Getting smoke smell out of a bass

[JJd2sc]

I am in the process of moving from a cigarette smoking environment to a smoke-free one. When in a smoke free zone, I can smell the smoke odor from my bass and on my fingers from touching the fingerboard. Is there a SAFE and effective way to remove the smoke smell from my bass? I really do not want to damage the wood or affect the tone. Thanks.

[reedo35]

A good polish job with Kolstein's or Clef instrument polish should alleviate the smoky smell.

[Marcus Johnson]

Don't forget that the bass bag holds onto a lot of smoke odor as well, which then gets imparted to the bass. So get the bag cleaned as well.

[reedo35]

Good idea, Marcus I didn't consider that. Question though... Do you hand wash it, dry clean it, or just stick it in the machine and air dry it?

[Alex Scott]

Just hanging mine in the garage helps out a lot.

[pocket_groover]

This thread discussed the same problem:

getting the smoky smell off my bass? smokey! ugh!

Hope it helps!

[Kickin'Fruit]

use Oxy-clean. I use it on my hockey equipment and believe me how much that smells. For the fretboard I would use Naptha to clean it (lighter fluid). Then use something else you would normally finish it off with, like tung oil or boiled linseed oil. A spritz of febreeze wouldn't hurt either

[JJd2sc]

thanks a ton. i was worried i was doomed to live with the smell forever.

[nicklloyd]

The inside of the bass (unvarnished wood) is the culprit for holding the smoke odor in. It sounds like the zeolite stuff is worth a try, though...

[Damon Rondeau]

Lately I've been using an air freshener called LimeMate or LemonMate. This stuff is just lime or lemon juice served up in an atomizer kind of deal -- it sprays a very fine mist (no aerosols involved; I think the stuff is even organic.) I'm still amazed at how well it works. If it can keep my bathroom smelling fresh for hours, a spritz or two inside the bass might work wonders. It's not going to hurt anything at all (after-the-fact edit: not hurt anything at all except, perhaps, the finish on your bass! I was thinking more about funky smells on the inside of the bass. Careful.)

Grapefruit and orange are available, but I'm told the orange version smells more like going-off orange peel than it does anything else.

[Michael Case]

You can always get those little tree shaped air fresheners that people hang from their rear view mirrors.

[Jake deVilliers]

We have had great success in the past removing the smell of sick and vomiting children by placing a large pan of ammonia in the room and closing it up. The surface area needs to be 12-18" in diameter or equivalent.

Jake

[toman]

hahah... hang a little pine tree thing inside your bass! Seriously though, you might try some of that air freshener that neutralizes bacteria... It works great in my bathroom and in the kitchen when I burn a sauce or let some meat get funky in the fridge or something.

[Michael Case]

I like the vanilla scented ones. But seriously though, wouldn't the smell just go away with time?



Or you could start smoking yourself.

[musicman5string]

True story:
I knew a bassist who threw up onstage one gig, and guess where it landed? Yeah...inside the F holes.

Don't know if he ever resolved that, but for awhile his bass smelled like puke (or a library book).

[simandlhandle]

I can't believe this thread, you guys are so Hollywood. If you play in a smokey place then its going to be smokey when you play the bass the next day. I just spent 5 days on holiday at an organic farm. I believe in, eat, and support organic production of food, and yes, when you walked past a field that had just been fertilised, it smelt of s**t, even though I know it had been properly composted. This is one of the realitys of life. The bass is also heavy, and just a bit too big to play, unless you approach it with attitude. Stop worrying about whether you should put a pomander in front of your your nose,or in the bass or in the case, and get practising that jump from E string low F to G string high Ab, and Yes I have had that written( the jump that is) on a big band chart I was sight reading on a gig I depped for at the Bulls head at Barnes( fortunately the trombones were playing particularly loud at the time).

[Marcus Johnson]

Originally Posted by musicman5string

True story:
I knew a bassist who threw up onstage one gig, and guess where it landed? Yeah...inside the F holes.

Don't know if he ever resolved that, but for awhile his bass smelled like puke (or a library book).

That was really a heartwarming tale... thanks, Musicman!
Wow... two posts about jazz musicians throwing up in the last coupla weeks... I'm beginning to see a trend here.

[ctxbass]

Time to lay off the vomit exercises.

[mje]

Originally Posted by Jake deVilliers

We have had great success in the past removing the smell of sick and vomiting children by placing a large pan of ammonia in the room and closing it up. ...

Careful.. ammonia fumes will react with the tannins in wood and darken it.

[Don Higdon]

Originally Posted by ctxbass

Time to lay off the vomit exercises.