How to get cigarette smoke smell out of a rented bedroom
Third-hand smoke and tar accumulate deeply in walls and surfaces after years of indoor smoking, which triggers asthma and resists basic cleaning. Eliminating the odor safely requires sealing porous surfaces and washing every hard material without resorting to dangerous ozone generators that aggravate respiratory conditions.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- The most recent one is from October 2026.
- This comes up 20.1× more often in r/CleaningTips than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Using an ozone machine3 people mentionedDid this help you?
- 2Having the landlord paint over surfaces, replace blinds, and remove old air conditioning unitsDid this help you?
- 3Running an ozone generator and airing out the room afterwardDid this help you?
- 4Using activated charcoal, odor-absorbing buckets, or washing walls with a vinegar and water mixDid this help you?
- 5Mopping floors and walls with TSPDid this help you?
- 6Using expensive primers like Zinsser B-I-N on wallsDid this help you?
- 7Wiping it down with dish soap and waterDid this help you?
- 8Leaving the furniture outside to air out in the sunDid this help you?
- 9Wiping it down with a mixture of vinegar and water using a toothbrush for crevicesDid this help you?
- 10Washing with hot water and an odor eliminator productDid this help you?
- 11Cleaning furniture with a vinegar and water mixtureDid this help you?
- 12Putting items in a sealed container with activated charcoalDid this help you?
- 13Using an ozone generator or machine to create a DIY treatment chamberDid this help you?
- 14changing cabin air filtersDid this help you?
- 15washing hard surfaces with cleanerDid this help you?
- 16shampooing seats, carpets, and matsDid this help you?
- 17using chlorine dioxide kitsDid this help you?
- 18spraying Ozium air sanitizer inside the vehicleDid this help you?
- 19Putting the couches out in the yard or out of the houseDid this help you?
- 20Using ozone generators to treat the spaceDid this help you?
- 21Asking the landlord to repaint with specialized odor-blocking paintsDid this help you?
- 22Airing out the unit for multiple days after treatmentDid this help you?
- 23Using a portable HEPA air filter in the kitchenDid this help you?
- 24Burning a candleDid this help you?
- 25Cooking odorous foods outsideDid this help you?
- 26Using Ozium spray and gelDid this help you?
- 27Washing walls with Dawn and Dr. Bronner'sDid this help you?
- 28Mopping continuouslyDid this help you?
- 29Applying baking soda and scented carpet powderDid this help you?
- 30Washing windowsDid this help you?
- 31Using various scent neutralizing pods, packets, and spraysDid this help you?
- 32Storing clothes in plastic garment bags or mylarDid this help you?
- 33Running a HEPA air filter in the bedroom 24/7Did this help you?
- 34Using quats sanitizer or vodka in a spray bottle to neutralize odorsDid this help you?
- 35Sealing gaps around doors with cold draft blockersDid this help you?
- 36Adding OxiClean to laundry to eliminate smoke smellsDid this help you?
- 37Covering hair with a silk bonnet and wearing a smock over clothing until leaving the houseDid this help you?
- 38Wiping down walls, windows, and doorsDid this help you?
- 39Steam cleaning surfacesDid this help you?
- 40Repainting surfacesDid this help you?
- 41Using a fanDid this help you?
- 42Putting all kinds of smells to try to mask itDid this help you?
- 43Using fans and electric leaf blowers to vent out the houseDid this help you?
- 44Boiling vinegar with waterDid this help you?
- 45Scrubbing ceilings and walls with vinegar and baking sodaDid this help you?
- 46Cleaning with plain waterDid this help you?
- 47Calling cleaning companiesDid this help you?
- 48Calling a remediation serviceDid this help you?
- 49Keeping windows open for ventilationDid this help you?
- 50Professional carpet cleaningDid this help you?
- 51Washing walls with Dawn soap, white vinegar, and a mopDid this help you?
- 52Simmering a pot of vinegar on the stoveDid this help you?
- 53Applying a universal coil cleaner and rinsing it with a garden hose.Did this help you?
- 54Using diluted distilled vinegar to clean the interior.Did this help you?
- 55Running a small ozone generator to neutralize the odor.Did this help you?
- 56Scrapping the appliance and buying a new one.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“How do I get the weed smell out my bedroom? I smoked out the window but the wind blew some in (there’s a crazy storm😭)”source ↗
“I have a fan going and put all kinds of smells to try to mask it.”source ↗
“I really want it gone before my mom wakes up.”source ↗
“I’m currently living with three heavy cigarette smokers. They live in other areas of the house but the smell comes into my room sometimes. I recently got a job at a medical facility and I don’t want to go to work smelling like cigarettes every day.”source ↗
“I’m thinking of getting plastic garment bags to put the clothes in directly after they come out of the dryer but i’m wondering if that will be enough?”source ↗
“It’s a sentimental chair to me that unfortunately was kept in a room with people that smoked for many years.”source ↗
“Yesterday I wiped it down with dish soap and a rag the best I could knowing it probably wouldn’t do much.”source ↗
“Then this morning I walked into the living room after the windows had been closed all night and the room definitely had that old cigarette smoke smell because of the chair.”source ↗
“I put it out on the porch for now but I don’t want to leave it out there with winter coming up and I just don’t want to risk it getting taken or anything and my toddler loved rocking in it.”source ↗
“Is there anything I can do to get rid of that smoke smell?”source ↗
“My head is killing me right now with the smell.”source ↗
“anything that could help the smell so I don't hate my home and have a breakdown, all would be appreciated.”source ↗
“The worst of the smell is from within the cushions, so it's like every time I sit on it, it's like a smell cloud of her smoking.”source ↗
“I opened one of the cushions to wash the cover and the smell nearly took me out.”source ↗
“I know nothing will actually fix this. I just need stuff to do for the next 3 weeks until the council take it away for the sake of my sanity please.”source ↗
“Is there any way to get rid of the smell?”source ↗
“The place I rented has a smokers smell to it.”source ↗
“I’ve been burning candles and spraying air freshener, which I hate.”source ↗
“I just came back from a week abroad and the smell was so strong when I got back that it just confirms to me that I’ve made no progress.”source ↗
“I’m sitting here now being bombarded by air fresheners and a candle.”source ↗
“Currently smells like smoke. Not terrible but noticeable. Hardwood floors. What are the best but cost effective ways to get rid of/seal odors.”source ↗
“I’m trying to look for the most cost effective way.”source ↗
“Unfortunately, everything I own reeks.”source ↗
“Unfortunately, I can’t do the same with my books, electronics, even all my stationary items.”source ↗
“wanted to ask here to find the best way to rid my belongings of this smell without having to trash everything I love and own”source ↗
“There's an apartment I'm considering moving into, but it has a noticeable weed and cigarette smell even after being remodeled recently.”source ↗
“I'm just worried it will damage the floors, and I know VOC release is already an issue with vinyl flooring.”source ↗
“If this won't be possible, does anyone know of any other options I might have for getting rid of the smoke smell?”source ↗
“Left them open all day, cleaned the kitchen, took the trash out, sprayed hypochlorous acid, and the house still smells like bacon.”source ↗
“A relation was vaping in my house. They have moved out, but the smell remains. Not all the time, but every now and then I get a whiff of it.”source ↗
“I’ve deep cleaned the floors (I don’t have carpet) so I suspect the walls. What do I do? Do I…clean them somehow? Do I repaint? Help 😒”source ↗
“Hi I have been trying to remove fumes from my house for 3 weeks now. I only used a tiny amount of bleach and it reacted with something, lime sulphur that was closed and locked away I think.”source ↗
“Cleaning is making it worse. It is all over the carpets and walls in the landing. What do i clean with? Cleaning with plain water is giving me cough and headaches.”source ↗
“I called a Cleaning company and they sounded confused even though I said i want it all deep cleaned to make it habitable again.”source ↗
“i called remediation service and he didnt understand”source ↗
“I recently moved to a new address. It was vacant for a while and was owned by some older people.”source ↗
“However, there is still a lingering smell that just kind of smells... old?”source ↗
“Are there any other things I should be cleaning to help with the smell? Any advice is appreciated, thank you!”source ↗
“I am interested in leasing an apartment, however there is one bedroom in this apartment that the landlord told me the previous tenant smoked in for ~3 years of smoke/tar accumulation in the room.”source ↗
“I’m an asthmatic who had a chain-smoking parent growing up and when I entered the room, I definitely could sense it immediately, though I’m probably more sensitive than most”source ↗
“I’m a bit concerned about the ozone generator option as I’ve read some sources that it can be potentially more harmful, especially to those with preexisting conditions like asthma.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2How to get weed smell out without an ozone generator
- 19Why does my house smell like cat urine when there is no visible mess?
- 29How to get strong perfume smell out of cardboard and paper
- 3Why does my house still smell like chemicals after HVAC cleaning?
- 14How to get chemical smells out of carpet
- 7How to get rid of a strong strange odor inside a vintage chest