Smoke and nicotine stains

[Chris McDaniel]

Hi all, Okay, so I just took position of a property and the previous owners smoked inside for years. Everything is yellow. I’ve gutted the house and painted two coats of kilz, the house still smells really bad. It’s been airing out for two weeks and I can’t seem to get the smell out. Any thoughts, suggestions or ideas? A friend recommended an ozone machine but I don’t know anything about them. There is literally nothing left in the house that can be taken out, except all the Sheetrock. Anyone have any thoughts?

[Andrew Korver]

Hey Chris, perhaps I can assist here.  Disclosure- Am a field representative for Sherwin Williams.

I have worked in coatings for the past decade.  In my experience, the only thing that truly works over nicotine staining and smoke smell is a true Shellac primer.   Be prepared to shell out some $$$ when compared to the budget "primer/sealers".  The Kilz type products help, but don't ever seem to completely eliminate the odor.  

There are also latex topcoats that have active enzymes that will "absorb" ambient odor such as Harmony from Sherwin Williams.  This will assist for 6 months to a year but is not a permanent fix for the root cause of the odor.  

The ozone machine is also a solid recommendation.  Good luck!