Smelly new wardrobe!

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jemberelli
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Smelly new wardrobe!

Post by jemberelli »

A couple of months ago we bought 2 wardrobes and a chest of drawers, all the same range. They are made from pine (unvarnished) and so far only one wardrobe has been put together! The problem we have is that the wood smells so much that all of my clothes that are kept on the shelving side absolutely reek! It is not a nice new wood smell but a very acrid smell that is very unpleasant. Having researched online a bit I think I have established that the way to go is to paint the inside with polyuerthane varnish. Does anyone know if this is the best thing to do and, if so, whether it should be oil or water based? Thanks in advance lovely Laners )t'
No girls at the moment but look forward to getting more in the future. Proud mummy to Hector, a Bedlington Terrier x Jack Russell
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Mo
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Re: Smelly new wardrobe!

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But Jem doesn't
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Richard
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Re: Smelly new wardrobe!

Post by Richard »

Sorry Mo, tested out 'I like' smiley and forgot to delete >dum<

I have now
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Mo
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Re: Smelly new wardrobe!

Post by Mo »

Well now you've deleted you've made nonsense of my post - perhaps you should delete that too. (and this one!)
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silverback
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Re: Smelly new wardrobe!

Post by silverback »

Hi Jem, I would suspect it could be some form of preservative that's causing the smell, if it's been treated!, has the other units got this smell?, what is the smell like?, were the units boxed and packaged when delivered?. I guess a good quality polyurethane varnish would seal the wood, but may lock the smell in!, what about leaving it to air for a while to see if the smell dissipates!!..
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jemberelli
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Re: Smelly new wardrobe!

Post by jemberelli »

Thanks SB, the wardrobe was boxed & well packaged. It has been built & in use for a couple of months with the room being well ventilated due to the nice weather. Wardrobe 2 is unpacked and in bits in the spare room - will have to do a smell test to see if it is as bad! The drawers are still in the box so I guess I should unpack & air them. The smell is difficult to describe - slightly woody but very acrid and makes my clothes smell so bad that hubby can smell them when I walk past! It's not a musty smell.

I did wonder about the varnish locking the smell in - my only other idea was to look into making some scented drawer liners to see if that helped. Need to do something, I have spent all day washing & drying the clothes that were shelved and have nowhere to put them!
No girls at the moment but look forward to getting more in the future. Proud mummy to Hector, a Bedlington Terrier x Jack Russell
Gwenoakes
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Re: Smelly new wardrobe!

Post by Gwenoakes »

Could you ask the people you bought the units from what they can recommend? I mean, if they smell that bad they must have had some questions about this problem and maybe could come up with some easy/cheap answers.

Good luck.
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