Buying a Home with Cigarette Smell?
After searching for weeks, you find a property and tell your REALTOR you want to tour it. You have a feeling even before seeing it that this could be the one just after reading the description and seeing the pictures. The next day your REALTOR meets you at the home you are so eager to see. It seems like a lifetime as you wait with eagerness for the REALTOR to unlock the door. You step through the threshold and then you smell it. The ashtray smell permeating from every room. The odor of the cigarette smell makes you recoil as you tour the otherwise perfect home.
You are not alone with what you are feeling. One study found that smoking in a home can reduce its resale value by up to 29%. That smell of cigarettes long past isn’t just a smell. It’s a residue called thirdhand smoke, something many people do not know of. Nitrosamines and nitrous acid are two of the biggest threats that cling to walls, dust, and other surfaces within a house. Its residue exposure can be especially dangerous for pets and small children and is linked to the big “C” – CANCER. Studies have shown that cigarette residue can linger in a property for two months after being vacant and cleaned.
How do I get rid of cigarette odor in my home?
It’s not an easy job to rid the property of cigarette smoke. Cleaning can help, but to really eliminate it, entire systems may need replacing. Below are some tips to help rid your property of any thirdhand smoke.HVAC System
HVAC
You should have the air ducts professionally cleaned by a company to rid the property of cigarette smell. Instead of waiting three months to change your filter, change it every thirty days like clockwork. Also, cleaning the evaporating coil could help. If this does not work, you may have to have your HVAC unit replaced.
Walls & Ceilings
Wash all walls with a Trisodium Phosphate cleaner. After, wash all surfaces with a 3:1 vinegar-water solution. Throw away any rags you are using and do not forget to wear gloves.
Lightbulbs
Smelly dust can fuse onto lightbulbs as they get hot, so you will want to change them all out.
Windows
Windows can retain a smoky film from cigarette smell that emits odor when they are warmed by sunlight, so it is recommended to give your windows a thorough washing. Blinds can also be washed with vinegar. Fabric tends to hold onto the smoke smell, so you’ll probably need to clean all the window treatments. Depending on the fabric, some can be washed in the washing machine, while others have to be steam cleaned. You can rent a steamer, or hire a professional to take care of this for you. If cleaning doesn’t completely get the smell out, they’ll have to be replaced.
Paint
Repainting your will seal in the cigarette smell with an odor-neutralizing primer like Kilz. Without the layer of primer, the smell will eventually seep back through the paint.
Floors & Carpets
Hire a professional to steam clean all carpets to help rid your home of cigarette smell. For hard floors, vacuum all the areas and then wash them with appropriate floor cleaners.