Help me keep this ranger in the family / eliminate smoke odor from interior?
I've passed the 98 Ranger that used to belong to my dad to my teenage son who has just begun driving. While he is excited to have his late grandad's truck, he just can't stand the smell left from several years of my dad smoking in the truck. I am not a smoker but obviously grew up with it around so it doesn't really bother me as much but I am sensitive to his problem. My wife has a nose like a bloodhound and he gets his acute sense of smell from her / she thinks it reeks as well. We have tried all different kinds of cleaners / solutions / fresheners / you name it. I was hoping you might have some suggestions. I am considering gutting the thing including new carpet, new headliner, and possibly replacing the seats with some from the junkyard. Mechanically the truck is in fairly good shape with only about 90k miles. Dad only drove it a few years before he passed and my brother has put mostly highway miles on the last 6 years. It's a good truck that we'd like to keep in the family but without remedy we may have to part with it and find him some other transportation. Thanks for listening...hope you can help.
I was going to suggest "Febreeze". I used it with pretty good success. You might also try just letting it air out for a day or so with all of the windows down. Good luck.
I suggest one of those Ionic breeze things made for cars. My brother smoked for the last year and I only found out today. I was also in his truck the other day and I could not smell a thing.
Bottom line, get a ionizer and let it do it's thing.
Rent a carpet steam cleaner, use that with the carpet and seats. Fabreeze everything else. That stuff works pretty good. Lastly, leave it open as much as possible. That will help more than anything else.
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please do not take any of the above advice as that of an expert!
Well, if you rented a skunk, the cigs wouldn't bother you ANY more...
... that was a joke.
I was going to suggest febreeze also when I saw the tag line. I would also suggest that you take the seats and carpet out. The foam in the seats probably has the odor embedded, but you can remove the covers and use "dawn" or equivalent on the bare sponge to good effect. Clean the carpets with spray on foam stuff and a scrub brush. Let dry, and vacuum. You may be able to figure out which item is the most odor retentive and replace that.
tom
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It's not how hard you work, it's how much you get done. Simplificate and add lightness
Well believe it or not, pure Vanilla extract mixed with some alcohol & sprayed around will work fast & some put in open containers & placed under the seats, with the windows rolled up & the vents closed, will usually do pretty well to neutralize foul odors.
I like the ionizer & steam cleaning ideas too!!!!
Let us know how it goes.
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99 Ranger 4dr 4x2 4.0L 5spd auto 3.55L/S Payload pkg2 tow pkg
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Look on eBay or a Detailer Supply website and find an Odor Bomb ... it's like a fogger that you let off inside the truck while the A/C is running n'all. That's what a-lot of the car dealers use.
What also worked for me in a similar situation was this stiff called ZorbX that Lowe's has. Saturate the seats, headliner, carpet, etc with the stuff and it'll take the smell out. Here a >>LINK<<
The hard surfaces and glass will need to be washed with a disinfectant.
What ever you do (except "maybe" a professional ionizer), on a hot & humid day the smell will alwyas return a little.
Ammonia is also great for removing the odor, so try spraying glass cleaner onto the surfaces and clean it out. Also, Make sure there arent any hidden butts in the vents and such.
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2000 Ford Excursion-6.8L V10 gas guzzler
1984 Ford F250- my project- 351w with t18 4 speed w/ granny, gauge set
Toss a skunk into the cab, you will no longer notice the smoke smell hee hee. To get rid of the smoke smell, replace the seat, headliner and carpet. Those 3 area's where cloth will trap odors. Wash down the inside of the cab, behind the seat, dash board, door pannels and so fourth. Smoke rises, so I'm sure the head liner is shot, a cloth seat and carpet will also trap the smoke. Just replacing those 3 items should make a big difference.
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2009 FORD RANGER fx4 off/road, 5-speed manual, torson diff and rancho's!
I'm going to second the ionizer idea. I've used one in my F150 and my Ranger both for strong odors that wouldn't go away. Worked great. It'll take approximately a week to do.
I take out the headliner seats, carpet etc and soak them in oil eater degreaseer (check color fastness first). I noticed a lot of tar and junk running off. I also diluted the cleaner and used it on the doorpanels and such. Worked great for me
