smelly old cabinet

[RWK]

wife inherited a old armoire-about 75 yrs old. veneer marquetry with nice patina on outside. Trouble is, inside has a musty smell. Looks to be some kind of softwood stained dark. I tried 2 coats of waterbased poly on inside but it still smells.

Any ideas on getting rid of smell or sealing it in?

thanks

[DanG]

I would not have put anything on it.

I have no suggestion at this point. In the future:

I would have made a wet paste of Tide brand laundry soap and washed the inside of drawers and the cabinet lightly, not trying to soak the wood. Let stand outside in the sun for a day (several days if convenient).

A potpourri ball of some type to develop a new scent. I would use cedar chips/shavings in an open mesh bag.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Keep the whole world singing . . . . DanG (remove the sevens) [e-mail]

2 coats of waterbased poly on inside but it still smells. Any ideas on getting rid of smell or sealing it in? thanks

[Phisherman]

outside. Trouble is, inside has a musty smell. Looks to be some kind of softwood stained dark. I tried 2 coats of waterbased poly on inside but it still smells.

Take it outside and allow the sun to shine into it for several hours. The UV rays will break down the odor.

[Clif]

Wad up some newspaper, and put a box of baking soda in it, then close it up for a day (24 hours or so) If it can get the smell out of apartment fridges that were left full and without power for a week, it should work for that

Clif

[Jack Casuso]

I think the suggestions regarding airing out outside and baking powder should work. You might also try wiping down the inside with Oil of Cedar wood which would probably cover the odor and provide garment protection at the same time

Any ideas on getting rid of smell or sealing it in?

thanks

[Jeff Gorman]

"RWK" wrote

wife inherited a old armoire-about 75 yrs old. veneer marquetry with nice patina on outside. Trouble is, inside has a musty smell. Looks to be some kind of softwood stained dark. I tried 2 coats of waterbased poly on inside but it still smells. Any ideas on getting rid of smell or sealing it in?

Cat litter is supposed to work, though I haven't tried it.

-- Jeff Gorman, West Yorkshire, UK Email: username is amgron ISP is clara.co.uk

[Bob]

here is a list of odor absorbing materials you could try a.. Activated charcoal

a.. Silica gel

a.. Kitty litter

Any ideas on getting rid of smell or sealing it in?

thanks

[patrick conroy]

Other's have posted their smell removal ideas. For sealing it in - try shellac first.

[brian roth]

This is a classic use of shellac.

[Charlie Self]

Jeff Gorman responds:

The type with baking soda in it might just work. We used baking soda last year to rehab a refrigerator after our fire--the clean up crew didn't bother to empty the rerigerator for 2 weeks (in July, no power for most of that time). They then proceeded to clean it lightly. Several boxes of baking soda in open dishes took the smells out in about two weeks.

And believe me, that machine was waaaaaaaaaaaay past musty!

Charlie Self "Bore, n.: A person who talks when you wish him to listen." Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary