I bought a 51 that was sitting in a trailer along with farm equipment for a long time. As near as I can tell from the paperwork 15 years. It has that barn odor really bad. I don't want to redo the interior because it is in unbelievably great condition. I want to keep it in original original condition. Right now the seats, door panels, and rear shelf cardboard are out and sitting on my patio getting some fresh air and sun, but I know that is not the answer.

Can anyone give me some help here on getting rid of this odor. I've washed down the entire interior metal parts with Mr. Clean but I know the smell is in the headliner and under the dash, probably in the wiring insulation also.

Thanks

 

You might try Febreze and a lot of time airing it out.

 

I've had good luck with Natures Miracle pet deodorizer for a variety of cleaning jobs, not just cars.

 

I had a skunk let loose in the garage with my 68 Firebird a long while ago.
I lit a half dozen incense sticks in the car and closed the windows. Smoke was so thick, you couldn't see through the car window to window. Let it sit for overnight. The incense smell was there for weeks, but no skunk.
Good luck.

George

 

Pet odor remover or several boxes of baking soda!
Two boxes of baking soda removes odors from the fridge quite well, so a dozen in that car may work well, also. They are cheap, too.

 

Coming out of a barn are you sure there is not a couple dead rats in the car?

 

You don't want to hear my response: You'll get used to it.

- Eric

 

No I know for a fact there are no dead anything in the car. Like I said I have the complete interior out on my patio trying to air out. The only thing I didn't take out was the headliner because other than being old and discolored it is in perfect shape. I did find a very few droppings in the trunk but nothing else. The trunk panels and liners are also on the patio. Thank God my wife puts up with my nonsense.

Eric, no I don't think I'll get used to it!! Ever!! It's really bad.

 

I hear charcoal absorbs odor.

 

I've also heard this. It might be worth it to get some lump charcoal at the hardware store and put some in the floorboard (in a pan of course). Don't get Kingsford charcoal briquettes because these have added chemicals to help them light.

 

Officially speaking, the charcoal that absorbs odors is "activated charcoal," which you can buy on line, and possibly at aquarium stores, as it is used in filters.

The other stuff may help a bit, but activated charcoal is the stuff that might do it.

Also, I would suggest trichloroethylene, otherwise known as "dry cleaning fluid."
It was found by someone somewhere to be hazardous, so is very hard to get now, but if you happened across a gallon, it might wash the smell out without damaging the materials.

- Eric

 

When We Ran A Used Car Lot We Had A Guy That Came By Regularly That Had A Small Ozone Fogger.It Worked Extremely Well on Smoke Or Pet Odors And Only Took About Twenty Minutes.Check With The Local Car Dealers And Also Motel Owners,and Maybe They Know Of Someone In Your Area. The Process was Started By NASA. LARRY

 

Just Found Out That There's A Aerosol Fogger Product On Amazon Called GONE SMOKE. Very Reasonably Priced. Might Be Worth A Try! LARRY

 

There are also scented candles you can get that "eat smoke." I smoke cigars at a shop back home and the propeiter sells candles that are supposed to "clean the air" of cigar odor. They smell rather pleasant and are comparably priced to the Yankee candles my wife buys.

 

I use an OZONE generator in my fabric shop when I get vintage fabric that been smoked around and it does a decent job. "Living Air" by alpine is the original one and I find them at thrift shops now and then. 10 to 25 bucks

 

I don't know how bad is bad but my cousin is a mortician and he uses a product that will take the smell(stink) out of most anything. Just a few drops neutralises the smell in a whole room, I've seen it advertised in the past for use in dumpsters that get rank you might do a search on that type of product. I think it was called dumpster fresh or something like that...Tedd

 

Tedd.If A Few Drops Of This Will Keep Down Odor Of Dead People And Of Dumpster Smell it Should Run That Barn Odor Right Back Out In The Pasture'. You Please Be Careful Around That "Undertaker Cousin" ! He Might Be Anxious To Be The "Last One To Let You Down".
ha-ha . Larry

 

I know very well what you mean by the barn smell! I'm still airing the barn mobile out

above my headliner there is a felt pad glued to the roof. I'm guessing a lot of dirt and smell is stuck in that. have you tried gently vacuuming the headliner also?. I know you said you pulled the interior out, but is there any of the unerlayment felt still in the car?

 

Yes, there is nothing in the interior left but the headliner. The felt is off of the floor, all the trunk liners and cardboard is out, the rear package tray cardboard is out, the door panels are out. Heck, I even took out the glove box and sun visors. Everything is baking in the sun on the patio, has been there for a week and still smells. The headliner was brushed and vacuumed with a shop vac. Tomorrow I'm washing all the interior metal panels with lemon scented Mr. Clean. I also removed all the window moldings to wash them.

 

I reduced the barn smell considerably on my car yesterday. I put a big box fan on the floor, opened all the doors and windows and just let it blow for 8 hours outside. It is not rainbow fresh yet, but it is much better!

 

don't mean to laugh but i remember as a kid going camping w/ the fams.. someone left the back cargo door open on the family van & a skunk got in. late night or early morning my dad went to take a drive somewhere slammed the back door shut, hopped in & started the van. the skunk freaked out & sprayed a few times inside the van before my dad could get it out. i remember cleaning all the slobbered clawmarks off the seats & the windows. i don't think that smell ever went away

Tommy

 

That would definitely be a bad smell.

I recall an episode of Mythbusters in which they put a pig carcass in a late model Camaro and enclosed it in a shipping container for a month+. After retrieving the Camaro they had to gut the interior and they tried to get the smell out of the car. They weren't succesfull.

 

Laughing is allowed!
I have been airing the car out just about every day with the windows down and yesterday i jumped in and felt something squirming next to me. I jumped out fast thinking it was a snake (and i watched indiana jones as a kid). Turns out it was just a little lizard.

yeah, look out for critters! Luckily mine wasn't a skunk

 

Don't forget the duck work for the heater, turn on the blower and see what comes out or what smell?

 

There is also padding under the dash that can hold odors.........

 

As far as the ductwork for the heater, I can't turn on the fan cause it's not converted to 12 Volts yet. On my list of things to do. There is no padding under the dash on this car. However the ductwork for the defrosters is cloth tubing which I will soak with Febreze.