It happened last week. Our home filled with smoke after a frozen burrito was accidentally microwaved for 20 minutes instead of the required 2 minutes long.

It had been raining heavily earlier in the day, so, unfortunately, every window in our home was closed, so the smoke quickly filled our kitchen and raised upstairs to our bedrooms in seconds. 

After figuring out the cause, getting the kids and dog outside, and opening all windows, cleaning up our home began.

The smoke smell was so intense! Our microwave is installed in a built-in bracket in our kitchen island cabinet, so our entire island and every cabinet were seriously smokey.

Thankfully, our furniture in the living room didn’t get any of the heavy smoke, as it was mainly on the side of the kitchen, and there were no lingering smells in our bedrooms.

How To Get Rid Of Smoke Smell From Your House {Tested Tips}

I am very grateful that things didn’t worsen, that we were all safe, and that our home was o.k. in the end. Things can quickly turn deadly in the kitchen if they are left unsupervised, which was a learning experience for all. Our microwave was ruined entirely, so we had to replace it (microwaves are expensive, by the way!), but thankfully everything else was salvageable. 

I spent an entire week getting rid of the smoke smell. It took a lot of sweat and tears, but I managed to get things back to regular following some of the following tips. 

How To Get Rid Of Smoke Smell From Your House {Tested Tips}

  1. Open all of your windows and doors. This is the most important one. Open every window and door, let all the fresh air come in, and the smokey air go out. It is even better if there is sunshine outside. Let that sunshine in. If it is the middle of the winter, it may be harder to do this, but try to leave them open for periods to help bring in the fresh air inside. 
  2. Use fans, exhaust fans and air purifier devices. Collect all your fans and bring them to the area where the smoke originated. Place box fans by your windows/doors facing out to get all the smokey air out fast. Turn your kitchen and bathroom exhaust fans on, and use air purifier devices if you own any.  My kitchen had all the fans/devices going on max for hours after the incident happened.
  3. Clean ALL surfaces. This one is essential. Smokey smell clings to EVERYTHING. Your cabinets, appliances, curtains, rugs, furniture. I had to completely disassemble my kitchen to clean every surface/appliance, to get rid of the smell, including cabinet doors inside and out. I recommend first wiping down surfaces with dishwashing soap and warm water and finishing with a wipe down of vinegar and warm water solution. 
  4. Clean ALL windows/floors/walls. Smoke smell clings to your windows, floors, walls, and even the ceiling. So use the vinegar and warm water solution to wipe down all your glass/windows, and wash your floors properly. Try wiping down your ceilings if you can.
  5. Use baking soda to absorb the odour. I filled some glass containers with baking soda and left them inside the kitchen cabinets on my island (where most of the smokey smell concentrated). I changed the banking soda every couple of days.
  6. Use odour absorbers/air purifiers with activated charcoal. I purchased these inexpensive odour absorbers and placed them all over the kitchen. 
  7. Simmer lemon peels in water on the stove.  Do this for 10-15 minutes, turn off the stove and leave it in the room to help deodorize naturally.
  8. Use Febreze Spray for fabrics. I didn’t have to deal with any fabric smells, but if you have to, you can try using Febreeze Spray for fabrics to deodorize and get rid of the smokey smell on your furniture.
  9. Change/clean air filters in heating/cooling systems. Smoke smell can get trapped on the filters and recirculate around your home. Always change or clean air filters after a smokey incident.
  10. Clean the smoke smell from the microwave. If your microwave is salvageable and you want to get rid of the smoke smell inside. Leave the door open for an hour to let the appliance air out. After an hour,  using a microwave-safe container,  bring 1 cup of water and three tablespoons of white vinegar to a boil in the microwave. After it is done, leave the door closed for 10 minutes to let the steam cover all interior. Finally, wipe the inside of the microwave with a damp, clean cloth. 

Have you ever had anything like this happen at your home? How did you get rid of the smokey smell?

Share your tips below! 

Good luck if you are cleaning your home! I hope these tips are helpful. You can also visit our cleaning tips section for more tips.

How To Get Rid Of Smoke Smell From Your House