he will do about the furniture... probably will have to febreeze it... most of the floors are wood and we have cleaned a few with murphy's oil soap that has made a little difference... His Dad is in his 60's and set in his ways about smoking and all the rights to do it where he wants so the smoking outside probably won't happen...lol
As long as we can tackle the main odar I think we will get some where...

I hate to say this but even limiting smoking to one room won't help you out at all. Your just doing pointless cleaning if he is stills smoking in the house. Like some have said you need to clean the furniture.

febreeze,febreeze,febreeze!!Also at the smoke shops they sell theese smokers candles-they work!!!they are 8 bucks or so and I used them in my old house when I smoked occasionaly when it was cold,in the new place I don't smoke at all

cool I will check out the candles.. they thought aboutan ionizer also.. I think thats what he called it..

From my experience alot of those who complain about smokers use so damn much perfume, cologne, room deodorizers, potpourri, and scented candles that it can be nauseating. Once a guy came into a place I worked and complained about the smoke smell. For over an hour after he left the smell of cheap musk cologne he had on turned my stomach and completely overpowered every other smell.

My opinion is if your dads friend goes to his son's house, he smokes outside. If his daughter in law comes to his house she can shut her yap or leave. It's nice if he chooses not to smoke in the home while she's there. But if she expects him not to do as he wants when she isn't there then I'd say her staying away is probably good because if she bitches about him smoking in "HIS" house, she more than likely bitches about other things he does too.

I agree Ratzilla... And Im sure he does as well... he is just thinking of the rest of the family and how they would like to ALL get together.. and becasue of her if she doesnt come his Son wont get to... Sad deal.. but at least he is willing to comprimise a little for her and like I said before I think he likes the clean smell that is starting to be obvious in the home...

If Febreez can make a skunk sprayed dog smell good, I think it should help the furniture.

Personally I don't like it when my house gets too smokey smelling either and I use an exhaust fan year round upstairs where I smoke so that the smoke stays upstairs away from company. I also try not to smoke too much around antiques of a delicate nature.

It's fine if the guy wants to clean things up and make it smell good for the family, I just wouldn't do it for one crabby inlaw.

Smoke or farts?

kansas wrote:

A friend of mines Dad smokes in his home... his Family is going to be coming to his house for Christmas BUT the Daughter in law said she wouldnt come if the house smelled of smoke... so.. does anyone know of any good cleaning tips to rid the house of the smell? Besides the obvious... I told him to smoke in one room only,, we are going to wash all the walls and globes on the light fixtures, wash all the curtains and stuff like that... any tips would be helpful... Thanks

I know I know dont invite the Daughter In law and he wouldnt have to worry about it .. but I think he would like it to smell clean also..

Nicotine sticks to everything, it has an almost sticky, greasy feeling to it when there are constant smokers indoors. It will be in the ductwork too, so whenever the heat comes on it will stink. Professional cleaning is the only way to completely remove smoke smell and residue. Cleaning the carpet and upholstery will help out alot. But then all of the contents and the walls, ceiling and hard floors will have absorbed the smell. They would have to be cleaned with a special "degreaser". The walls need to be sealed and painted along with the ceiling if the smoke is really bad. I worked for a Cleaning company in the past and we dealt with these problems all the time.

You can buy air duct vent filters that are scented. They may help a bit.

First of all, It's not the nicotine.

It's the tar.

Second, smokers create tax revenue.

third, smokers stimulate the economy..

information to follow..

nitromaxx98 wrote:

First of all, It's not the nicotine.

It's the tar.

Second, smokers create tax revenue.

third, smokers stimulate the economy..

information to follow..

Since when did you work for a Professional Cleaning Company, that is known nation wide? And has one of the best reputations. I guess they lied to me. I was told the discoloration is nicotine staining.

Since i learned basic science in high school. Nicotine is a drug induced by intaking tobacco, much like caffeene is induced by intaking coffee. McDonald's is a nation wide chain that kills hundreds everyday, what's your point?

http://www.ehow.com/how_2123192_remove-nicotine-stains-from-walls.html
I guess I am not the only one that was told it was nicotine staining.

http://www.no-smoking.org/march05/03-17-05-2.html


Jeff Bishop is a technical adviser for the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification, a nonprofit that certifies firms and technicians in cleaning and restoration.

Bishop said smoke odors from cigars, cigarettes and pipes (all about equally hard to get out) are among the most difficult smells to eliminate. Smoke particles are so small -- about .01 to 1 micron (a human hair is 75 microns) -- that they penetrate the tiniest spaces.

He outlines four principles for removing any odor, including tobacco: get rid of the source, clean all surfaces, neutralize remaining odors and use sealants to cover hard surfaces if necessary.

"Fundamentally, that's it," said Bishop, author of 13 books related to cleaning and restoration. "You have to get rid of that film of nicotine to get rid of the odor."

A dingy, nicotine film and noxious smells are only a few of the good reasons to rid a home of tobacco odors. The smell can bother people with allergies and other health concerns. It also can discourage those who are trying to quit smoking

The rest of the article has alot of helpful info on cleaning NICOTINE and smoke damage.

Go play, but go back to school first

Face it, for once, you were wrong.

Sorry BigDog, Nitro is right. As a person who worked in the cleaning industry you should know that oily smoke and soot is created when most any common combustible burns. Nicotine in itself is not the major culprit of the yellow brown oily staining. Cigarette smoke, as well as wood smoke and smoke from other combustible items contain things like creosote which is one of the yellow brown oily by-products in the tars left behind by the combustion process that stains so badly.

While it is true that nicotine being burned adds to the oily smoke, it is not the biggest contributor to the oily brown residues left by smoke. A poorly ventilated wood stove, kerosene lamps, or even some types of candles can make a house look like a smokers convention takes place in it every night and there's no nicotine in those. Burned nicotine is only a small fraction of what's in the "tars" created by the combustion process that stain everything. The whole nicotine stain idea is just anti-smoker BS.

I did want to add one more note on that. According to an advertisement for Marlboros it says they have 15 mg tar, 1.1 mg nicotine average per cigarette. That alone tells us what stains everything and smells.

Are these stains tar or nicotine?

Candles produce black soot. Fires produce black soot. Tar is black. Set a candle next to a wall and burn the candle for several months. You will have a black residue on the wall that is called soot. Do a search for Nicotine staining, and do some reading. I have dealt with every type of Disaster Restoration service. I am still certified with the IICRC. I know how to identify the source of the problem.
Heck, I worked with a constant smoker, and he admits the staining is nicotine. He has worked there for over 12 years, and probably been a smoker for a lot longer.

Justoo you might want to do something about those skids in your shorts.

kansas wrote:

cool I will check out the candles.. they thought aboutan ionizer also.. I think thats what he called it..

They have small ones at Wallyworld, near the water pur or Britta's Water filters. Also try vanilla.. Yes Vanilla !!. in an spray bottle, spray it on everything, often.

The "tar" referred to in a cigarette is actually soot. Chimney fires are caused by creosote in the soot from wood smoke. The homes of heavy marijuana users also have discolored walls and furnishings. A chimney, a tobacco pipe, and a marijuana pipe all become filled with oily black deposits resembling tar, but there is no nicotine in either a pine log, or a bowl full of weed. If you could remove every bit of nicotine from tobacco, it would still produce the same oily soot when burned.

I know a good thing for cleaning the old food burnt oven racks!!!! Carefully place oven racks in a plastic black trash bag , don't tear any holes! Pour 1/2 cup of plain ammonia into bag. tie tightly and place in the sun for 3 or 4 hours... take out and rinse off with water hose. Will be clean and shiny. Saves you hands from a lot of scrubbing! Works on most stainless steel.

Ammonia works great for cleaning the oily black gunk out of gun barrels too. Damn nicotine just gets into everything.

tell the biotch to stay in a hotel

and just need to stop washing my briefs, I hardly recongnize them anymore what happened to the yellow spots and the mold????

lisav wrote:

I am a smoker, but only smoke outside, I don't allow smoking in the house.

I think you've probably done all that you can do, Kansas. I think the long term solutions is what lisav posted. Even hotel rooms that have been turned from smoking to non-smoking, you can always tell. Good to see you back, Kansas.

Ratzilla wrote:

From my experience alot of those who complain about smokers use so damn much perfume, cologne, room deodorizers, potpourri, and scented candles that it can be nauseating.

It's like someone who has B.O. and tries to cover it up with lots of English Leather. Bleah!!!

I think it's all a matter of opinion. One person says my cigarette smell stinks, another tells me I smell good. The use of perfume and cologne became widespread in the Victorian era. They were afraid of catching a chill and rarely bathed so needed lots of stink preventers. Queen Victoria herself said "One bath a month is enough for anyone". During the Cholera epidemic in Rome and at Fort Hays the camp surgeon recommended 2 baths a week instead of the customary 1. That was in mid summer too.

I won't smoke in someone elses home or vehicle if they prefer I don't, and I try to avoid smoking downstairs when someone will be in my home that doesn't like it. But upstairs is smoker territory and those who don't like it just need to stay downstairs. I shouldn't have to go outside in freezing weather to smoke when I'm the guy paying the bills. And if anyone happens to wander upstairs or get in my vehicle and catch a smell too offensive to endure, that ammonia we spoke of shoved in their snout on a cotton swab will be sure to help.