One of the more grueling clean-up jobs is getting rid of the smell of cigarette smoke in a Cypress rental home. Whether you allow your tenants to smoke, didn’t call to mind to count in your smoking policy in the lease, or if you did and had a strict no-smoking policy, you may probably still be left to deal with the smelly duty of cleaning up the unpleasant odors left behind. And it’s not just about the smell; cigarette smoke leaves residual contamination on walls, fabrics, and other surfaces. Known as “thirdhand smoke,” this residue could present a health risk to future tenants and must be taken very seriously.
To help make your clean-up job as effectual as possible, here are some cleaning tips quoted by the pros.
Air it Out
The best place to start when beginning to clean up after cigarette smoke is to air out every room in your rental house. Open all windows and doors to let in the fresh air, and employ fans or an air purifier to circulate the air. There are air purifiers exactly designed to eliminate the smell of cigarette smoke from the air. If your budget allows, this could be a trustworthy option. But whatever way, you may need to leave the fans running for as long as possible – maybe for a few days – to be of help to alleviate the smell.
Wipe Everything Down
When airing out your rental, your next step is to wipe down every surface in every room – starting with the ceilings. Putting into service the cleaning product of your choice, wipe down smooth ceilings with a wet cloth. For popcorn ceilings, put your cleaning solution in a spray bottle and completely spray the general surface.
While at the same time you’re working on the ceilings, bear in mind to clean the light fixtures and ceiling fans up there, too! Wipe the tops and bottoms of ceiling fan blades to make sure that the odor isn’t being recirculated back into the house.
Working your way downward, clean walls with the same cleaning product and a cloth. Ascertain to clean the tops of the door trim, baseboard, and other nooks and crannies.
But take note though, it’s important to mention that just cleaning the walls quite often won’t get rid of the smell. And paint will help, but it won’t clean up the smell, either. To perfectly remove the cigarette smoke smell, you will need to put on an odor-sealing primer, then a good quality paint over the top.
Wash the Windows
Along with the walls, it’s crucial to confer on all of the windows and window coverings in your rental property a deep clean. If you have blinds, that means wiping down each piece of the blinds on both sides. Clean the windows with your choice glass cleaner, then wipe down the frames and sills.
If your rental has fabric shades or curtains, try to see if you can wash them in a washing machine. If not, you may want to consider replacing them completely. Cigarette smoke is very grueling to get out of fabrics.
Sanitize Cabinets and Counters
Bear in mind to clean the inside and outside of kitchen and bathroom cabinets, closets, and drawers. Go through each one, clean up any debris, and then wipe down both inside and out with a cleaning solution. For countertops and islands, liberally apply a sanitizing cleaner to rid them of smoke residue. If the smoke smell continues, try placing a bowl of dry coffee grounds or white vinegar inside the smelly cabinet or drawer and leaving it there for one or more days. This may help clear out the cigarette smell.
Deodorize Floors
Once you’ve cleaned everything above floor level, it’s time to deal with your carpets and hard surface floors. One way to successfully help remove the smoke smell from carpets is to sprinkle baking soda over the entire carpet, let it sit for at least an hour, and then vacuum. But in fact, most Cypress property managers elect to hire professional carpet cleaners as they are preparing a rental for a new tenant. They may be able to clear the odor from the carpet. As a general rule, however, the best option is to replace the carpets and pad wholly.
For hard surface floors, clean thoroughly by mopping with a trustworthy disinfectant. If you’ve got several floors to clean, change your mop water often to always make sure that the smoke smell isn’t just getting spread back around.
Although labor-intensive and time-consuming, by taking these steps, you can clean out the smell of cigarette smoke and effectively get it back to a clean, fresh-smelling rental.
Still, if you’ve realized that deep cleaning your rental property is something other than what you’d prefer to spend your time on, deem giving the professionals at Real Property Management Republic a call. We can help with everything from cleaning services to finding a brilliant new tenant for you – and much more! Contact us online today to see what we can do for you.
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