Odor removal

vespasian

I recently bought a one year old used SUV. The
former owner was a smoker and the vehicle has a
mild smoke odor. Does anyone know if this smell
can be permanently removed?

One auto detail company in the area claims that it
can remove the oder using a process called "Odor
Free," which costs about $40.00. I would be happy
to pay this amount if it works.

Further, a car dealer has given me the name of a
company that deodorizes cars. The process uses
some sort of gas left in the car for several hours.

Does anyone know anything about effectiveness of
these or other methods?

Thanks,
Vespasian

vivona

Before you spend any big bucks, vacuum the interior thoroughly, then go to the nearest WalMart or K-Mart and buy a spray bottle of Fabreeze. Cost is about $3.00. Follow the directions to mist all the interior fabric. Don't forget the headliner and carpeting. Wait for it to dry. The smell should be gone.

quadrunner500

Ozone gas will remove the smell permanently. An ozone generator left inside with the windows up, for a few hours should do the trick. Don't know where you find it though.

vivona

Or you could eat a lot of beans, an egg salad sandwich and wash it down with a beer, then sit in the car for a long time. You won't smell the smoke anymore.

clintonjohn

onion rings work especially well also

K9Leader

I concur with the Febreze recommendation. My Taurus wagon smelled terrible because I haul my dogs around in it all the time. Just vacumming didn't help, nor did the powders you sprinkle in and then vacuum up.
Vacuum thoroughly, and then use the Febreze according to the label directions. It is a good product, and, even if it can't get the smoke smell out, you've only wasted $3-4. Good luck!

spokane

Thanks for the Fabreeze suggestion.

Last week, we had a Dodge Shadow parked at a low spot in a parking lot during a rainstorm. Water overflowed the doorsills and soaked the carpet and padding in the footwells. Finally got it dry with 150*F air piped beneath the padding for several hours. However, a little of the mildew odor remains. Anybody have a fix for this? Thanks.

gus

We once had a customer in the shop whose kid dropped some candy down one of the heating vents. He described that smell by telling us he thought that he had "run over a cherry-flavored rat." We asked around for some advice on how to get rid of the smell. A nearby body shop told us that we could try putting some sliced apples under the rear seats for a week or two. I don't recall if it worked. I don't know if replacing one bad smell with another counts as a fix.

clintonjohn

spokane-don't know the effectiveness of chemicals, like perhaps lysol or carpet cleaning foams, but perhaps renting one of those carpet steamers might get down in the fibers and take care of the problem. Most of the steamers have a wand attachment for furniture and I don't think they're more than $20-30/day to rent. Our local supermarket carries them.

billy9

My wife was rear-ended and soy sauce was spilled on the seat and floor, stunk like heck till I used Febreeze (Heavy Duty for Seats and rugs).

spokane

Clintonjohn, thanks for the carpet-steamer suggestion. The wand attachment is a trick I'll keep in mind.

It turns out, however, that Fabreeze did a surprisingly good job on the must odor...so I'll add another endorsement to that product. For this case of drenched carpet however, I feel sure the careful drying was also an essential part of the success.

guitarzan

Perhaps it was the previous version of this topic I mentioned "the living air machine" by a company called Alpine. I assuming Fabreeze is ozone in a can, because I believe that is the ONLY thing that will work. Well, this machine produces ozone (like an above poster mentioned) and is not expendable like a can. We use it all winter to rid the basement of the smell of burning wood from the fireplace. www.alpineair.com or check the internet yellow pages for one in your area. I know their site is still under construction and may not be helpful.

rexsdad

My wife is highly sensitive to chemical perfumes and cleaners. We just bought a new mini-van and the "new car smell" makes her sick to the point that she can't be in the car.

Will Fabreeze replace one chemical smell with a new one?

Does anyone know any natural tricks for ridding the car of the toxic smell?

Thanks

quadrunner500

A golden retriever or Irish setter should help get rid of that offensive "new car smell." Leave some McDonald fries and hamburger wrappers under the seat too. Glad to be of help!

suzieq3

I once heard that if you leave a dryer sheet in a car it will attrack bad odors.

Grove

Would you have to flip the car a few times really fast ???

clintonjohn

perhaps sprinkling baking soda on the seats and carpet, leaving overnight and vacuuming in the morning.

casper2

Fabreze is great, but will not remove all odors effectively. For hard to get rid of odors in autos, rent an OZONE generator from a cleaning service who specializes in smoke odor removal. They can be found in the yellow pages and costs about $45.00 a day.

suzieq3

ROTFLMAO

vivona

suzieq3 - What? Please translate.

suzieq3

ROTFLMAO - Means Rolling On The Floor Laughing My A-- Off

guitarzan

Rexsdad, the ozone machine I mentioned WILL remove those odors.

Ozone, O3, is very unstable/reactive and it combines with any active chemicals in the air to form harmless particulate matter. It DOES stink, but you air out the area, and the smell of ozone is gone. You can rent one, or buy one like we did and use it indefinitely. Kitchen odors, smoke, new car, etc...