Getting Rid of Smoke Smell [Archive] - MercuryMarauder.net Forums

ImpalaSlayer

08-29-2010, 08:41 AM

martyo

08-29-2010, 08:44 AM

i googled this a while ago and i kept coming back to leaving a open can of coffee in the car for a few days. also herd of putting baking soda in the rug and stuff then vacuuming it up. no first hand experience but just what i found online

I heard that those are temporary fixes but the banking soda has a longer effect.

I just bought a killer new truck but it smells like smoke (when I was cleaning it up, I found a cigar cutter, so I imagine that the driver enjoyed his stogies).

I love the truck, but the shampooing did not eat all the odors.

I was thinking about the ozone generator because I could use it in some of my older cars too to get rid of the musty smell that comes with vintage cars.

Spectragod

08-29-2010, 08:49 AM

Dryer sheets under the seats may help. Ozone generator WILL take out the odor. They are usually just a little spendy. But if you can use it on multipul cars, it may be worth the investment.

ImpalaSlayer

08-29-2010, 08:51 AM

I heard that those are temporary fixes but the banking soda has a longer effect.

I just bought a killer new truck but it smells like smoke (when I was cleaning it up, I found a cigar cutter, so I imagine that the driver enjoyed his stogies).

I love the truck, but the shampooing did not eat all the odors.

I was thinking about the ozone generator because I could use it in some of my older cars too to get rid of the musty smell that comes with vintage cars.

kinda what i figured as well. wheres pics of said truck?

MM2004

08-29-2010, 08:53 AM

Marty,

A buddy of mine rented an ozone generator years ago to rid several pieces of furniture from smoke damage due to a house fire.

The furniture was stored in a small room, and cannot remember how long it took, but did work.

;)

Mike.

martyo

08-29-2010, 09:17 AM

Dryer sheets under the seats may help. Ozone generator WILL take out the odor. They are usually just a little spendy. But if you can use it on multipul cars, it may be worth the investment.

The dryer sheets act as a mask and not a permanent fix and then the car smells like my wife just did the laundry.

The ozone generatots I looked at were a little pricey, but I can use it through out my collection, plus cars that come into the shop may need some cleaning up too and I suppose we can pass through an equipment fee for its use....

martyo

08-29-2010, 09:19 AM

wheres pics of said truck?

I will get a thread up shortly.

MERCMAN

08-29-2010, 09:32 AM

The dryer sheets act as a mask and not a permanent fix and then the car smells like my wife just did the laundry.

The ozone generatots I looked at were a little pricey, but I can use it through out my collection, plus cars that come into the shop may need some cleaning up too and I suppose we can pass through an equipment fee for its use....

AND take it off as a business expense(but you already knew that :lol:)

1stMerc

08-29-2010, 09:49 AM

http://static4.alice.com/images/products/1269350/300.jpgMartyo, try this. I use the "Mandarin Orange & Fresh Lemon" one, but couldn't find pic online. Bought this at Family Dollar store in the air freshener isle. I'm a cigar smoker for years, but recently stopped smoking in the car, since had a family reunion trip to MS up coming and didn't want, me or the family traveling with me to have to put up with it everytime we got in the car. Did the usual cleaning, including the ozium thru the cabin intake while ac on high and Frebreeze in the carpet. Lasted until the car sat in the sun again.
Put this in the car a week prior to trip and it started working immediately. Even with sitting outside in the 90+ degree temps here and in MS. No complaint's from the kin and you know how vocal kids can be.

One caveat, have not removed it from car, so don't know if it will provide the permanance you seek, but small enough to tuck out of the way.

Zack

08-29-2010, 11:07 AM

I think I remember someone saying placing apples in the car rids the smell most effectively.

sailsmen

08-29-2010, 11:22 AM

Check about possible damage to rubber due to ozone. you may have to remove the seats, carpet and replace the head liner.

Put the seats and carpet in a room with the ozoner.

sailsmen

08-29-2010, 11:23 AM

How can an "odor elimanator" have a scent?

burtreynolds

08-29-2010, 12:30 PM

I am a smoker trying to quit, and my car was one of the places I would always light up. To rid the smell, I was recommended taking towels and soaking them in vinegar, then putting them in tupperware, throw the now vinegar soaked rags that are in tuperware containters (open) into strategic places in your vehicle. I did this for about 2 days, always leaving the windows up when i let the car sit. The car smelt like vinegar for about a day or so after removing the rags but, once the smell went away, so did the smoke smell. Now its all fresh and clean smelling.

69marquis conv

08-29-2010, 02:59 PM

If the seats have cloth upholstery you can remove them and soak them in a bath of ammonia and water for several hours, then launder them on a gentle cycle, dry and re-install. Headliner and carpet is usually easier to replace than effectively clean.

Brian H

08-29-2010, 05:23 PM

1 Gal. of "Febreeze" in a weed sprayer, open all doors and start spraying........... worked for me. Not in the MM tho, My mother is a chainsmoker and it helped her car out tremendously!!

boatmangc

08-29-2010, 06:37 PM

The old used car salesmen went with a couple of Macintosh apples in the backseat.

BigCars4Ever

08-30-2010, 06:22 PM

J-MAN

08-31-2010, 05:51 AM

The ozone generator works pretty good. I would let it run for the weekend a couple of weekends in a row. That coupled with febreeze gets the upholstery smelling clean but the AC ducts just never seem to give up the nicotine smell.

+1 on the ozone treatment. For the vents, try Einszett Klima-Cleaner. It's an aerosol which a tube attaches and is inserted in the center vent and uses a foam to clean and remove odors. I use in all vents with most of the product going to the center vent. Get mine from Autogeek. I'm a smoker and computertech couldn't smell smoke in my 143k SB that he just bought.

Mote

08-31-2010, 06:00 AM

I was recommended taking towels and soaking them in vinegar, then putting them in tupperware, throw the now vinegar soaked rags that are in tuperware containters (open) into strategic places in your vehicle.

This is exactly what my mother in law swears by to rid a car of odors.

martyo

08-31-2010, 06:56 AM

I bought an ozone machine yesterday. It should come in handy for my car collection and the shop, so I ponied up the cash.

I will let you know how it works out.

Joe Walsh

08-31-2010, 06:59 AM

martyo

08-31-2010, 07:03 AM

I always thought that ozone degraded rubber products and made them crack...:dunno:

I read that you should never store rubber tires near running electric motors because the arc in electric motors produces ozone.
(Don't stack your tires near a furnace fan or an air compressor.)

As I understand it, that is from prolonged exposure.

With this unit, you "shock" the cabin of the vehicle and are done.

TooManyFords

08-31-2010, 09:18 AM

Which unit did you purchase? And, does it clean out more than just smoke?

martyo

08-31-2010, 10:25 AM

Which unit did you purchase? And, does it clean out more than just smoke?

I will look when I am home but if IIRC they are Iowa.

And Yes it does more than smoke.

Joe Walsh

08-31-2010, 10:29 AM

Which unit did you purchase? And, does it clean out more than just smoke?

I will look when I am home but if IIRC they are Iowa.

And Yes it does more than smoke.

Hey John....are you trying to get rid of some other kind of smoke from the interior?.......:rasta:.....;)

TooManyFords

08-31-2010, 10:37 AM

No, it is more of a mildew smell. I think I am going to have to pull the carpet.

TooManyFords

08-31-2010, 10:41 AM

Was this it?

http://www.ozonesolutions.com/MZ-200.html

martyo

08-31-2010, 08:09 PM

Was this it?

http://www.ozonesolutions.com/MZ-200.html

Same place but I bought a bigger unit.

Paul T. Casey

09-02-2010, 08:44 AM

Let me know how this works. My car stinks now that I'm a quitter. I dampened a paper towel with windex and wiped the cloth above the drives seat the other day. I've had less brown on the paper when I've finished evacuating my bowels!

White Knuckles

09-02-2010, 11:59 AM

My car stinks now that I'm a quitter. I've had less brown on the paper when I've finished evacuating my bowels!

Glad you quit. I don't think you were supposed smoke those----------brown?

omarauder

09-02-2010, 12:29 PM

One of these might do the trick... set it off inside vehicle with a/c on max, get out of car, and let it run for 20 min or so.

https://www.dakotaproducts.com/ProductView.aspx?id=48

Vortex

09-03-2010, 07:28 AM

When I lived in Hawaii I bought a used Nissan Stanza that had been owned by a smoker. Over time that stink just got worse and worse it seemed. I tried everything, no luck.

BurpyTurtle

09-03-2010, 09:34 AM

Lowe's has ZEP brand Smoke Eliminator in the cleaning aisle. The thing with the chemical sprays is they all seem to have an odor of their own. I don't want my car to smell like Odo-ban, ZEP, lemon-lime, mint, orange or whatever else they flavor it with..

Your best bet though is probably the ozone generator you just bought. Once you've tried it, can you let us know how well it works?

TAKEDOWN

09-04-2010, 09:07 PM

Has anyone used an ozone generator or something similar to clean the smell up in a smoker's car?

Comments. Thoughts. Suggestions.

A burnout:burnout: to cover the smell!

Joe Walsh

09-05-2010, 08:07 AM

Paul,
I bought an '89 CV that was owned by a heavy smoker.
There was a THICK brown tar 'halo' in the headliner above the seat.
I used a foaming spray cleaner called "Tough Stuff"...it comes in a yellow & red can at any Auto store/Wallyworld.
Just spray it on the stain then let it foam up and sit for about a minute.
I must have trashed 4 or 5 towels, as each one pulled tons of brown crap out of the headliner.
When I was finished I was amazed that there was no more stain in the headliner.
I did the entire car's interior fabric (Car has velour seats...:rolleyes:) and there is no more smoke/tar smell in the CV.

tallpaul

01-07-2013, 06:41 PM

RacerX

01-07-2013, 06:49 PM

sergio442

01-09-2013, 08:36 AM

Wipe down whole interior of car with simple green.

Curless

01-09-2013, 08:56 AM

Has anyone used an ozone generator or something similar to clean the smell up in a smoker's car?

Comments. Thoughts. Suggestions.

My MM was owned by a cigar smoker...YUCK! I cleaned every surface in it three times and then took it to a shop with an ozone machine, it does work. Its not perfect but the difference was amazing. Pull the seats, and really clean the carpet well. put some dryer sheets under the seats front and back before you put them back in.

Curless

01-09-2013, 08:57 AM

The other trick is place a bag of charcoal in the vehicle and cut it open. Leave it there for a few days, it will absorb the smell.

Hadamustang1

01-09-2013, 09:13 AM

New info old thread...= awesome

TFB

01-09-2013, 05:29 PM

The other trick is place a bag of charcoal in the vehicle and cut it open. Leave it there for a few days, it will absorb the smell.

Won't work on smoke or at least didn't for me... I had three turkey roaster pans full in the front, back and even in the trunk(yeah could be smelled in there as well), can't say it did anything for my '98 Grand Marquis... The only thing that fixed it was a through cleaning and airing out of the interior... I used Windex and fabreeze to clean the headliner to the carpet and everything in between at least two or three times, that with fans blowing in it for a week(stunk up my 32' x 40' garage) got the smell to the point it was manageable with a couple pine scented Little Trees... Took probably three months till it wasn't a little noticeable on a hot day...

Recently I've been cleaning a hoopie '96 F-150 that reeked, I pulled the seat out and let it set out side for the better part of a week while I pressure washed the carpet and padding behind seat... After a thorough wipe down and seat cleaning, it is only slightly noticeable, going to Little tree it as well...

Marauderjack

01-10-2013, 04:29 AM

OZIUM......works pretty well also!!

http://www.amazon.com/OZIUM-SANITIZER-OZM-1-ORIGINAL-SCENT/dp/B000CSWCAG

03mmmonroe

01-10-2013, 05:38 AM

Has anyone used an ozone generator or something similar to clean the smell up in a smoker's car?

Comments. Thoughts. Suggestions.

I have used many times on customer cars at the dealer I service. The units work well have used for smoke, wet smell due to water leak ect.

Russ

SID210SA

01-10-2013, 06:16 AM

Martin,

I used one years ago when I used to detail cars....the company I worked for had 2 of them....It definately got rid of the smell....we would completly detail the car inside and out....we took out the seats and shampoo'd the interior and seats and vacuumed the vehicle out....then left the ozone machine on overnight with the hose going in a window and sealing off the rest of the open part of the window with sponges. We always got compliments of the old smells being gone......never a complaint of any smells coming back.

Mike

bugsyc

01-10-2013, 06:34 AM

I've been using a little one that plugs into the cigar lighter in the gauge pod for a few years.It works.And it works well...Very inexpensive....Highly recommend it for smokers...

fastblackmerc

01-10-2013, 07:21 AM

I've been using a little one that plugs into the cigar lighter in the gauge pod for a few years.It works.And it works well...Very inexpensive....Highly recommend it for smokers...

I'd be careful.

http://www.epa.gov/glo/health.html

bill64

01-10-2013, 01:40 PM

Ozone Generators create scar tissue on the inside of your lungs. You don't want to use them. They may work for odors, but they will hurt you. I know because I work with peoples air quality for their homes and businesses.
ozone generators will hurt you if you inhale the ozone, which your not supposed to do. your supposed to " shock treat areas" while not being present and let the ozone do its work. as the ozone breaks down (while doing its job) it turns into pure o2.

Marauderjack

01-10-2013, 03:31 PM

ozone generators will hurt you if you inhale the ozone, which your not supposed to do. your supposed to " shock treat areas" while not being present and let the ozone do its work. as the ozone breaks down (while doing its job) it turns into pure o2.

I said this before but seems nobody listens to me......maybe I'm invisible??:rolleyes:

You will also degrade all the plastic, leather and fabric in the car so long periods of O3 exposure should be avoided....FWIW!!:bandit:

fastblackmerc

01-10-2013, 03:38 PM

I said this before but seems nobody listens to me......maybe I'm invisible??:rolleyes:

You will also degrade all the plastic, leather and fabric in the car so long periods of O3 exposure should be avoided....FWIW!!:bandit:

You are correct!