Put some coffee powder in a wool or cotton bag and put it under Your car seat. renew it once in a while. Helps!
one of the biggest concerns I had was after spraying something to get rid of the smell would be if it would affect the metal when I go to paint the interior. hopefully its just on the floorpans, which will be getting cut out and replaced anyway. Since the interior was never with the car when I got it,I only had to rip out what was left of the headliner, so its just bare now.You can actually smell it when you walk up to the car.. I'll give the suggestions a shot.. beats sitting in the smell cutting floors out.
Did you see that Mythbuster's episode? They Put a dead pig in an 84 vette inside a shipping container in the summer for like a week. then they tore out the interior, had it professionally cleaned, still couldn't get the smell out. Had to sell it for scrap.
That nasty screwdriver smell reminds me of my fathers shop when I was a kid as well. I know it isn't from the pad, some drivers smell worse than others. Some of the stuff was my fathers, some from my grand father, and the older it is the more horrible the smell. Soap doesn't get the stink off your skin but head and shoulders sure does, Head and shoulders also removes the blue dye from your skin after touching a toilet tank tab. (Horrible story there) I'll deal with it as my wife doesn't pilfer stinky or greasy tools. Pipes, remember that those nasty bastards were up under your dash as well. Tear all of that stuff out, unhook the wiring harness, heater box, core, everything. There are all sorts of little lips and ledges under a dash for rodent piss to pool up and stink. I would hate for you to go through all that work and still have it reek. There are many great ideas on this thread, just don't overlook any crack or crevice. Hell, since you are that far into it take it to the tub and scrub it all down! Good Luck!!!!
The Craftsman with the Clear & Red handle definitely do this. I finally got rid of them and bought Snap On and Matco - no more smell. And I know it's not drawer liner because the first time I experienced this phenomenon i didn't have drawer liners!
Pour a bottle of Brut in the floor......on second thought don't. Thats probally smells as bad as what you have now.......
Bleach! The cloth bits are garbage anyway, soak it down with a strong solution of good ol' Javex and the smell will be gone. 'Course, then ya gotta get rid of the bleach smell, but........
maybe you could just spend the night in the car until you would get used to the smell ... problem solved!!
As for the plastic handled screwdrivers, there are many steering wheels that are made from the same plastic. I know it's been raised here more than once, because I asked the same question. The puke smell is absolutely wretched. From what was suggested and other research, that plastic is casein based, a milk by-product. So as weird as this sounds, that smell makes sense for something that old and milky! Now getting rid of the smell is another matter all together. I never ended up trying the suggestions which included: dishwasher, Febreeze, white vinegar and sealing it up in clear coat. I'm sure like most have also suggested, multiple applications of any remedy is probably necessary. So yes my Chevy still stinks. Luckily it hasn't been anywhere lately to offend anyone.
Activated carbon is alot more effective than baking soda. Go to a pet supply store or a place that sells fishtank supplies , thats what they use to filter the water. It's more porous than baking soda and absorbs the odor better. Otherwise I would get a gallon of concentrate simple green and put it in a garden sprayer and let it soak real good and scrub away.
Okay, maybe the smell in my cars wasn't as bad as what you describe, but here's an "old wives" remedy that has worked for me on several cars with a musty odor in the past: Peel an apple, roll it in coffee grounds to coat it well, stick about a dozen whole cloves in it, and set it on the floor in the back seat, on a piece of aluminum foil for a few days. If you're done laughing, one more thing -- it works!
fresh grounds or used???Well I got a list of stuff to try and will let you all know how i make out. at this point Im willing to try anything. As far as scrapping the car cause of the smell it just isnt an option. it might be pretty rough,need tons of work, but its always been a dream of mine to own a chop top shoebox..now that I got one.. not going to let alittle smell chase me off..
this smell doesn't appear in the car after you've eaten mexican food does it? if it does there are other solutions, if that's not it maby you have a gassy poltergeist living in it. http://www.egreetings.com/ecards/display.pd?bfrom=1&prodnum=3020737&path=94946&va=1
if it has no interior in it pour all of the above suggestions into the car including the trunk let it sit for acouple of days then pressure wash the hell outta it! when I brought my wagon home it had two distinct smells in it .... the heavy puke mixed with rotten garbage and rotting wet wood/fungis... I gutted the interior and then did the washing tricks, only the puke smell remained turned out to be the steering wheel... did a quick refinish on it, now the car has that old vw smell, which is ok... gonna try the irishspring soap bar under the seat trick. Brian.
I'll say it one more time get some Concentrated Germicidal Cleaner. Rat & mouse crap can have a nasty virus called Hantavirus in it & it can "KILL YOU" if you're not careful. I tried several different things & many were mentioned here & in other posts talking about this same thing. NOTHING worked untill I used the Germicidal Cleaner, myself & others here and on other forums have used it w/great results. I made up one a one gallon of this mixture to spray in my bus and the smell was gone almost instantly, plus it kills all those nasty viruses & bugs that can harm you or kill you. Whats more important, "YOUR HEALTH" or cutting corners to save a buck????????????..joe
I didn't read through this so forgive me if it has already been said.... Activated Carbon. You can get it at Pet Stores amongst other places. It has many purification uses, filtering water, air filters, and even used to detox your blood supply. We used it in a few old nylons to totally get rid of cigarrete smoke in one of our cars.
It's the plastic in the screwdriver handles breaking down. I bet you have Snapon screwdrivers. Mine also sweat a foul smelling "dew".
Try this... expensive but works great. I would recommend a good cleaning 1st. It is called "last resort" this company makes odor counteractants for smoke, dead body, and severe pet odor. An Ozone machine might help as well. http://www.pressureparts.com/None-C-Unsmoke-Pressure-Part-432256000.aspx
I got mine from a Tru Value store but Lowes & Home Depot should have a brand of their own in stock....joe
The apple thing uses fresh coffee grounds. I bought a pickup that reeked of cigarette smoke, and had to repeat the treatment about 3-4 times, but it worked.
Seriously, get the carbon. It's like $7 and within 24 hrs you will notice a difference. A friend of mine owns a detailing business and has an ozone machine that he charges good money for. When I mentioned the activated carbon he said that would work just as good, just may take a few days, not instataneous. Toss some in a nylon and drop it under the seat and in the trunk. No prep, no maintenance and if you forget about it, guess what, no side effects or damage. After we treated our car that was previously owned by someone who smoked cheap ass Swishers and stank it all up you would never know. Btw, there was a science show that compared different deodorizers in a fridge full of rotting food and the carbon was the best at odor absorption even ahead of baking soda. Google it, there is a ton of info.
As far as the trunk lining goes, pach with Dry Ice, when it is good and cold chip it out with a chisel.
for dead body smell just spray it down with milk seal it up the best way you can.let it sit for about 3 or 4 days then rinse with water to get the milk out.and then the body smell is gone..done it a number of times and it works.oh and it don't smell like sour milk either.
ALSO, if the car was out like ya said it was AND if it has any kind of heater or any sort in it, check there too. Reason being, I had a '72 Vega I used to race/terrorize with, then I went in the Navy. I didn't touch the car til I got out. A possum had made a home inside it, but that wasn't that bad, what SUCKED was when it got chilly and I turned on the heater....Ugh! Dead rat smell. After much digging, a rat had died up in there without me knowing it and the heat brought it ALL back. Just FYI. (Oh, and the pet stuff at the pet store does work wonders...I own 5 cats and you'd never know it til ya see them.)
bleach, it kills anything if it's strong enough.......I used to work in a car park and some cars just reeked k'knows what had happened in 'em here's another one though, eucalyptus oil is a good one if you spill juice in your trunk...just splash it around, it'll keep your nose clear for a few days and you'll never smell the gas again.
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