Step-by-step spring-cleaning guide for smokers

Step-by-step spring-cleaning guide for smokers tips, Vape Guide, Online Advice

The Step-by-Step Spring-Cleaning Guide for Smokers

12 Mar 2021

Spring is nearly here, and for many people around the world, the first stretch of warmer weather provides ample inspiration for opening the windows and brushing away the cobwebs. Once you’ve done those things, though, the next step is obvious: It’s time for a little spring cleaning. You’ve been cooped up inside your house all winter long. You’ve had the windows closed, and you’ve been breathing recirculated air from your home’s heating system.

Step-by-step spring-cleaning guide for smokers

Things are starting to get a bit musty – and if you’re a smoker, the problem is even worse.

Getting the smell of smoke out of the house after winter is a task that sometimes seems just about impossible – but you’re going to get help right here. This article is your step-by-step smoker’s checklist for spring cleaning. Follow these steps, and you can remove virtually all of the smoke smell from your home in no time flat.

Quit Smoking

If you really want to get the smoke smell out of your house and keep it out, you’ve got to quit smoking. Giving your home a thorough cleaning, after all, can only accomplish so much if you don’t also remove the thing that’s causing your home to smell like smoke in the first place.

Quitting smoking, of course, is much easier said than done – but there is an alternative. Vaping replaces tobacco smoke with a flavored nicotine-infused liquid called Vape Juice. When you use a vaping device, a heating coil inside the device heats the vape juice, turning it into vapor that you can inhale. Vaping is infinitely more satisfying than other forms of smoking cessation, and it’s the perfect alternative if you’ve tried to quit smoking and found it impossible to do so.

If you quit smoking, you’ll be much more successful with the other steps in this article because once you remove the smoke smell from your home, it’ll be gone for good. If you don’t quit, it’s just going to come back.

Step-by-Step Spring-Cleaning Guide – Clean the Floors

If you live in a home with hard floors, you’ll find this part of your spring-cleaning ritual quite simple; just mop the floors to remove the smoke smell. If you have carpets, on the other hand, it’s a bit more difficult. You may find it easiest if you work in just one room at a time. Remove as much of the furniture from the room as possible. Sprinkle the floor liberally with baking soda, which is very effective in absorbing odor-causing molecules. Leave the baking soda on the carpet for a day before vacuuming it up. Follow that by giving the carpet a thorough steam cleaning.

Clean the Soft Surfaces

Next, you’ll want to clean your home’s soft surfaces. Vacuum your furniture, cleaning the spaces between and under the cushions with a crevice tool. If you have fabric furniture, you can also steam clean it. If it’s possible to do so, place the furniture in direct sunlight for a few hours. The ultraviolet radiation will help to break down odor-causing molecules.

During this part of your spring-cleaning ritual, you’ll also want to wash all of your linens and curtains. Add a bit of vinegar to the washing machine, as it’ll help to break down the cigarette smoke residue clinging to the cloth. Alternatively, if you’ve successfully quit smoking and have room in your budget, discard and replace your linens, towels and curtains. Even with a thorough washing, you’ll never remove 100 percent of the smoke smell from these items. It’s much easier to replace them.

Clean the Hard Surfaces

Smoke sticks to practically everything in a home, and that includes the hard surfaces. Your windows, walls and ceilings all have cigarette smoke residue stuck to them, and the residue contributes to a musty smell in your home. Wash the walls and ceiling with a sponge and a bucket filled with hot water, strong soap and some vinegar. Wash the windows with vinegar and water. Once again, the vinegar helps to loosen and break down the smoke residue.

If you’ve quit smoking successfully and are feeling ambitious, there is something that you can do in addition to washing your walls and ceilings: You can repaint them with odor-blocking paint. Odor-blocking paint creates an airtight seal that encapsulates the odor-causing molecules and prevents them from escaping into the air. It’s one of the tricks that smokers use to remediate their homes and make them more appealing to non-smokers.

Step-by-Step Spring-Cleaning Guide – Clean the HVAC System

Although it’s possible to clean your HVAC system on your own, this is one area where you’ll be much happier hiring a professional if you have the room in your budget. To fully remove the smoke smell from your HVAC system, you’ll need to clean the vents and ducts. You’ll also need to replace any air filters. If you have a central air conditioning system, you’ll need to clean the air conditioner’s coils. It’s a massive job that needs to be done properly. A broken air conditioning unit is very costly to replace, and stagnant moisture in your ducts can harbor mold – which can actually make cleaning the ducts worse than not cleaning them.

Keep Your Home Smelling Great

Once you’ve finished your spring-cleaning project, you should find that your home smells almost as fresh as if you had never smoked in it. Now, it’s simply a matter of maintenance. You want to purify the air that circulates throughout your home and trap odor-causing molecules before they have a chance to adhere to the walls, floors and furniture and start the cycle all over again.

The way to do that is by buying a good air purifier with an activated charcoal stage and a HEPA filter. Activated charcoal works well for trapping gaseous odors, and a HEPA filter traps the tiniest particles – like fine dust and pet dander – to which smoke absolutely loves to stick.

To augment your air purifier, it’s also a good idea to buy some bags of activated charcoal and position them strategically around your house. You can use activated charcoal for about two years. Once a month, place the bags outside in direct sunlight to refresh the charcoal.

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