racketboy.com

Hey guy, I recently bought Eternal Darkness, Geist, and Beyond Good and Evil and they all smell like cigarette smoke. Is there any way to get rid of this?

Charcoal and baking soda both work really well for absorbing odors. So maybe get a container of some kind, like a tote with a lid, to put everything in. Throw in the charcoal and/or baking soda. If using charcoal, I would cover the bottom of a tote with one layer of coal then maybe put down a screen of some sort so the game doesn't make contact with it. If using only baking soda, you probably don't have to put it in loose. You can just cut the top of the box off (people use to put a box of baking soda in their fridge like this to absorb odors). But, perhaps the baking soda would absorb the odor faster if it's spread out. So if using both, just spread the baking soda out evenly over the charcoal.

As for putting the game in, it would probably be best if everything was spread out. So take the cover insert out of the sleeve, and take the manual out. Try to position the case so the sleeve is separated from the black plastic (maybe put a half of pencil or popsicle stick between the sleeve and the spine so the sleeve stays separated). As for the manual, if there is one, it'd probably be best if the pages were separated, as best as possible. Don't put the disc in there with everything. It's just not worth it. I don't see the disc itself smelling. It's probably mostly the paper that has the smoke smell, but perhaps the plastic case does too.

Anyways, throw everything in a tote as best you can and put a lid on it. Leave it for at least a week. Give the items a check after a week. Give the items a check. If you're not satisfied, put them back in for another week.

I've never tried to pull odors out of a small item like a game manual, but I have used charcoal and baking soda in the past to successfully remove odors from rooms and the inside of cars. My thinking is that the charcoal and baking soda in a closed container should work well. After all, people use to put a box of baking soda in the fridge (no one seems to do this anymore) so I don't see why it shouldn't work here.

Unless some one has a better idea...

In my experience you can't get rid of cigarette odor, but you can replace it with a new odor.

I haven't tried this myself, but Click and Clack over at Car Talk say coffee grounds over time can engulf any smokey stench, even of the Cheech y Chong kind. I'd suggest putting the cases in a Trapper Keeper (I'm showing my age here) or some type of zip lock bag with a few TBSP's of ground coffee and let it rest.

^But listen to the forum members as this is just a suggestion.

start smoking dude. You won't even notice the smell on the games.

Luke wrote:In my experience you can't get rid of cigarette odor, but you can replace it with a new odor.

Not true. I bought a used copy of Soul Coughing - Ruby Vroom (I suppose that's appropriate) that absolutely reeked of stale smoke. After about a year of sitting on the shelf normally and being opened for play every now and then the smell mostly went away. After a few years I couldn't smell anything anymore.

noiseredux wrote:start smoking dude. You won't even notice the smell on the games.

Leave them outside for a few days - or in a covered unconditioned garage

Hobie-wan wrote:Soul Coughing

Fitting.

noiseredux wrote:start smoking dude. You won't even notice the smell on the games.

I was gonna say the same thing!

I'll gladly take those smoke-smelling games off your hands if you can't get the stank out.

Shoot me a PM if interested.