The scent of a campfire can be incredibly drawing to some, inviting themes of nature, cookouts, bonding, and sometimes even fond memories. Still, for those with a more sensitive nose, the scent may come off as very strong and agitating, sometimes aggravating sinuses and making breathing a chore.
Thankfully, like most scents, a campfire’s scent will inevitably fade over time. Still, the duration depends heavily on the source of the smell and, to a lesser degree, on the surface the scent is clinging to. Most notably, something like an indoor fireplace will retain that smoking smell much longer than your clothes might, depending on whether or not you wash them, of course.
For those who wish to get the scent off immediately, we have just the article for you! Down below, you will find specific remedies to eliminate the campfire smell once and for all. Afterward, we will answer some commonly asked questions, like why the campfire smell lingers. Lastly, we will review some products we recommend getting that work exceptionally well.
How Long Does Campfire Smell Linger?
As noted above, it depends on the surface, but more notably, on the efforts you invest to expedite the process entirely. If you leave nature to run its course, you could be looking at a smoky haven smell for weeks to come. Meanwhile, with a bit of elbow grease, it can be gone in just an afternoon, provided you don’t intend to replace the scent.
Clothes
Regardless of whether you were wearing your choice of clothing for fashion, safety, or even style, the hefty smell of a campfire will cling to fabrics like nothing else. To that end, you can get a sweater or jacket exposed to a campfire to retain the smell for weeks, if you so desire. However, a simple run through your washer and dryer, and the scent should be entirely gone.
Hypothetically, you could also double down on this and utilize a fabric softener or detergent that adds an entirely different scent that is more to your liking, be it Floral, Citrus, or even just “Fresh”, whatever that means. Still, the point remains: you can easily replace one scent with another and come out with clean clothes for your efforts.
Hair
When smoke and other scents attach themselves to your hair, it can be much more annoying to get rid of, partially because everyone’s hair is different, both in terms of thickness and fragility. Some people’s hair requires a gentler approach and can only use certain approved shampoos, whilst others can almost scrub themselves down with a stray rock and come out looking glamorous.
Rockstar, or far from it: a good shower, shampooing, and a hint of conditioner are enough to get rid of a campfire smell from most people’s hair. Using scented products pushes that process even further.
In the Outdoor Air
Now we have a much different kind of problem: if you aren’t a massive fan of campfire scents, getting rid of them from your outdoor areas can be problematic. For one, you have to ask yourself whether it is genuinely just lingering in the air or adhering to something else, like nearby trees, soaking into the ground, perhaps the stones that encased the bonfire itself.
It would be foolish to say “Go clean your trees”, and similarly, “Rotate the dirt to get rid of the scent”, so you may have to let nature run its course and let the smell gradually dissipate over time. Still, stones or other similar housing for smaller fires can be deep cleaned the next day (giving you ample time to clean yourself and your clothing), to help remove any other scents.
In most cases, ambient scents from a campfire will fade away in a few hours to a few days, but more frequent burnings can ingrain those scents much more deeply into local surfaces and entire areas, so it can take months before your nostrils get a breath of fresh air.
Why Does Campfire Smell Linger?
Essentially, there are smaller microscopic particles that are released when you burn anything that float up from whatever was burnt, and gradually drift around before settling onto a given surface.
The problem is that most of these particles aren’t like dust, soot, or anything else. They are typically very sticky by nature and will adhere directly to anything they come into contact with, beginning a bonding process that makes them difficult to remove without extreme effort.
It’s for these reasons alone that you are advised to be very careful about what you toss into a fire pit, because things like plastics, chemicals, and other substances can not only be deadly if inhaled, but these smaller particles can attach themselves to your skin, or worse, your airway and nasal cavity. Doing so can irritate them or even cause severe allergic reactions and infections.
How Can You Get Campfire Smell off of Clothes?
In most circumstances, you can get rid of the smell of a campfire by simply running them through your washer, replacing the scent with something you favour more, or just enjoying the fact that those clothes no longer smell like yesterday’s bonfire.
If the scents are more adamant about staying on your clothes, you can use a stronger detergent or run the clothes through several washes, assuming they don’t expressly say you cannot wash them repeatedly.
How Can You Get Campfire Smell Out of Hair?
In a very similar way to washing the smell out of your clothes, you can get rid of those same scents with a good shampoo, conditioner, and rinse cycle, paying extra attention to areas of your hair that weren’t covered by a hat, hood, or similar.
It’s worth noting that only you know your specific hair care routine and how durable your hair is to repeated washing. It’s not worth scrubbing your head viciously to get rid of a smoke scent to look like Dr. Emmett Brown from Back to the Future when your hair finally dries.
Is There a Way to Get Campfire Smell Out of Your Furniture, Car, or RV?
If the smell of campfire smoke has invaded your home, vehicle, or favorite camper van, you can still get it out. All of these can be cleaned, detailed, and scented to alleviate the issue with just a bit of effort quickly.
In the case of Cars or RV’s, you can actually pay someone to do a deep clean, assuming you have the money for it of course, and get not only a new smell in your vehicle, but the satisfaction of a peerless sheen across most surfaces, and the allure of an almost new car to enjoy, which in upon itself can be priceless.
Can You Get Rid of the Smoke Smell in Your Tent?
Tents, unfortunately, are a much different beast when it comes to eliminating ambient smoke smells. On the one hand, they are typically close to campfires by nature, meaning the scents will soak directly into the fabric of your tent and remain there. Even more annoyingly, most people cannot simply toss their tents into the washing machine or hose them down, so cleaning them will be an agonizing process.
In most cases, your best option will be to set up the tent in your backyard (because if left in its case, the scent will remain locked in, waiting for you to open it up and release it all over again).
After setting it up and leaving it up for a few days (perhaps even getting a bit of rain on it), the smell will fade. Still, again, this is more a gamble with time than anything else, and if you intend on wetting it yourself, you’ll want to make sure it is elevated to prevent it from flooding out; replacing the smell of a campfire with mold is not ideal.
What Are Some Effective Campfire Smell Removers?
Thankfully, if patience isn’t your strong suit, there are quite a few companies that have taken it upon themselves to create scents, fragrances, and smell absorbers to help rush this entire process along, giving you peace of mind and a clear nose.
1. SMELLS BEGONE 1-Gallon Odor Absorber Gel
Smells Begone will quickly and quietly dissipate that smoke smell. Just. Just open the product and place it wherever the problematic scents are radiating. You’ll be happily inhaling apple cinnamon, citrus, vanilla, or any other scent of your choice, with campfire smells a thing of the past.
Best of all, these absorbent gels last for well over four months, meaning you won’t have to do a deep dive and purchase something every time you have a campfire, or you’ll benefit from replacing any undesirable scent from cooking, cleaning, or whatever the occasion may be.
2. Activated Charcoal Odor Absorber
It makes sense that not everyone wants to replace one smell with another. To that end, these activated charcoal absorbers have all the functionality of the one above, but with a reusable design that will allow your initial investment to last up to 2 years, rather than a few months.
All you need to do is hang these pouches in problem areas, let them gradually absorb the undesirable smells, and, best of all, retain their smell-absorbing power by placing them in the sun for just 2 hours once a month.
3. Zero Odor Pro – Commercial Strength Eliminator Odor Neutralizer
In the arena of surface scent control, few things can match Zero Odor Pro, remaining true to it’s name, all you need to do is lightly mist the surfaces or problematic areas that absolutely wreak of campfire smells, and you will be breathing easy in no time, better still, you can use this spray on just about any surface safely, making other scents a thing of the past as well.
You can use this product on clothing as well. Still, it’s highly recommended to do a spot test before fully committing to using it on any whole piece of clothing, and you should definitely dilute the product first to avoid damage.
4. R86 Industrial All-Out Odor Eliminator
Those of us wanting an all-in-one solution needn’t look any further than the R86 Industrial odor eliminator, as just a few sprays on just about any surface (clothing and fabrics included!), will completely remove any past scents, with the one caveat to this being, it replaces them with a slight fragrance instead.
Suppose you are allergic or have an extreme sensitivity to other fragrances. In that case, this might not be the best option for you, but the alternative provided here will definitely be a step in the right direction if you truly detest the smell of smoke.
Final Words
Getting rid of smoky smells, especially those that have become deeply embedded in clothes or surfaces, can be incredibly annoying to remove —but not entirely impossible. With enough time, effort, and the right products, your home and other areas can return to their normal odorless state in no time!