How to Deal With Cigarette Odor

The smell of cigarette smoke permeates nearby surfaces.

Cigarette smoke produces an invasive odor that's easily absorbed into surfaces in your home, as well as clothing. Left to build up, cigarette smoke can transfer from one item to the next. The damaging effects of cigarette smoke go beyond the odor. Tar and nicotine leave unsightly stains on the surfaces they come in contact with and have adverse health effects. To effectively deal with cigarette odor, odor-causing stains must be removed from affected items.

Things You'll Need

• Laundry detergent
• Drying rack
• Bucket
• White vinegar
• 1 cup baking soda
• Cleaning cloths
• Baking soda
• Vacuum
• Shallow bowls

Instructions

1. 

   Cigarette odor is washed out in the washing machine.

   Launder all washable items to remove cigarette odor, including clothing, curtains, small area rugs and linens. Use laundry detergent to clean and deodorize the washable items. Hang the items outdoors, on a drying rack, so the fresh air can deodorize them further.

2. Mix 1 cup of white vinegar and 1 cup of baking soda in a gallon of hot water. Wash walls, flooring and hard-surfaced furniture with the deodorizing solution to get rid of smoke smell. Rinse the surfaces with a damp cloth before drying them with another cloth.

3. 

   Baking soda and the vacuum work together to remove cigarette odor from carpeting.

   Absorb odors from carpets, large rugs and upholstery by sprinkling them generously with baking soda. Leave the baking soda on the surfaces overnight so it can absorb the cigarette smell. Vacuum the baking soda from the carpet and upholstery after 24 hours.

4. Place a few bowls of white vinegar throughout the home to neutralize the cigarette smell and freshen the air. Replenish the vinegar in the bowls as it evaporates until the smoke odor is gone.

Tips & Warnings

• If someone in the home must smoke indoors, place charcoal-based cat litter in the ashtray to help absorb smoke smell.

• Open windows and allow fresh air to circulate throughout the home for as long as possible during the day.

• For quick deodorizing, wet a clean cloth with undiluted vinegar and wave it around the room for a few minutes.

References

• Reader's Digest: Remove Cigarette or Cigar Smoke Smells
• Good Housekeeping; How to Remove Cigarette Smoke Odor; Heloise
• University of Kentucky; Odors: What's That Smell?; Linda R. Adler, M.A.; January 1997
• Mrs. Clean USA: Removing Cigarette Odors