Cleaning Car Seat of Smoke

Hi D.

Try washing down the plastic parts with a mixture of 1 part bleach 2 parts water being careful not to get it on the fabric pieces. Then let it air dry. This should get rid of the odor and bacteria left lingering from it previous user.
CM

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You can try leaving it outside in the sun, but it may be a lost cause. Another thought is to stick it in a bag with carpet freshener or baking soda... Good luck.

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If your friend is dead set on using a used convertible car seat (hopefully it came from a friend), you can clean the plastic and get rid of the smell. It requires a bit of work, but this way is better than using 409 or some other super smelly chemical cleaner. 1) remove all the fabric parts that come off easily and wash them in whatever detergent your friend uses, but add apple cider vinegar to the rinse cycle-- for small loads just use a quarter cup. If you don't use the vinegar, the smell will come back even with something like oxyclean. 2) You'll need a sunny spot outside to clean the plastic parts. Mix equal parts, distilled water, vinegar, and vodka in a spray bottle and spray it generously, leave for 3 to 5 minutes and then wipe with clean water. 3) Leave the plastic in the sun to dry. That should take care of the stale nicotine smell.
I have used this method successfully on most stuff I owned as I am an ex-chain smoker.

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I bought a car once that had a heavy cigarette smell inside and what I did was go to an auto supply store like Pep Boys or Kragen or even Walmart and bought this hanging mesh bag of something that actually absorbed the smell (cars do have a lot of plastic in them.)It looked like a bag of white rocks but must have been charcoal of some sort, as in charcoal filters. I would put the car seat inside a large trash bag along with one of those and leave it for a week or so.It worked for my car !

A lot of us buy second hand baby items and they work out fine but a carseat isn't one of those items. You do not know the history (has it been in an accident etc.) and since you are not the registered owner on the warranty card, you will not receive any recall notices. You can check online for recalls on a regular basis but who has time for that! The safest bet is a brand new carseat!

I would just get new fabric from the car seat's manufacturer. If you go online to let's say, Britax, you can find the proper size car seat cover as long as you know the model.

Second-hand carseats are not always the safest. I would first check out to see how old it is and if it is worth saving. If you go online and google carseats, recommendations are that you buy a new one. I know it is not always cost effective, but the child's safety is more important. I agree with one of the other mothers who responded, I would be wary of anyone who is careless enough to smoke with a baby in the car, I would wonder how safe that carseat is.

You may need to wash the fabric a few times, try adding oxiclean or something like that to the wash. With the plastic part clean it really well with 409 or Simple Green or a cleaner like that of your choice. If possible leave it outside to air out. I inherited a few pieces of furniture from my uncle who smoked a lot, so bad his white walls were yellow from nicotine. I was able to clean the furniture (particle board nothing fancy) and get the smell out...so it can be done.

Hi D.,

My suggestion: throw it away. Anyone who is carelss enough to smoke with their child in the car can not be trusted to pass on a child seat. There is no guarentee that the seat has not been in an accident. Once your child seat has been in a car accident, it must be replaced. I would seriously question who gave it to your sister-in-law and what kind of person they are. If she doesn't know this person then definitely throw it away. I know $200-300 is a lot for a car seat but isn't your child worth that?

J.

I have heard the same thing. When we had our car seat inspected by the CHP when we installed it, the officer also told us you should never use a secondhand car seat because they can be unsafe. I know how it is trying to save money etc., but I would save it another way if possible! Buy second hand clothes and toys (I have done that :-) ) but invest in a brand new carseat.

As a car seat technician, I have to advise you to NEVER use a second-hand seat. When you don't know the history it's not a safe thing to do. If it's been in an accident, it may need to be destroyed. Let her know it's not a good idea to keep the seat....

I agree with Jill H and some of the other mom's that feel the same way. The 2 baby items i refuse to buy second hand is a crib and most of all a car seat. Its the two places baby spend most of their days. You can't put a price on you child's safety. I can't believe someone would smoke in a car with children to have the carseat smell like that. It makes me sick thinking about it. Imagine the poor child that had to sit in it.

Baby gear is so over priced but look on line for cheap deals I would buy new carseat.Walmart and Target have good prices and Babies R Us sometimes has coupons for discounts on any carseat or makr downs on carseats at times to make room for new ones. I would be trashing this one no matter how great is looks. That's just me.

I have 2 beautiful boys. 2.5 and 4 months.