Moth ball smell
+3
I was given my mother in law's cedar chest. She put moth balls in it. I have tried numerous things to try to get the smell out, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I tried leaving it opened for months in the sunlight and air (would leave it in the garage overnight), cedar chips put in it for months, coal briquettes. HELP?????
6 answers
-
Cedar needs to be lightly sanded to have the cedar smell "activated". MOth balls ruin wood and I do not know why people put them in cedar chests. If you have not tried, I would sand the inside of the cedar chest and to refresh the cedar. You may have to do this a couple times over a period of a week or two. Otherwise, the only other option is to seal the piece with poly or some sort of paint to seal in the odor, I have had to do this before on a dresser. Good luck
The Garden Frog with C Renee
on Jan 06, 2015
-
jondon.com says the best Basic Method: Remove as much of the dried product as possible. Ventilate the area. Add activated carbon to affected areas. This can be placed in containers, which maximize the surface area. It can also be placed into women’s pantyhose or men’s tube socks and hung in HVAC system air handler. Activated carbon filters can be placed in air scrubbers for cleansing the air. Set up a negative pressure containment. Using a 6-mil poly sheeting and Zipwall poles, build a containment area around the affected area. Measure the cubic feet of your containment (Length x Width x Ceiling Height) and size the proper-sized air scrubber. You should try to attain 4-6 air exchanges per hour. Figure this out by using the following formula: Cubic Feet x 4, divided by 60 = CFM needed to obtain proper negative pressure. Install the air scrubber either inside or outside the containment. . If the HEPA air scrubber is inside the containment area, use lay flat ducting to duct the exhaust air outside the containment area. If the air scrubber is outside the containment area, use reinforced flexible ducting to duct the air from the containment area into the intake on your air scrubber . Warning: Always test materials for colorfastness, follow label directions, and never mix products unless specified in the label directions. Each situation reacts differently and results may vary.
Marilyn Sargent
on Jan 06, 2015
-
I bet the sanding works. my go to is usually baking soda dumped onto newspaper close the lid change it out every day or two..
Terry Kelley
on Jan 06, 2015
-
A trick that works for getting smells out of old books might work. You'll need to get a solid room air freshener, (the kind that comes as a cake of wax looking substance inside a round plastic container that you can get from the grocery store. I used a brand called Citrus Magic and it worked for me), then close the opened air freshener inside the cedar chest. Keep the chest closed for at least 3 weeks, and if the chest doesn't seem air tight you might place the whole chest inside a large plastic garbage bag and then try to keep it sealed up for a few weeks. I tried this trick on an old book that had been packed in moth balls. It reeked so bad I couldn't hold it open let alone read it. But I placed the book, standing so the pages were spread open, inside a plastic tub with the solid room freshener, closed the lid on the tub so it was air tight, and left the book in there for a month. It really worked! Even now, years later the book has no moth ball smell. Best wishes whatever you try!
DLynne
on Jan 07, 2015
-
I would try Nok Out. Fabulous odor removing properties. http://www.nokout.com/Rescuing-Old-Furniture-with-Nok-Out.html
SusieB
on Jan 07, 2015
-
try dryers sheets, but first try old fashioned chalk, the more chalk the better,
Nancy Jarrett
on Jan 07, 2015
Sign Up to Answer
Related Discussions
Suggested Project Book
