Club Obi Wan

I just came back from visiting a friend's parents. His father said his house had burned down seven years ago but he managed to save his leather jacket.

The problem is that after all these years, there is still a hint of smoke in the leather.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to get the smoke out? Obviously, "airing it out" has not worked so, is there a cleaner or process that may rid the jacket of its smokey odor?

Thanks ahead of time for all of the advice!

Ooh, I know I remember somebody mentioning this once! What was it? It was some kind of a hint from Heloise. Let me think...

Was it coffee beans? I think that might have been it.

Yes, Schwammy you are right. The original "coffee" thing started from _ in his early grocery days.

This is what I would do and it's worth a try. Take some ground coffee (the cheap stuff you would buy in a can from a popular grocery chain), stuff it some tube socks (double wrapped). Microwave the coffee in the socks for let's say about 2 to 3 minutes. Stuff each pocket of your jacket with those socks. Throw the jacket in a dryer, set to only air dry, NO HEAT!!! Did I forget to say, NO HEAT. Run it through an entire cycle of maybe 30 minutes. If that is not enough, just keep the socks in the pocket and let hang in the closet for a week. It might work. It's worth a try. And then report back on your results. If successful, we can include the results in the Jacket FAQ section on the main IndyGear site.

-Sergei

Chances are the smoke odor is already "set" into fabric after that long. I’ve also heard of using cocoa bean shells, similar to the coffee ground method. Give it a shot, and if it doesn’t work look up a dry cleaner that specializes in smoke damaged clothing.

I’m afraid most home remedies like that will only work temporarily or simply mask the smoke odor. Really, smoke damaged dry-cleanable clothing should be taken to a professional cleaning service with smoke removal experience. These places usually have expensive ozone generator machines that will eliminate the smoke odor, it will also kill skunk odor as some unlucky campers probably already well know.

Hey you just discovered a new aspect of distressing no-one thought of before - smell. Before long we will have people coming up with new methods and odours for distressing leather jackets! You never know...

Ken

Good point, Rixter. Now that I think of it, I believe the coffee method was for cigarette smoke, and not house fire smoke. My wife and I had a fire in our bedroom (no jokes please ) back in '97, and most of our wardrobe was destroyed just from the smoke. Fortunately this was before Indygear.

..... Michaelson might flinch as this one & MK grin to his hearts content but wouldn't a couple applications of Acetone restore the leahter's natural "tanned" smell????

I'm not talking about rubbing it in to remove the color or anything like that but just a few lightly applied doses. I mean, they do use Acetone in the original tanning proces. And with that said, hence give the jacket the smell of new leahter

*This goes without saying but I'll say it anyway - Test it in an inconspicious place first. And don't rub too hard !!!

Just my opinion - mostly theory. The coffee idea sounds as though it would not be strong enough to over-take smoke odor from a house fire. And if the coffee doesn't work on the jacket, you can always take those coffee filled socks, place them in a big pitch of cold water & place them in the sunlight for a day or 2 for some refreshing ice-coffee later. Another one of Heloise's Helpful Hints ?????


Carry on.....

TyJeer

...... being a die-hard coffee drinker & someone who can barely function without it, I, of all people should know......


* Never under-estimate the power of Coffee*


TyJeer

Having aquired a really nice Wested Dark Brown Goat, that has some cigar smell, I wanted to bring back this thread, and see if anyone has come up with additional ideas on removing cigar smoke from a jacket??
It's only a year old, so it doesn't have a lifetime of cigar smell, and it was taken care of. Previous owner just happened to smoke, is all.
So,..any good NEW methods, NOT mentioned above?
'Blues

My jacket smells very strongly of coffee.

Is there any way to get the smell out?

I set fire to the house, but it only made my wife mad.

Indiana Ken wrote:Hey you just discovered a new aspect of distressing no-one thought of before - smell. Before long we will have people coming up with new methods and odours for distressing leather jackets! You never know...

Ken

Like saving sweat in a spray bottle? Did you do that for your movie too, Ken?

-I may 'look' rugged, but I smell like a garden of flowers... doll.

Regards,
Swindiana

I learned another way of getting rid of old odors on the Fedora Lounge. You can try mixing 1/2 water and 1/2 vodka in a spray bottle and spraying down the jacket. I'm not sure what kind of effect it would have on the leather. I've only tried it on wool suits. Is the smell in the leather or in the liner?

The only home remedy I found that remotely works is one that will have Michaelson swearing at me under his breath. I am not recommending this to anyone and will not be responsible for any clothing ruined by using it, but a 5-gallon bucket and 4 cans of naphtha got most of the smell out of an old jacket when baking soda, coffee, fresh air, the washing machine and waving a dead chicken over it did not work.

I soaked it for about 15 minutes. It took 2 days for it to dry and another few days for the naphtha smell to evaporate. This stuff is volatile, so again, I cannot say that I recommend it, but it did help. Did I already say that I am not responsible for any clothing ruined by this?

I also tried covering the jacket with a strong leather scented oil, (which works better after you get the smell out. )

My most inventive attempt was to wet a jacket I got on ebay and get the barbeque grill smoking really good with hickory chips and a few steaks. The wet jacket absorbed the smoke and that worked for a while, but the cigarette smoke came right back eventually. :evil:

Bottom line? Bring it to a professional. It is not worth the aggravations nor the effort.

How about febreeze? Is it safe for use on leather?

rick5150 wrote:...........the washing machine and waving a dead chicken over it did not work.

Didn't that remedy from the Egyptian Book of the Dead work that I sent up to you last year?

Regards! Michaelson

Yes, and amidst that remedy, I found a new way to distress a horsehide. Thanks Michaelson!

Oh. I was hoping you'd skip that chapter.

Regards! Michaelson

Yeah, the naptha works, as I had one done by a local dry cleaner. He used the stuff. Since the old hatters used this stuff to clean hats, with sweatband left in the hat, it will not hurt the leather. But, it takes awhile for the smell of lighter fluid to leave. You need to soak the jacket at least overnight, and agitate the jacket often to insure the odor is being washed out. Fedora

I just realized that I never gave credit where credit was due. The naphtha treatment that I used was a direct suggestion from Fedora. I was not trying to state that this was my idea in any way, shape or form.

OK, bringing this back to life, because it was chilly enough to wear my Wested a few times this past few weeks. The weather has been crazy, hot,..cool,..hot,...cool.
Anyway, I have no smoke smell left in my jacket, and I owe it to a citrus scented, charcoal deoderizer that I picked up at Home Depot.
It's called "Citrus Magic:Solid Air Freshener".

http://www.citrusmagic.com/



Before I tried this, I used alcohol to wipe the entire jacket, basically cleaning the smoke residiue from the leather. Then I put it in the closet with the air freshener. It was hanging in the closet with the air deoderizer for at least a month, and at first, it had a citrus smell, but after that faded, only the leather smell is left.
Just thought I'd share, since this seemed to work so well.
'Blues

Did anyone bother to read my post about the product I found that I posted week before last in the gear care section that will take care of this?

Regards! Michaelson

I read it, Michaelson. I also found an alternative method that worked as well. Didn't realize you ended the discussion. My apologies.
'Blues

I am not clear on whether this product removes the odors from leather though. I went through ATCO's website and did not see leather specifically mentioned, and Michaelson specifically mentions that it will work on the lining. I have tried so many solutions that people say have worked with leather - mostly to no avail. If I can get this in a reasonable quantity I will be glad to be the gineau-pig and try it on the leather itself.

Michaelson, you are now the Dri-Spi expert here . Can you tell me if the cans are pressurized or if it is a pump spray? Also, the website list this product as an "odor-scented spray" that "neutralizes odors." This is a bit confusing. Is is scented? (Odor-scented?!)

Just a head's up on taking leather jackets to the dry cleaners (an excellent way to get rid of any kind of bad smell, and the only way to preserve the liner). If you do this, be sure to specify NO DYE to be used. I took an A2 flight jacket in mainly to clean the cotton liner, and was shocked to see that they had used dye on it to cover up all the wear areas! Since I now wear my Wested jacket most of the time, I may never get the patina back on that flight jacket. I may have to do some 'distressing' on it. Also, you will need to oil the leather after a dry cleaning. I use Obenauf's Leather Oil.

I smoke cigars ( wearing my wested) and all I do is let it sit ouside and let the airout. this seems to work for me.

I have no idea, Rick. That's why I also supplied the 800 number for folks to call for clarifications.

I totally agree with BendingOak. The culprit that seems to hold the odors isn't the leather itself, as it DOES air out quite quickly. It's the lining, and that's what this product removes. I tried it on my G&B A-2 before leaving on vacation last week, and it worked perfectly. Removed all traces of musty smell from storage over the summer.

Regard! Michaelson

In the case of mustiness, I have a few jackets that I got on ebay that I have put through the washing machine a few times effectively ruling out the lining in my opinion. You can put your nose right to the leather and smell the mustiness.

In fact, I have the same problem with an A-2 replica that stinks of cigarette smoke. You can clean the liner, but you get that jacket wet and it brings out the smoky smell again.

I am intrigued by the "odor-scented" comment, though. It would not do me any good to replace a musty smell with spoiled fish smell - although you would not notice the mustiness anymore.

here's an idea. there are some outfits up here that sanitize hockey equipment. the contraption kills all the bacteria/molds/fungii/etc and leaves the equipment smelling like a daisy. perhaps your local sports store/arena can advise you on this.

it should be safe for leather as i have seen them do skates and gloves. i've seen/smelt first hand how good this works on hockey pads.....just a suggestion....my theory is not tested yet

In case anyone missed what Rick and I have been talking about....

viewtopic.php?t=19248

Regards! Michaelson