How to deodorize a second-hand book?

August 25, 2007 5:58 AM

How to deodorize a smelly second-hand book?

Got a second-hand book yesterday. It's in great condition throughout, although the previous owner was clearly a smoker. Even with the book just nearby me on the desk as I type this, I get the whiff of stale smoke. It's obviously worse when I open and read it.

It's 600 pages and I'm only just got past page 100. So is there a way to deodorize a book?

posted by long haired lover from liverpool to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (3 answers total)

Pour a good few drops of lavender oil onto a paper towel, then place the book and the soaked paper towel in a large clippy bag. Seal the bag. Place in a dark cupboard for 3 days to a week. Unseal the bag, then air the book so you aren't knocked out by lavender fumes every time you open it (a day sitting in an airy room will do it).
posted by goo at 6:16 AM on August 25, 2007 [1 favorite]

What has always worked for me was to put the books into a large plastic garbage bag with a large amount of crumpled up newspapers. Seal the bag and leave it sit for a while. I don't have a timeline because I haven't been in a rush to read the books, but it has always been a month or more. The newspapers absorb the odors and leave the book better than when it went in.
posted by mcarthey at 6:30 AM on August 25, 2007

See also the suggestions here & here.
posted by misteraitch at 6:36 AM on August 25, 2007