3 Eco Friendly Ways to Get the Smoke Smell Out of Your Car

Cars in a line.

No one wants a car that smells like smoke. If you or someone else in your family smokes, you'll want to remove the smoke smell out of car seats and other areas of the car where smoke can permeate. There are chemicals you can use to remove the smoke smell out of the car interior, but these chemicals are harsh. You can remove the smoke smell out of a car interiors using eco-friendly ways, and the following article will share with you some of those.

1. Homemade Citrus Air Freshener Spray

Citrus has a long history of being used to remove strong odors from practically everything from cars to furniture. The acidity from an orange or lemon can not only cover the smell but can remove the smoke smell out of car seat fabric.

Do not confuse this for using orange juice because it will not work at all. It is the oil that is found in the pith (the white part) and the peel that helps. You can buy orange oil at a store, but you can also make your own.

Start by creating a double boiler. Fill the bottom with water and place the peel and juice from the orange into the top section. Let this simmer with the lid on for two hours then strain it into a container using a cheesecloth. Mix this with water and place it in a spray bottle. You can use this on clothing and in the car. This solution can also be used to remove the smell from the plastic and wood inside the car.

2. Scrubbing Solution

Sometimes a spray simply is not enough to get a smoke smell out of car seats. The fabric will trap in the odor for possibly years to come unless it is taken care of. A good eco-friendly solution is to use soap only made from all-natural products. You can find this soap at many health food stores.

These soaps are not made from animals or harsh chemicals. When you get this soap home, melt it down in a double boiler. After the soap has melted, you can add citrus oil to it along with water to dilute it and to add deodorizing power. Use a scrub brush and dip it in the solution then scrub the fabric. Let it sit for several hours, then dry it with a hairdryer.

3. Homemade Hanging Air Freshener

An air freshener is essentially cardboard soaked in scented oils. If you have spilled olive oil on a brown paper bag or box, you will notice how the oil remains for days. This is the same concept with a homemade one.

Create citrus oil as you did previously but without the orange juice. You can instead add other essential and scented oils that are all-natural. Recycle an old cardboard box by cutting out any shape that you may like. The trick is to use cardboard that is not corrugated. Soak the cardboard in the oil for a day and allow it to dry for a day or two before using it as you would any other air freshener.