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Gretchen Messersmith's Skunk Odor Removal Update
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Home Sweet (Smelling) Home
Making A House Smell Like Home Again After A Skunk Encounter
Reclaiming a house after a bad run in with a skunk is likely to rank high on a personal to-do list. The process to fully eradicate odors from a house can be a little tedious, but if the right steps are not taken, chances are a house will smell like a skunk moved in for quite some time to come.
Considering the strength of skunk spray odor, it is rather wise to take a fairly pointed and systematic approach to the cleaning process. Where to start and where to go from there can make all the difference in the world.
Cover The Emergency Bases First
Whether it's a pet that got sprayed or a person, taking care of the walking contaminated first is a very good place to start - right after making sure any central heating or air is turned off to make sure the odor doesn't permeate the entire house!
With the air turned off, the next steps to take include:
* Isolating the contaminated pet or person. If it's a dog and the weather is right, consider washing it outside. Otherwise, contain a person, cat or dog in a bathroom that has had fabric items removed. Take up the rugs, the "company towels" and so on to prevent anything else from picking up the smell.
* Bagging up or immediately putting contaminated clothing into a wash on its own.
* Selecting a cleanser (vinegar, clear drinking sodas, a professional product or so on) and wash the person or animal thoroughly. A few soaks might have to come into play for total removal. Don't stop this process until the odor has been fully or almost fully removed.
Getting The Rest Of The House
Once the living creature(s) have been squared away, it's time to move onto the rest of the house. The things to check and take care of to ensure a smell that doesn't linger include:
* Changing air filters. If the air was on even briefly, it is not a bad idea to change filters for AC system before turning it back on. Special scented or odor neutralizing filters are not a bad idea to consider in this case.
* Fully scrubbing fabrics. Wash carpeting, furniture and other items that came into contact with the odors. A baking soda or soap and vinegar wash should help here.
* Washing clothing and contaminated linens. Baking soda, vinegar, peroxide and even bleach in the water can help with the odor removal. Keep washing if the odor doesn't come out on the first try, but do not dry the laundry until it does. If the clothes go in the dryer, removing the scents later might be very difficult. Plus, it's possible the dryer will take on the odor.
* Consider specialty products. If everything has been scrubbed down, sprayed with odor neutralizer products and the smell lingers, consider professional cleaning agents to handle the job.
Getting skunk odors out of a house is no walk in the park. If the scent has made it through the house, a room-by-room inspection and scrub down might be in order. If it hasn't, take action to get your home smelling sweet once again!
