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Just wanted to update this thread - so far, so good! I used Zissner BIN shellac primer in the living room and dining room - that stuff seals in EVERYTHING. Did the ceilings too. The fumes are not fun. I changed the air filter to a pricey yet effective one, lasts 3 months so not all that much more expensive. The carpets in most rooms were changed. Opened windows to allow air circulation. I still have 1/2 the house to paint (am unpacking) but it's significantly better, and I think when I prime/paint the rest it'll be completely gone.
I wanted to post again in case this helps anyone. The air filter worked so fast that within hours I noticed a difference. I'd still like to have that AC unit cleaned but I don't see the property owner paying for it, so I'm going to try everything else first.
You could ask them to have the ducts cleaned. Can't hurt to ask.
I am house shopping and found a house that I really like, but the master bedroom smells like cigarette smoke. If I do make an offer (which I'm very skeptical to) I will ask for an allowance for anything needed to get rid of the smell. I know I will have to prime/paint the walls and ceiling and replace the carpet and pad. Is there anything else in the bedroom that would need to be replaced (ceiling fan, crown molding, etc..)? I also know someone with an Ozone generator which I will use before and after the walls are painted. As a last resort I will pay to have the duct cleaned, but I will only do that if all of the above doesn't fix the problem. My question to all the previous posters is how long have your houses been smoked in? This house is only a couple of years old, so its been smoked in for 2 years at most. I feel like the smell should be able to be removed in this, but I'm very skeptical as the smell is disgusting and I don't want to get stuck with a house that has lingering cigarette smells for years. Any and all suggestions are much welcome! Thanks for all the previous tips and suggestions, it sounds like this can be done with some elbow grease.
I am house shopping and found a house that I really like, but the master bedroom smells like cigarette smoke. If I do make an offer (which I'm very skeptical to) I will ask for an allowance for anything needed to get rid of the smell. I know I will have to prime/paint the walls and ceiling and replace the carpet and pad. Is there anything else in the bedroom that would need to be replaced (ceiling fan, crown molding, etc..)? I also know someone with an Ozone generator which I will use before and after the walls are painted. As a last resort I will pay to have the duct cleaned, but I will only do that if all of the above doesn't fix the problem. My question to all the previous posters is how long have your houses been smoked in? This house is only a couple of years old, so its been smoked in for 2 years at most. I feel like the smell should be able to be removed in this, but I'm very skeptical as the smell is disgusting and I don't want to get stuck with a house that has lingering cigarette smells for years. Any and all suggestions are much welcome! Thanks for all the previous tips and suggestions, it sounds like this can be done with some elbow grease.
I've since moved, but my rental house was probably smoked in since it was built in the 1940s, and definitely by the previous tenants. I have never smelled anything like that in my life. The primer I used sealed it in - use that on the crown molding.
Not sure about the ceiling fan but I would definitely have the ducts cleaned. That is usually a ripoff, I think, but in the case of smoke smell it certainly can't hurt and did help at my house.
You need to give it a year and see if the smell comes back. We learned that the hard way. More than once.
Hard surfaces can be scrubbed clean. Soft surfaces will have to be replaced.
Anything else just covers the smell or eliminates it until it returns.
Ozone can be dangerous if anyone has asthma it can also trigger allergies. We ran two very expensive ozone machines for over a year before realizing it was causing problems and not getting rid of the problem on a long term basis.
Frankly if I was renting a place like that, I would probably move out.
We bought a house that was smoked in for 100 years. We had to remove every soft surface (even wallpaper). We repeatedly scrubbed hard (plaster) painted surfaces with scrubbing bubbles. Spray it on, a brown pasty goo will bubble up, scrub it off then spray again until no more brown pasty goo. We stripped and refinished all painted and unpainted wood surfaces, so that got rid of that part of the smoke residue. Fortunately for us, that house did not have central heat or air. We finally got rid of all the smell but it took about three years of work. Caveat, I am very sensitive to smells and I can smell things many people cannot.
I am reminded we also used Zinsser or the other shellac based paint/primer in a few places and it worked, but we did the scrubbing bubbles thing at least once first. I think we went through more than 100 cans of dow scrubbing bubbles before we finished the whole house. I am not sure even the shellac based paints woudl stick over the brown pasty goo if we did not at least scrub some of it off. .
Hello ~My daughter is moving into a rental apartment which has been repainted top to bottom and all carpeting cleaned and it still smells like cigarette smoke especially in the bathrooms! And old stale perfume mixed with it ~we have run the ac and opened windows fro days prior to her moving in but it is still pretty bad ~someone suggested putting a bowl of white vinegar near the intake ??? So far not helping. Any suggestions wold be most appreciated
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