Cigar nights, a home bar, a hookah on the lanai that ended up inside: in South Florida, these smells are common. Cigar and hookah smoke behave a little differently from cigarettes, so it helps to know what you’re dealing with before you start cleaning.
Why Cigar and Hookah Smells Stick
- Cigar smoke is heavy. A cigar burns longer and puts out more smoke than a cigarette. The sticky residue settles on walls, ceilings, curtains and furniture, and the smell comes back on hot, humid days.
- Hookah smoke is sweet and thick. Flavored tobacco is usually mixed with molasses or glycerin, so the smoke leaves a sweet, sticky film along with the tobacco smell.
- The AC spreads it. Smoke pulled into the return ends up in the filter and ducts, then gets pushed into every room.
A safety note on hookah: hookah charcoal gives off carbon monoxide. If anyone smokes hookah indoors, make sure the home has a working carbon monoxide alarm.
How to Clean It Out, Step by Step
- Get the source out. Empty ashtrays, cigar butts and hookah bowls outside. Clean the hookah base, hose and bowl, or store them outside. A hookah hose holds a lot of smell.
- Change the AC filter and wipe the return grille and supply vents.
- Wash walls and ceilings. Use a degreasing cleaner and warm water, working from the top down. If the rag turns yellow or brown, that’s the residue holding the smell.
- Wash everything washable. Curtains, pillow covers, throws and bedding. Add a cup of white vinegar to the rinse.
- Treat furniture and carpet. Deep-clean upholstery and carpet following the care tag. See how to get a smell out of a couch and how to get a smell out of carpet.
- Don’t forget hard surfaces. Bar tops, cabinets, blinds, ceiling fan blades, light fixtures and the inside of closets all hold residue.
- Keep the AC running and use activated charcoal in the room while the rest of the smell fades.
Sprays and candles only cover the smell for a few hours, and mixing scents with cigar smoke often makes it worse. For cigarettes and other smoke, see cigarette smoke smell, weed smoke smell and our guide to every kind of smoke smell.
Landlords, Buyers and Sellers
Cigar and hookah smell is one of the hardest smells to show around. If a tenant left it behind or you’re listing a home, clean the surfaces first, then treat the air. See odor removal between tenants and selling a house that smells.
When the Whole House Still Smells Like Smoke
After the cleaning, smoke smell can still hang in the air and the AC system. Our whole-home odor removal treatment treats the air throughout the entire home, including one AC system and an attached garage. You’ll be out for about 8 hours, pets included. A single apartment or condo unit is priced the same way. It’s an odor treatment only, so the residue cleaning above comes first.
Whole-Home Odor Removal in South Florida: $997
Our Whole-Home Odor Removal Treatment is $997 and includes one AC system ($550 for each additional AC unit). You can buy and schedule it online, or call 877-224-2532 to request a free visual inspection. We answer 24/7; when you call, we’ll tell you honestly when a technician can be there based on that day’s schedule. Hablamos español.
About the author: James Rice-Peña is the owner of FL Cleanup and a Florida-licensed Mold Assessor (MRSA4035) and Mold Remediator (MRSR4158). He has worked in property restoration in South Florida since 2012, and FL Cleanup has earned 200+ five-star Google reviews.
