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Eliminating Odors From Cedar Lined Storage Areas
When I headed off to college my grandmother gave me an old steamer chest
for the cross country trek. The idea was that I'd pack what I needed for the year,
send the chest on ahead and follow it on a bus and meet up on campus some
3,000 miles away. I kept that trunk to today and its withstood mold, mildew and
and occassional sanding.
Here's how to get your's in tip top shape.
Removing Odors
Most cedar chests are often times lined with Tennessee or Virginia cedar, which may
explain how they came by the name. They emit an odor
naturally and the odor is suppose to help in keeping the moths and
other bugs away. Some say its just an old wives tale and that the real magic
is in the trunk seals themselves. No matter, there's a refreshing smell
to clothing stored in cedar chests, drawers and closets.
Cedar is also the same material used in animal bedding and is
often sold in chips to line cages, etc. As the interior of the chests
are often unfinished and the wood is very porous, it is not uncommon to
have other odors such as mothballs, perfume etc. permeate the wood. The
difficulty often times is that the odors penetrate so deeply they are
very difficult if not impossible to remove.
Here are a couple of odor eliminating techniques to try:
Fresh Air
First, keep the chest open with the lid up. This
will enable the air to circulate and some of the smell will diminish.
This may take a considerable amount of time depending on how strong or intense
the smell is and how frequently the air circulates inside the chest.
You might also try to wipe down the interior with a solution of
detergent and water. Be careful not to get the wood too wet as this will
warp the wood and could do some serious damage. This might take several
applications to achieve the desired results.
Natural Odor Absorbants
Put some white vinegar in a deep bowl or coffe can and let it sit inside the
chest for a few days to a week. If it helps, repeat.
Or, put a dish with some activated charcoal (available from pet supply stores) in the chest.
Sanding
If these methods fail, then I can suggest that you consider
sanding the interior wood with fine sand paper, thus removing the
surface in the hope that it will remove the mothball odor. This
really may be the best resolve to your problem.
Latest Techo Product
The Smelleze Moth Ball Deodorizer Pouch by IMTECH Corporation is a sealed pouch
that you palce inside the chest and it is suppose to absorb the moth ball odor.
If it take up most of the cedar odor then lightly sand the surface to renew
the wood smell.
Applying Another Scent
You can also try to apply another scent to the wood, such as a
perfume or other fragrance. unfortunately, this will only result in
"masking" the mothball odor and may in fact make the problem worse
by adding another odor to the one you already have.
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