What to Use for Smelly Armoire?

Sorry to hear that you have this problem, however the first thing that I can think of that might help is a pet stain and odor remover liquid, spray and set out in the sun to dry. See if this helps. I hope so. Good luck.

Hey E.,

I've actually used 2 different things that worked. One was Cedar Chips....I was very poor at the time and went out and bought cedar chips at walmart, made a bag out of cloth and it worked great.

Secondly, when my Mom moved into an apartment her closet had a cigarette smell to it, I went and got lava chips sold at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Both worked great, the only difference is the cedar chips smell like cedar and the lava chips leave no smell.

Good luck,
Debra

Vinegar in a bowl in each drawer/compartment. It works wonders....if your house smells like grease from cooking, place a bowl of vinegar near the stove...same with microwave and oven...wonderful home remedy and safe (not to mention cheap!) Good luck!

I am going to be an alarmist and suggest that you could be smelling formaldehyde off-gassing. It is a common binding component in pressed woods--particle, plywood, MDF. Some people would describe the smell and fishy or dead fish.

It has been more and more closely regulated in the US/CA for the past 25-30 years now, but foreign manufactured materials do not often pass muster.

It is considered carcinogenic and can trigger asthma symptoms as well as nausea. The rate of release is slowed by dry, cool temperatures--i.e. it will be stronger during warm, humid periods.

There is some evidence that you can effectively seal a piece of furniture with polyurethane as long as you get all surfaces and seams. Make sure you buy a formaldehyde-free product.

Good luck...I hope this isn't the problem.

Walmart sells this tuff called "Kids and pets" and it gets the smell out of everything! I spilled shrimp water in my hubby's car, YUCK! It was so bad you couldn't go near the car. I bought this stuff and it said it removed skunk odor, so I had to think it would work. The funniest thing it said it would remove was horse manure smell! Give it a try!

Good luck!
C.

I've had great results with charcoal filter granules. Buy a big canister of them at the pet store- it's the stuff that you fill fish filters with. Put some in a panty hose foot (or any open air bag)and tie it off- set it on a paper towel in the drawer and close it. Leave it for a day or two. If your son does "get into" it, the worst that will happen is he will get dirty- that's why you use the paper towel! This also works for getting that musty/gym shoe smell out of sneakers- just stick the sock of charcoal into the shoe over night. Good luck.

I haven't tried this before but I have heard that newspaper crumpled up can help remove odors from drawers. I think you need to fill it up and leave it in there for awhile.

Hi there,
This sounds weird but there's a pet-urine cleaner you can get at at pet store called "Simpe Solution". It smells kind of like baby powder but it REALLY powerful and works for pet stains/smells as well as other stubborn odors. I used it on mildew which is HARD to get out and it worked! It's a little expensive....like $15 for a bottle but it'll do the trick.
L.

http://www.vinegartips.com/scripts/pageViewSec.asp?id=7

vinegar in a bowl put it in the drawer. not sure if you need to mix anything else with it but it will get rid of alot of smells. good luck.

Hi E.,
What a problem. Ugh!!! You might try using a little baking soda in the drawers- find a jar lid and use that for the baking soda in the back of the drawer- You might use a little plastic wrap- punch a few holes in it- and secure it with a rubber band-
then there is this remedy- I have used this for years when we had odor issues either in the house or car etc- use cut up apples- leave them open near your odor source- in your case i would put cut up apples in every drawer- you may have to replace them after a few days as they turn really brown- but apples really do absorb odors-
good luck and blessings

Don't have experience with this, in particular, but I know that vinegar supposedly removes pet odors from carpet, baking soda absorbs odors, and an onion cut in half is supposed to absorb paint odors. Might be worth a shot to try one or all of these (separately of course).

You may want to take it outside and take the drawers out. Leave it all out in the sun. Wipe it all down with a mixture of very little bleach and lots of water. Use a sponge and then wipe down with plain water.. Wipe the back and undersides of each piece also. Let it completely dry. Obviously do not drench the furniture.. This is a wipe down like they do in nursery schools..

I am a special events coordinator. To take odors out of Coolers, refrigerators, freezers and Storage containers etc, we use Baking soda, coffee grounds or newspapers. We wipe it all down with a very light bleach water first, let it dry and them place the newspaper and a container of either baking soda or coffee grounds for a couple of days.. It has worked everytime.

Well I haven't had the exact experience but I did leave some chicken in the microwave for like a week back in college and it was super funky! Febreeze had just come out and I tried it and it totally got rid of the smell. That was like 13 years ago or something and to this day Febreeze is what I use for any and all funkiness! I would just spray those drawers down and let them dry and just repeat it until the smell was totally gone. Good luck!

you can use baking soda or use a lemon and squeeze some in the drawer and set it outside to dry.. spray it with odor ban from Sams club.. that is where I get mine.. you can also put newspaper in there and leave it sit it will also take the odor out..i have heard that you can slice apples and put then in there too..let them sit and dry.. I hope some of this works for you...

I've heard of that with pressed-board furniture. Maybe has to do with chemicals? I think it would be safest to get rid of the armoire and replace it with a solid-wood dresser or another armoire. Ouch! I know solid wood can be expensive! But I've seen people buy old solid dressers, hutches, armoires, sideboards, etc., and then paint them the CUTEST colors for their kids' rooms. Maybe you can start looking to replace it. I sold a solid wood dresser to a neighbor five years ago for $25 and she painted it up and it looked wonderful, even though all she did was paint it white and replace the knobs! What a bargain! Good luck.

Hi E.,

I know this will sound crazy but this is something my grandfather use to do. I always remembered it working.
Take a slice of bread, soak it in vinegar and place in the container for about 12 hours. Youn could put it on a plate inside the armoire. My grandfather was a chef and when he use to mess with fish his shoes would stink. So he would stick his shoes in a brown bag with that bread. No more smell. There are some other ways like placeing a cotton ball with wintergreen oil on it, or wiping it down with fabric softner, but if it smells like fish your better off with the vinegar. Good luck

try putting wadded up newspaper in it for a couple of days. It usually will absorb the smell.