Smoke Odors

 

 

So, you want to get rid of the smoke Odors?

 

That's a tricky one! 

 

Whether it be cigarettes, cigars, marijuana, miscellaneous forms of tobacco or incense, these smells are extremely hard to remove.

 

Why do you ask?

 

Well, let's dig into that. 

 

PIC (particles of incomplete combustion) accumulates with each cigarette smoked. It can continue to permeate homes for months or even longer..

 

It can be very hard to get rid of PIC because smoke contains toxic particles and gasses composed of a complex mixture of over 7,000 compounds, more than 40 of which are associated with cancer. These compounds permeate both hard and soft surfaces. 

 

Nicotine even contaminates dust.

 

Since  smoke is a vaporus (airborne) particulate, it is able to enter the tiniest of pores in almost every surface, including your HVAC system!

 

Years of smoking has the same carcinogenic effects as a house fire, and you're not gonna live in a home where there has been a simulated structure fire are you?

 

While we are discussing smoke, let’s discuss marijuana smoke…

 

Marijuana smoke is a whole different beast. Unlike nicotine, marijuana smoke has more of an oil based residue, almost like the aftermath of a grease fire.

 

There are still many chemicals, carcinogens and particulates that are vaporized when marijuana is burned or even stored.

 

Due to the fact that it is burned at a higher combustion temperature, marijuana has 5 times the carbon monoxide concentration and 3 times the tar. Compared to tobacco, marijuana smoke has higher levels of ammonia and hydrogen cyanide.  All of this ends up on the hard and soft surfaces of your home.  

 

So how do we get rid of smoke odors?

 

Yeah, there are tons of tricks that (don't work)…

 

Bowls of charcoal

Bowls of vinegar

Open windows

Dryer sheets

Incents

Essential Oils

Room sprays

Plug-ins

None of these actually work!

 

All you have accomplished is to infuse your smoke odor with a little lavender or fresh linen smell.

  

To the smoker these remedies might seem “better”, because they are nose blind to the smoke smell. 

 

 Typically, others are a bit more sensitive.

 

Just cover it up, Right?... WRONG!

 

In most cases, smoke odors will just seep threw the paint and primers that are applied.

 

Why?

 

Due to the micron size of PIC, latex and even oil based primers can't contain the smoke.

 

So, what's the micron size?

 

Well a micron is a measurement of the size of a particle.

 

Cigarette smoke has an average size ranging from 0.1 to 1.0 microns. 

 

Marijuana smoke ranges from .3-.5 microns. 

 

It just so happens that the Latex Paint Gas Permeation is approximately 0.5 micron to 1.5 microns. 

 

What that mean? 

 

It means that almost every single particle of smoke can fit between the paint molecules. Over time the smell and particles are going to seep out.

 

Imagine that!

 

So, How do we get rid of these smoky odors then?

 

Call a professional!

 

What does a professional do, you ask?

 

Well, Renovair's IICRC trained professional is going to enter your home, rental property, or business and  assess the situation.

 

Lets just assume the smoke is bad,the walls are yellow and you can almost cut the air with a knife. 

 

Step One: is to recreate the condition where the smoke entered. 

 

The smoke went in hot and vaporized into tiny particulate about 0.1 to 1.0 micron. This went into almost every pore and every nook and cranny you will never reach with basic cleaners.  Painting is not a good solution either. 

 

So, let’s go back to recreating the original conditions. 

 

We need to get the cleaner (not something you pick up at a big box stores) hot and make it super tiny. This way we can extract it from in-between the individual molecules of paint and all those tiny nooks and crannies you can't reach. 

 

What cleaner do you ask?

 

Well, Renovair uses a commercial grade solvent/surfactant (big word for soap)  that can be vaporized, just like the smoke was when it went in.

 

This penetrates the tiny pores and the places you could never reach.

 

Step Two: is to use a topical solvent/surfactant to remove all the nasty tar, nicotine, carcinogens, oils and the other 7,000 nasty chemicals we just extracted from the paint.

 

Topical commercial cleaners need to be applied with a heavy foam. This way the cleaner sticks to the walls, breaks down the bonds and suspends the nasty chemicals, tar and nicotine, carcinogens and oil away from the walls where it can be removed.

 

Step Three: Next, soft surfaces such as  carpet, furniture and drapes also are penetrated by … where these same 7,000 chemicals, carcinogens, oil, tar and nicotine. 

 

Get your drapes dry cleaned and get your furniture out of the property. 

 

Next,  the odor removal expert removes your rugs so they can be properly cleaned in a controlled environment, so as not to cause further damage.

 

After that, it's time to clean your carpet. The carpet cleaning professional extracts the smoke  with a specially formulated commercial pretreat solvent/ surfactant that works deep into the fibers of the carpet.   The bonds of the smoke are broken, followed by a final deep rinse to prevent pollutants from resoiling the carpet. 

 

Now, get your furniture professionally cleaned by an IICRC trained upholstery specialist. 

 

Great! We have your walls and carpets cleaned, now it's time for the final critical steps. 

 

It's time to remove the odor, now that the source is gone! 

 

How does your professional do that? 

 

Well, there are a few ways. 

 

The two best ways are activated oxygen and chlorinated oxygen depending on the smoke type and severity. 

 

Are these the only ways?

 

No, there are many more less effective ways to do this, which will likely result in damage to your home and likely, its contents. It's why we don't use these other options… 

 

Whats the best way?

high volume of activated oxygen. The extremely high saturation goes to work, neutralizing the remaining odor and residue. It sterilizes the surfaces (yes, even the ones you can't reach) and even sterilizes the air.

 

This activated oxygen also goes to work on the vents of your HVAC system where you can't reach!  We also recommend a professional clean the vents.

 

Renovair's IICRC trained odor removal technician will next place Industrial air scrubbers in your property if required, to filter out the airborne pollution, dust and dander.  

 

To recap, Renovair removes the nasty pollutants out of the pores of your surfaces, washed it off the walls, cleaned the  carpet and to top it off, cleaned the nasty pollutants out of the air.

 

The remaining task to be performed is to return the professionally cleaned rugs, move your professionally cleaned furniture back and to hang the cleaned drapes . 

 

Just like that, your house or commercial property is free of that nasty smoke odor and it is smelling like new!