How to Rid an Apartment of Cigarette Smoke Smell

Cigarette smoke lingers for a long time, its smell reaching into every area of an apartment, including the furniture and the clothes in your closets. Getting rid of cigarette smoke in an apartment can be a challenge. With determination, effort and the use of a few household items, any apartment can once again become free of the stale aroma of cigarette smoke.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Baking soda Vacuum cleaner Paint brush (optional) Paint (optional) Vinegar Cleaning rags Scrub brush

1. Start by airing out the apartment. Open all the windows and, if you have one, use an exhaust fan to pull out some of the lingering smoking scent. This will not eliminate the smell but it will clear the air a bit while you clean out the smoke residue.

2. 
    

   Wash the walls first. Fill a pail with warm water mixed with a solution of vinegar and baking soda. Pour about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of vinegar and about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of baking soda into the water. Use a scrub brush and start cleaning from the bottom towards and including the ceiling. Another alternative would be to paint the rooms, with a heavy coat of high quality paint.

3. 
    
   Baking Soda absorbs odors

   Remove everything that is hanging on the walls, including mirrors and wash them. Remove the drapes and dry clean or launder them. Wash the windows, inside and out. Everything, including the TV, computer and tables that have been exposed to the years of smoking must be washed, wiped down or polished. This also includes everything in the kitchen cabinets, like glasses, dishes and silverware.

4. Clean inside every closet in the house, including your clothes closet. Wash or dry clean your clothes, and sprinkle baking soda in corners to absorb any remaining odors. Do not underestimate the stench of years of smoking. The odor reaches into every nook and crevice in the entire house.

5. 
    
   Vacuum a few times

   Understand that carpets of any type retain cigarette smoke odors--reaching deep down into the carpet padding--making it almost impossible to remove the stench. You might want to vacuum the carpet and sprinkle it heavily with baking soda to see if you can remove the odor. If, the next day, the carpet still reeks of smoke, you might want to consider buying a new carpet.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember to clean the bathrooms as well. Smoke smell lingers on towels, bath mats, walls and shower doors.

Resources

• Get Rid of Cigarette Smells on Walls and Fabrics
• Getting Rid of Cigarette Smoke Odors