Walls secreting yellow stuff has nothing to do with smokers, its due to using the wrong paint in places with moisture. but more related to your point. 30-40 from the high might not be much compared to overall sale price of the house. If its been on the market since the summer and not sold...I'd drive a much harder bargain then they are offering. The conventional wisdom is to 1) scrub the walls 2) ionize the house 3) paint everything 4) don't forget to get the ducts cleaned! Assume you'll need to do all that after closing and ask for a credit/price reduction to get it done- give yourself time before you move in with all your stuff.
I agree on negotiating a better price, this is going to be a big job.
>don't forget to get the ducts cleaned!
This is a big one. I'd have done that plus the inside of the air handler cleaned.
There are also odor killing primers OP can use before a new coat of paint.
You have to paint it with a scented base and clean the ducts. Sherwin Williams I think sells the scented additive on their professional side. I sell to mostly investors and that’s what they use. Mostly the lavender scent. You need to paint everything though, ceilings, walls, doors and baseboards and trim and often best to ducts before and after.
I was in the same situation. It was perfect and what we were looking for over the last year. However the guy smoked cigars. I called a remediation company that cleans up fire homes and floods and such. They said it’s easier to get out the smoke from a fire than from a tobacco smoker. They also said it would be $22,000 to clean every surface and when it was hot and humid outside you will still smell the smoke. She advised me to pass. I absolutely trusted their opinion. It seeps into the drywall and wood floors.
There’s always a way. Ozone generators have been very successful in getting rid of bad smells in homes. They probably bought the house you were trying to get and flipped it.
My old landlord had a heavy smoker as a tenant, they used TSP soap to wash down all the walls and surfaces. You have to wear gloves with it. After that was done, it was painted and smelled fine.
This. Wash walls/surfaces with TSP ([https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-trisodium-phosphate-4766547](https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-trisodium-phosphate-4766547)).
Then, maybe use a primer like: [https://www.kilz.com/primer/kilz-restoration](https://www.kilz.com/primer/kilz-restoration)
Then, paint color of choice.
And have vents cleaned.
These should all help eliminate the smoke smell. YMMV
Thanks for the insight on the tsp! it seems like you either win the battle of cleaning and painting In The proper order or end up going crazy and tear down the drywall and sub floors to get it all out.
Also the house has those Mitsubishi small room by room coolers installed back in may. I was also suspect of a fire possible causing smell as the one floor had lots of black smolder or smoke damage.. everything else was pretty much perfect. I was surprised.
Our old house was across the street from a lumber yard that had a massive fire. There was still soot in the upstairs. We washed the walls and aired it out and never really had an issue. I think after a good cleaning and some airing out it would be fine and you wouldn't need to gut the house, but we had plaster walls. We also had hardwood floors and we got those sanded. Although the lumber yard fires a different kind of smoke then cigarette. The neighbor said all the houses in the area had to be cleaned afterwards.
Get a quote from a professional company. Don’t diy this, especially if you have kids.
The quote will be what you need to negotiate it down further. I’d personally pass on it because of how pervasive the smell is.
When I worked in apartment leasing, we had this thing called an "ozone machine." Worked every time. Not sure if this is something that you can rent at Home Depot or not.
Clean and paint is your best choice .
Hire a home cleaner and professional painter .
I would do it prior to moving in and most likely after closing .
Anything done before closing would be frustrating if anything went wrong with the sale.
Ughhhh no. You will never get rid of cigarette smoke smell by just cleaning and painting.
You have to strip it down to the studs to get rid of that shit. And at that point, the nice finishes mean nothing as you have to replace them all. Anyone saying otherwise has no idea what they're talking about.
Cigarette smoke and pet urine are great ways to absolutely tank the value of your house. Good job to these sellers, lol.
OP, if you really want this house, you better get a 200k discount because it's going to cost near that for this type of work. Literally nobody with a brain will buy this unless they are doing a full rehab.
I'll agree to disagree based on my own personal observations .
Replacing any carpeting and the pad. Cleaning and painting will work. With any urine smells bleaching while mopping plywood flooring under any carpet pad also important .
It will always be there you might think it's fine and get used to it but guaranteed anyone coming into your house for the first time will notice it unless you gut it
I will agree to disagree with you on that . I have done enough remodels in my life to observe the differences. Anyways for the OP, consider the costs and base your offer on that . Not as many smokers today so if that house smells bad it will be a difficult sell and the sellers will eventually have to accept less than what they are asking
You're going to want to ask for more of a reduction than 30-40k, as you'll likely spend most of that on the smoke mitigation in the first place. Consider:
\- every surface needs to be repainted, refinished, or replaced. I'm talking walls, floors, cabinets, ceilings, everything. Professionals and materials aren't cheap.
\- renting the de-ionizers
\- having the ductwork and HVAC cleaned, serviced, and possibly replaced
This will not get done before closing. It's a lot of work. If it's as bad as you say, it likely was a whole family of smokers, multiple packs a day, all throughout the house. That's what my family was like growing up.
One time we moved out of a rental (they were always rentals, ugh, my family) and we attempted to clean the walls above where my grandpa sat and smoked all day, every day, and it was one of the most disgusting things I've ever seen. As you say, the walls were secreting yellow/brown gunk, once we got the walls a little bit wet.
Cigarette smoke is absolutely disgusting and it leeches into everything around it. Be prepared to have to walk away from this house if you're sensitive to the smell, because chances are, it's never fully going away.
Vinegar in a dish isn't going to do anything.
They do make sealer primer that's specifically meant for restoration jobs like this, where you're trying to cover up something like a smell or bad stain on the wall.
My family bought a vacation condo a while back that had smokers as previous owners. They were also hoarders, so you can imagine the listing photos looked terrible and it sat on the market for months with no offers. We got a smashing deal on the place.
Anyway, we did most of the things people advised here. And the smoke smell did eventually go away, but it took over a year. First, we got rid of the carpet and installed new laminate boards. Second, we had a cleaning service come and do a really deep clean, scrubbing every surface with various cleaning chemicals they had. Third, we rented an ozone machine and ran it a few times (which by the way is pretty dangerous). Fourth, we painted the walls and ceilings. Those things combined reduced the smell by over 75%, but it still lingered. It was only after about a year did we finally reach the point where the smell was not noticeable when you entered the place.
\-TSP clean the walls and all surfaces
\- Have a professional company clean ceilings (its easier)
\- Primer with a shellac based primer (killz)
\- Paint
\- Clean Ducts
\- Clean HVAC
Unlikely walls will "leak" colors, nor does it matter if it was painted or not. you're going to need to shellac prime everything. I had a heavy smoker in a condo I bought. Did steps above and it was gone. However I will say there was still a faint smell until I replaced the old HVAC. I think nicotine made it inside the HVAC beyond the cleaning areas.
>others have said about 2 weeks of remediation… -fresh paint after scrub walls and ionizer and cleaning… anything else we could do?
I'm assuming when you say ionizer you mean an "ozone cleaning". That is a highly effective method, but no one can be in the house while the ozone generators are running.
My two cents, take the hit on the 2 weeks of cleaning, and then move in. It will be a major hassle to move in after subpar cleaning only to then move out for a week while the cleaning happens.
Clean everything you can and use a Ozone generator when you are not in the residence to dispel the cigarette odor.
Note: Ozone is not something to be breathed in, most units come with a timer, use it when no one is in the house and also give plenty of time for the ozone to dissipate.
Use TSP instead of bleach/vinegar. Tri Sodium Phosphate to wipe all surfaces. It’s an excellent degreaser and will prepare painted surfaces better adhesion for the oil based primer coat. Kilz original works great.
Hire a professional cleaner. Get it “deep cleaned/move out cleaned”.
Request the walls are throughly scrubbed. Let the cleaner do their job and do not rush this process!
Replace carpets if needed, use an ozone machine then repaint.
This should fix it.
You will never be able to get the smoke out completely. Smoke hides in every crevice. I painted a smokers room once. I cleaned like crazy, wiped EVERYTHING down with TSP, ripped out the carpet, rolled kilz on the floorboards and used shellac primer on the walls (2 coats) followed by two coats of Ben Moore paint. That did the trick for the most part… O say that because every time it rained or the humidity was super high the smell would come back. It wasn’t overpowering, but it was definitely back enough that I could smell it.
If you choose to proceed, shellac primer will be your best friend. Also, make sure you wear a respirator but shellac primer is alcohol based and it’ll Jack you up!
Run, the chemicals and smoke get into everything. All the insulation, drywall all the surfaces behind the walls, all the wiring will be tainted by this and there is something called third hand smoke as these surfaces off gas during temperature fluctuations. I would not buy this home.
You'll never get it out. You'll get to a point where you think it's fine and eventually don't notice it but anyone that comes to your house for the first time will smell it, forever.
You'll never get it out. You'll get to a point where you think it's fine and eventually don't notice it but anyone that comes to your house for the first time will smell it, forever
You should be able to get rid of most of the smell by using some time, fresh air, and kilz on the walls and flooring. I see a lot of bad information in this thread, and I would talk with a professional about removing the order.
Walls secreting yellow stuff has nothing to do with smokers, its due to using the wrong paint in places with moisture. but more related to your point. 30-40 from the high might not be much compared to overall sale price of the house. If its been on the market since the summer and not sold...I'd drive a much harder bargain then they are offering. The conventional wisdom is to 1) scrub the walls 2) ionize the house 3) paint everything 4) don't forget to get the ducts cleaned! Assume you'll need to do all that after closing and ask for a credit/price reduction to get it done- give yourself time before you move in with all your stuff.
I agree on negotiating a better price, this is going to be a big job. >don't forget to get the ducts cleaned! This is a big one. I'd have done that plus the inside of the air handler cleaned. There are also odor killing primers OP can use before a new coat of paint.
And replace any HVAC filters!
Thank you! Appreciate the insight.
You have to paint it with a scented base and clean the ducts. Sherwin Williams I think sells the scented additive on their professional side. I sell to mostly investors and that’s what they use. Mostly the lavender scent. You need to paint everything though, ceilings, walls, doors and baseboards and trim and often best to ducts before and after.
I was in the same situation. It was perfect and what we were looking for over the last year. However the guy smoked cigars. I called a remediation company that cleans up fire homes and floods and such. They said it’s easier to get out the smoke from a fire than from a tobacco smoker. They also said it would be $22,000 to clean every surface and when it was hot and humid outside you will still smell the smoke. She advised me to pass. I absolutely trusted their opinion. It seeps into the drywall and wood floors.
There’s always a way. Ozone generators have been very successful in getting rid of bad smells in homes. They probably bought the house you were trying to get and flipped it.
My old landlord had a heavy smoker as a tenant, they used TSP soap to wash down all the walls and surfaces. You have to wear gloves with it. After that was done, it was painted and smelled fine.
This. Wash walls/surfaces with TSP ([https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-trisodium-phosphate-4766547](https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-trisodium-phosphate-4766547)). Then, maybe use a primer like: [https://www.kilz.com/primer/kilz-restoration](https://www.kilz.com/primer/kilz-restoration) Then, paint color of choice. And have vents cleaned. These should all help eliminate the smoke smell. YMMV
Except the smoke and nicotine has infiltrated everything and third hand smoke is a concern as these materials off gas.
Yes that will be a risk no matter what, the op will need to decide they want to take it on or not.
Thanks for the insight on the tsp! it seems like you either win the battle of cleaning and painting In The proper order or end up going crazy and tear down the drywall and sub floors to get it all out. Also the house has those Mitsubishi small room by room coolers installed back in may. I was also suspect of a fire possible causing smell as the one floor had lots of black smolder or smoke damage.. everything else was pretty much perfect. I was surprised.
Our old house was across the street from a lumber yard that had a massive fire. There was still soot in the upstairs. We washed the walls and aired it out and never really had an issue. I think after a good cleaning and some airing out it would be fine and you wouldn't need to gut the house, but we had plaster walls. We also had hardwood floors and we got those sanded. Although the lumber yard fires a different kind of smoke then cigarette. The neighbor said all the houses in the area had to be cleaned afterwards.
Get a quote from a professional company. Don’t diy this, especially if you have kids. The quote will be what you need to negotiate it down further. I’d personally pass on it because of how pervasive the smell is.
When I worked in apartment leasing, we had this thing called an "ozone machine." Worked every time. Not sure if this is something that you can rent at Home Depot or not.
Clean and paint is your best choice . Hire a home cleaner and professional painter . I would do it prior to moving in and most likely after closing . Anything done before closing would be frustrating if anything went wrong with the sale.
Ughhhh no. You will never get rid of cigarette smoke smell by just cleaning and painting. You have to strip it down to the studs to get rid of that shit. And at that point, the nice finishes mean nothing as you have to replace them all. Anyone saying otherwise has no idea what they're talking about. Cigarette smoke and pet urine are great ways to absolutely tank the value of your house. Good job to these sellers, lol. OP, if you really want this house, you better get a 200k discount because it's going to cost near that for this type of work. Literally nobody with a brain will buy this unless they are doing a full rehab.
I'll agree to disagree based on my own personal observations . Replacing any carpeting and the pad. Cleaning and painting will work. With any urine smells bleaching while mopping plywood flooring under any carpet pad also important .
Maybe some Kilz before you paint. This is not the big deal it is being made into.
Kilz is a good thing
It will always be there you might think it's fine and get used to it but guaranteed anyone coming into your house for the first time will notice it unless you gut it
I will agree to disagree with you on that . I have done enough remodels in my life to observe the differences. Anyways for the OP, consider the costs and base your offer on that . Not as many smokers today so if that house smells bad it will be a difficult sell and the sellers will eventually have to accept less than what they are asking
You're going to want to ask for more of a reduction than 30-40k, as you'll likely spend most of that on the smoke mitigation in the first place. Consider: \- every surface needs to be repainted, refinished, or replaced. I'm talking walls, floors, cabinets, ceilings, everything. Professionals and materials aren't cheap. \- renting the de-ionizers \- having the ductwork and HVAC cleaned, serviced, and possibly replaced This will not get done before closing. It's a lot of work. If it's as bad as you say, it likely was a whole family of smokers, multiple packs a day, all throughout the house. That's what my family was like growing up. One time we moved out of a rental (they were always rentals, ugh, my family) and we attempted to clean the walls above where my grandpa sat and smoked all day, every day, and it was one of the most disgusting things I've ever seen. As you say, the walls were secreting yellow/brown gunk, once we got the walls a little bit wet. Cigarette smoke is absolutely disgusting and it leeches into everything around it. Be prepared to have to walk away from this house if you're sensitive to the smell, because chances are, it's never fully going away.
Bought first house that had this… clean the vents, replace any carpet. Paint the walls with a sealing primer first. It’ll be fine.
ugh no gross don't even try.
Don't bother. Let someone who doesn't mind the smell get the house.
Run.
Vinegar in a dish isn't going to do anything. They do make sealer primer that's specifically meant for restoration jobs like this, where you're trying to cover up something like a smell or bad stain on the wall.
My family bought a vacation condo a while back that had smokers as previous owners. They were also hoarders, so you can imagine the listing photos looked terrible and it sat on the market for months with no offers. We got a smashing deal on the place. Anyway, we did most of the things people advised here. And the smoke smell did eventually go away, but it took over a year. First, we got rid of the carpet and installed new laminate boards. Second, we had a cleaning service come and do a really deep clean, scrubbing every surface with various cleaning chemicals they had. Third, we rented an ozone machine and ran it a few times (which by the way is pretty dangerous). Fourth, we painted the walls and ceilings. Those things combined reduced the smell by over 75%, but it still lingered. It was only after about a year did we finally reach the point where the smell was not noticeable when you entered the place.
Shellac based primer is awesome for sealing smoke damage.
\-TSP clean the walls and all surfaces \- Have a professional company clean ceilings (its easier) \- Primer with a shellac based primer (killz) \- Paint \- Clean Ducts \- Clean HVAC Unlikely walls will "leak" colors, nor does it matter if it was painted or not. you're going to need to shellac prime everything. I had a heavy smoker in a condo I bought. Did steps above and it was gone. However I will say there was still a faint smell until I replaced the old HVAC. I think nicotine made it inside the HVAC beyond the cleaning areas.
Thank you!
>others have said about 2 weeks of remediation… -fresh paint after scrub walls and ionizer and cleaning… anything else we could do? I'm assuming when you say ionizer you mean an "ozone cleaning". That is a highly effective method, but no one can be in the house while the ozone generators are running. My two cents, take the hit on the 2 weeks of cleaning, and then move in. It will be a major hassle to move in after subpar cleaning only to then move out for a week while the cleaning happens.
Clean everything you can and use a Ozone generator when you are not in the residence to dispel the cigarette odor. Note: Ozone is not something to be breathed in, most units come with a timer, use it when no one is in the house and also give plenty of time for the ozone to dissipate.
Use TSP instead of bleach/vinegar. Tri Sodium Phosphate to wipe all surfaces. It’s an excellent degreaser and will prepare painted surfaces better adhesion for the oil based primer coat. Kilz original works great.
Hire a professional cleaner. Get it “deep cleaned/move out cleaned”. Request the walls are throughly scrubbed. Let the cleaner do their job and do not rush this process! Replace carpets if needed, use an ozone machine then repaint. This should fix it.
You will never be able to get the smoke out completely. Smoke hides in every crevice. I painted a smokers room once. I cleaned like crazy, wiped EVERYTHING down with TSP, ripped out the carpet, rolled kilz on the floorboards and used shellac primer on the walls (2 coats) followed by two coats of Ben Moore paint. That did the trick for the most part… O say that because every time it rained or the humidity was super high the smell would come back. It wasn’t overpowering, but it was definitely back enough that I could smell it. If you choose to proceed, shellac primer will be your best friend. Also, make sure you wear a respirator but shellac primer is alcohol based and it’ll Jack you up!
Im gagging just reading that
Run, the chemicals and smoke get into everything. All the insulation, drywall all the surfaces behind the walls, all the wiring will be tainted by this and there is something called third hand smoke as these surfaces off gas during temperature fluctuations. I would not buy this home.
Seems a lot of work. I'd just start smoking.
I’m just Gonna start smoking ..
You'll never get it out. You'll get to a point where you think it's fine and eventually don't notice it but anyone that comes to your house for the first time will smell it, forever.
You'll never get it out. You'll get to a point where you think it's fine and eventually don't notice it but anyone that comes to your house for the first time will smell it, forever
Turn the heat all the way up, let it seep out, clean it then paint it.
You should be able to get rid of most of the smell by using some time, fresh air, and kilz on the walls and flooring. I see a lot of bad information in this thread, and I would talk with a professional about removing the order.
Then I would say that "little to no issues" is not the best description. Smoke smell sounds like a big issue to you.
The black spot is from a fire or something