Getting chemical stinks out of amp (damn you Glade/Febreze people, stop it!!) - NAD foiled

[dcbc]

Blow pipe smoke into it for an evening. It'll smell amazing afterward.

 

[plaintopper]

One of the few cleaners I have yet to try, maybe tomorrow.



Exactly our situation, we don't use scented anything and try to stick to natural cleaners as much as possible. We are super sensitive to it now and I can't believe what kind of nasty toxic **** people fill their houses with. When I went to buy that Marshall cab I knew as soon as I walked in the apt that it would stink like that. I figured it would dissipate but after a year it still smells like that, though not as strong, and I really scrubbed that thing down too.



I was kidding but really weed smoke is non-toxic compared to things like Glade, Febreze, and whatever other nasty odorous chemicals most people breathe 24/7.



Ugh, dryer sheets, another culprit of nasty smells!

Please link us all to the studies that show these fragrances are “toxic“ to human beings. OTOH, we absolutely know for sure cig smoke is indeed toxic.

 

[DonaldDemon]

Please link us all to the studies that show these fragrances are “toxic“ to human beings. OTOH, we absolutely know for sure cig smoke is indeed toxic.

I'm not going to do the work for you, look it up, it's quite well known by now. What do you think happens to those chemicals that are off gassing to give that smell? We breathe it. I'm not arguing cig smoke isn't toxic as well.

 

[jimijimmyjeffy]

Please link us all to the studies that show these fragrances are “toxic“ to human beings. OTOH, we absolutely know for sure cig smoke is indeed toxic.

Yeah, I have studied fragrance chemistry quite a bit.

The idea that fragrances are toxic to smell is overblown, IMO. The content and safety of fragrances is heavily regulated by IFRA. If there is a fragrance chemical that has stong evidence of harm with normal use, it would not be used, generally speaking.

Nature is composed of chemicals. Everything in nature with a scent has a scent because of chemicals. Many of the chemicals used in perfumery are nature identical.

If the chemicals used in perfumery were proven harmful as used, in the quantities typically used, then anyone selling fragrances would be subject to constant successful lawsuits. Hence IFRA.

If you violate IFRA standards even in a country where IFRA rules for chemical use and acceptable levels are not enforced, you would still be vulnerable to lawsuits. In any suit, if they find out you viiolated IFRA standards, it is over.

The OP sounds like he has a physical condition that makes him sensitive to all scented materials. That is true for some people, and it is totally understandable that they might hate fragrances of all kinds. But that's one thing, and claiming fragrances are just bad period is another.

There are very very few chemicals used in fragrances that are not easily soluble in the strongest rubbing alcohol. Perfumes are alcohol solutions. If the scent doesn't come out, it's not because the alcohol doesn't take it off.

If something is water soluble, you can wash it off with water. If something is highly alcohol soluble, you can wash it off with alcohol. That's just chemistry.

Every chemical used in perfumes has some kind of safety studies backing it. It's not perfect, but there are some reasonable precautions.

The most common health problem cause by unregulated fragrances is skin allergies, but that isn't the case with IFRA compliant fragrances.

The only problem with using alcohol or other strong cleaners on tolex is that if tolex is thin plastic, these solvents will quite often dissolve the tolex. Certainly a strong rubbing alcohol will destroy most vinyl.

Another thing is that most fragrance chemicals will fade with time. The smell dissipates. Only the large or heavy molecules like musks will remain on a surface longer than a week.

If the tolex itself has been doused with perfume, the alcohol solution blended with the tolex, and in order to clean it, you would have to put the tolex at risk. But in that case, only removing the tolex and washing the wood with the alcohol would work. Then you'd have to re tolex the amp, which may be the way to go.

Again, the solvent that dissolves fragrance chemicals other than alcohol, that is most harmless to skin and has no scent is called DPG, a glycerine or oil like substance that is fairly cheap in bulk. That might well not dissolve the tolex and might well clean the surface of fragrance chemicals. But I'd have to look it up as far as the tolex.

 

[Jchrisf]

So why not just get an ozone generator?
I picked up one from Amazon a few years ago under $100 and it works great.

This one is on sale today.. half off

 

[Braciola]

This one is on sale today.. half off

Thanks, but I already have one.

 

[teleman1]

Got my Ampeg GVT15-112 in a few weeks ago and I haven’t played it more than 15 minutes because I can’t stand the smell. My Marshall 6960 cab has a similar stink that I can’t defeat but it’s dissipated enough that you have to put your nose up to it to smell it, and I spent a lot of time cleaning that too. This thing…I can’t defeat it, it’s baked in so deep and it’s funking weird. It’s a like mix of Glade plugins and some other old people perfume-type of scent, like some nasty toilet mint mixed with Summer Floral Breeze (may or may not be a real scent).

I’ve used Simple Green, 99.9% alcohol, had the amp in a trash bag with baking soda for a week, left it out in the sun for several days, took it all apart and scrubbed the grill cloth with soapy water, and right now it's outside after washing in diluted bleach and the chassis is in a bag with baking soda. It just won’t go away, it’s sickening, like I don't think I can keep this thing if it doesn’t get any better. I’d rather it smell like smoke, maybe I should start blowing weed/cigar puffs on it?

Besides the terrible health and environmental aspects of this garbage, why the hell would anyone want their house to smell like this ****? My neighbors house stinks so bad of this that I smell it as soon as I walk out of the house and anything that comes out of their house is covered in this foul stink. One of the most offensive odors mankind has ever made IMO. Same with Febreze and all that other fake scented chemical garbage out there. STOP FILLING YOUR HOUSE WITH THIS TOXIC CRAP!!

I've seen plenty of threads on smoke smells but what about this chemical stench baked in, anyone have any luck with it?

I am a Realtor. I know that smell well. My first thought and comment to my customer when I see and smell one is,"must or something must be at issue here". To me it smells like ant poison with a scent.

 

[teleman1]

Years ago I loaned my truck to a friend to help him move, and the dropped a stink tree that people hang from their rear view mirror into a vent. Probably to mask the fact that they were smoking in there. I had to sell the truck it, never could get the smell back out.

Same thing happened with a relative. They use to put them in cars at car washes. But I HATE when they scent your car without asking. On the other hand, see how well marketing/propoganda works, it can get you thinking that **** on a stick smells like a rose.

 

[DonaldDemon]

I am a Realtor. I know that smell well. My first thought and comment to my customer when I see and smell one is,"must or something must be at issue here". To me it smells like ant poison with a scent.

I'm going to be encountering it soon enough since I am going to class for home inspections. They haven't covered terrible home smells but maybe they should, you could be right that they may be covering something up!

I obviously hate when they put those stink trees in cars too. They some some people like me are sensitive to it but I just think if you have removed most natural fragrances from your living spaces (and soaps/detergents/etc) that you can more easily recognize how bad that stuff really smells. If you are using scented soaps, laundry detergent, etc then you are hitting your olfactory with that all day and wouldn't notice how bad it smells (like my neighbors house is eminating that stink 24/7).

 

[teleman1]

I'm going to be encountering it soon enough since I am going to class for home inspections. They haven't covered terrible home smells but maybe they should, you could be right that they may be covering something up!

I obviously hate when they put those stink trees in cars too. They some some people like me are sensitive to it but I just think if you have removed most natural fragrances from your living spaces (and soaps/detergents/etc) that you can more easily recognize how bad that stuff really smells. If you are using scented soaps, laundry detergent, etc then you are hitting your olfactory with that all day and wouldn't notice how bad it smells (like my neighbors house is eminating that stink 24/7).

I had my car interior detailed. It took a couple of weeks to get the fragrance out of the car. Left windows open in garage.

 

[Black&Blue]

Charcoal, or kitty litter in a box or bag...place the amp in the bag (or box) and seal it up for a couple/few days...or loan it to a 'carton-a-day' smoker for a week. They can easily replace that smell with a more traditional 'relic' scent.

 

[JD27]

Seal it in a garbage bag with 3 or 4 large bamboo charcoal bags.

I'm trying them out myself. After a few days, my car smells a lot cleaner. I bought them for less than $10 on the river store.

 

[vintage66]

I was looking at a used Fender briefcase style case-stand on eBay and sent a message about the condition asking if it had any funky smell since I can’t physically inspect it and the shop blocked me from buying it saying I must be one of those pain in the ass buyers. Guess I got my answer.

 

[Mr Fingers]

If the substance creating ther smell is on the tubes, transformer, or chassis -- anyplace where it can be baked-on and recooked -- then most of the suggestions mentioned here will do nothing whatsoever for that. It can be very hard to remove if it's physically fused with the amp guts. I hope this is not the case.

 

[aeolian]

If the substance creating ther smell is on the tubes, transformer, or chassis -- anyplace where it can be baked-on and recooked -- then most of the suggestions mentioned here will do nothing whatsoever for that. It can be very hard to remove if it's physically fused with the amp guts. I hope this is not the case.

Read JJJ's post above. If the material is permeable, e.g. wood, then a solvent can carry the volatile organics into it. Things like glass tubes or metal chassis' are not permeable. So they can be cleaned off with the correct solvent.
FWIW, in electronics manufacturing we put isopropryl alcohol onto many plastics with no harmful effects. I can't see a short term application harming Tolex. I've used citric acid paint strippers to take stencils off of Tolex with very minimal effect.

 

[Twoinch]

At this point, scrubbing with solvents and soaps isn't going to remove the smell. Whatever it is would have been removed from the surface by multiple methods at this point.

I think you are dealing with potentially the glue that was used to tolex or assemble the amp...

I don't remember where you said you got the amp... But have you contacted the seller and asked what was used and what method? That May point you in the direction of a fix..

I feel very fortunate that daily fragrance smells aren't this detrimental to my livelihood... To a level that all soaps and cleaners must be fragrance free. Seems unfortunate.

I have mostly understood that scents commonly used as fragrances in general are not toxic or harmful in fragrance level potency, and neither are the solvents commonly used.

Is this problem more of a "to sensitive, can't stand the smell" thing? Or a "fragrances are toxic and i.don't want to smell them, because smelling them means I'm ingesting chemicals" kinda thing? I get mixed signals from the posts.

 

[yfeefy]

Please link us all to the studies that show these fragrances are “toxic“ to human beings. OTOH, we absolutely know for sure cig smoke is indeed toxic.

It's not so simple:

Scent of Danger: Are There Toxic Ingredients in Perfumes and Colognes?

Scientific American is the essential guide to the most awe-inspiring advances in science and technology, explaining how they change our understanding of the world and shape our lives.

www.scientificamerican.com

 

[yfeefy]

At this point, scrubbing with solvents and soaps isn't going to remove the smell. Whatever it is would have been removed from the surface by multiple methods at this point.

I think you are dealing with potentially the glue that was used to tolex or assemble the amp...

I don't remember where you said you got the amp... But have you contacted the seller and asked what was used and what method? That May point you in the direction of a fix..

I feel very fortunate that daily fragrance smells aren't this detrimental to my livelihood... To a level that all soaps and cleaners must be fragrance free. Seems unfortunate.

I have mostly understood that scents commonly used as fragrances in general are not toxic or harmful in fragrance level potency, and neither are the solvents commonly used.

Is this problem more of a "to sensitive, can't stand the smell" thing? Or a "fragrances are toxic and i.don't want to smell them, because smelling them means I'm ingesting chemicals" kinda thing? I get mixed signals from the posts.

My opinion: It's a spectrum. How about -> maybe (some) fragrances are toxic, and they shouldn't be "the default".

Why do fragrances have to be added to everything, to a level where one must struggle to find unscented things? Why do they have to play crap music in stores? Why do they put small products in huge flat heavy plastic laminated slabs that must be removed with heavy scissors? Why do they create a dumb artificial reality that we all have to subsidize, basically.

(I do realize there are more important problems than this, however this mirrors/is a subset of some other very important ones)