Cigarette smell

BabyReinbold · March 2010

Hello! I just noticed a board for baby gear...wonderful! I had posted this already but maybe this is a better spot for it. Sorry if you read this twice. My husband and I picked up a crib, changing table and basinett from my dad. Which we greatly appreciate. The only problem, my dad's wife is a smoker, not extremely heavy but she does do it in the house. The stuff that we got from them has the smell of smok and the air purifier they use. The mattress we got is sitting outside at the moment. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to get out the smoke smell from the wood? Thank you for any help.

amstep · March 2010

Clean it thoroughly with an appropriate cleaner because the biggest problem with cigarettes is not the smell as much, but the actual nicotine residue that lands on everything exposed to smoke.

You want to make sure your infant does not come into contact with anything that has been exposed to smoke (esp fabrics) because the nicotine is readily absorbed by their skin (most people are only worried about the airborne smoke).

That said, I would definitely get another mattress. I wouldn't think you could get it clean enough for a child to touch/breathe fumes.

To get smell off the wood, I have heard antique dealers use charcoal wrapped in newsprint, left on the wood (and in drawers, etc) will get some of the smell out. Otherwise, I don't know. Paint primers that seal smoke in more than likely have chemicals you don't want around your infant, either.

Oh, and make sure any smokers change their shirts, etc. to clean non-smoked-in things after smoking before holding your child, and do not expose your kid to upholstery in their house if they smoke in it.

gringa78 · March 2010

Get a new mattress...you'll never get the smoke smell out of it. As for the wood, I have no idea.

Mitzie · March 2010

Try cleaning the wood with orange oil. It seems to work well on resin-y stuff cleaning. It also has a nice, natural smell of oranges.

jessie55 · March 2010

Ditto to the new mattress. For the bassinet I would take it apart and wash anything fabric on it, BRU sells replacement bassinet mattresses for under $20 also.

Klikina · March 2010

We bought a wooden dresser off Craigslist and it smelled of smoke and cats. We put it on our back patio and laid out all of the drawers. We left it out there for about a week and it smells find now. You may just try leaving it outside and seeing what that does. I would also recommend getting a new mattress- you most likely will never get the fumes out that are imbedded in it from long-term exposure. GL!