Best way to clear gun cleaning odors in a confined Apartment?

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marklbucla

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The wife doesn't like the smell of Hoppe's in the Apartment, so I've neglected to clean the guns for quite awhile. Is there an effective way of keeping the smell out or down to a minimum at least? Will fans blowing out the window work or candles?
 
My wife doesn't like the smell of Hoppe's either.

Buy something else to clean with, open the windows. Breakfree isn't as offensive. Remoil just smells like machine oil and does a pretty decent job. I think breakfree cleans a little better than the remoil, though.

Clean them out on the deck in a stained white tshirt and camo pants? Nah, that'd be like a cliche.
 
Cigars, well sort of

Go to a cigar store and get a "smoke eater" candle. They work. They remove the smell of cigar smoke, hoppes, bacon, you name it... they are magical.
 
Another vote for Breakfree - it is awesome, and smells great - hard to explain but its like pepper or something. :)
 
1. Get one of those 'Yankee candles'.
2. Eat a big meal of baked beans before cleaning firearms. :eek:
3. Clean firearms at the range, before coming home.
4. Buy 'significant other' clothes pin and attach to her nose.
5. Explain that it is a 'Man' thing. Hoppes to men is like Chanel #5 to women.

Last option. . . clean firearms with Break-Free CLP.
 
Plenty of ventilation is always advisable with strong odors.
Many folks with respiratory problems (asthma, sinus etc) will appreciate this, so will your own system.

HVAC Filters will hold strong odors, consider changing them. If filters are still "good" often letting air out in the sun will remove odors and allow using again when cleaning with guns solvents or other strong odors.
Note: during Pollen season, be careful to not leave these filters outside only to bring the Pollen inside !

No scented candles, this too sets off allergies. Use plain candles, Oil Lamps and these will remove odors.
Lemon juice diluted and used in sinks, tubs and such , also absorb odors.
Baking Soda, absorbs odors.

For instance Baking Soda cleans tile, fiberglass and similar without scratching.
Sprinkle into sinks, tubs and all before cleaning with Gun solvent and when rinsed away - will carry some of the odor absorbed.


Simple Green does bother some folks, be respectful of others and olfactory concerns/ sensitivities.
Still Simple Green with its sassafras sent assists in masking odors.
 
Burning candles, smoking cigars, they all mask odors, but the smell will still be there. Personally I love the smell of Hoppes. I am trying to think of a less smelly cleaner, and the one I am thinking of is GI Bore cleaner. I think the “smelly” cleaners have ammonia in them, to remover copper fouling. Breakfree and GI bore cleaner are powder solvents only. They do not contain ammonia. If you are cleaning a handgun, a bore brush with Breakfree or GI bore cleaner will rid the bore of most of fouling, though mechanical scrubbing of lead and copper, and will dissolve the powder fouling.

If you have a rifle, you are going to need to use a copper solvent every now and then. And everyone I can think of, Sweets, Butches, Shooter’s Choice, all have an acrid smell.

You can always stick a fan in the window and let the fumes blow out. And since it is spring time, that won’t be so bad.

If you are a student at Bama, maybe go over to the Chemistry Department and explain your problem. They guys there might have an idea of a non smelly mix that you could mix up. Or, try Ed's Red. The receipe will pop up with a Goggle search. It has ATF which may smell worse to the wife than Hoppe's.
 
Covering up the smell may work but really you want to vent this stuff.
go to any modelbuilders sight and look at the plans for paint boxes. There are some really ingenious and cheap to construct ones out there.

I actually took a large tupperware bin, cut a hole in the top, and duct taped a large bathroom vent fan to it. Took a dryer hose from the exhaust of the fan and tossed the other end out a window. Looks ugly as sin but works pretty darn well for fumes of all sorts (model glue, paint, gun cleaning, etc).

http://pages.interlog.com/~ask/scale/tips/booth.htm

http://www.internationalhobby.com/kpitem.asp?ItemCode=GUT003

http://www.hobbylinc.com/htm/tes/tes50210.htm
 
I really like Mpro7 as a gun cleaner:
http://www.mp7.com/MPro7GunCleaner.aspx

It does not give off toxic fumes - doesn't really have a noticeable odor at all.
Guns come out cleaner with less fuss and difficulty.
Read the instructions - there are slight differences in the cleaning routine.

FWIW, I don't care for their patches or their lubricant. But their cleaner is tops.
 
I have the same problem with Hoppes in my apartment. I usually just open the windows and clean away though as I live alone. Nothing like coming home to an apartment that smells like Hoppes even with all the windows open haha. My suggestion to you would be to give your $50 and tell her to go shopping for a while. By the time she comes back you will be done. If that won't work then just tell her that you HAVE to clean them because you don't want it to jam when the BG breaks in and you have to defend her life. ... Good luck.
 
For the really nasty stuff, I have to go out on my (rather small) balcony. I bought a large plastic trash can and some plastic sheeting.

Otherwise, I have to ventilate. I'm going to have to try the baking soda sm suggested.

jm
 
Try using small bottles of your solvent, I've found that larger ones allow more evaporation than the smaller bottles. If you cut the neck off of a 2 liter pop bottle, you can set it over the end of the barrel to catch the patches as they exit the muzzle.

Other than that, try to clean when she's out of the house or at a minimum clean your guns outside whenever possible.
 
A post-cleaning session idea would probably be to throw the solvent-soaked stuff in a sealed bag and throw it in the dumpster rather than leave it in a garbage can. That stuff has a tendancy to be omnipresent but hard to track down later on.
 
Radically different idea for odor elimination

If you are reasonably handy and can use a soldering iron, you might want to consider this approach to elimination of odors of all sorts. :D

Ramsey Electronics sells a kit to build what they call an Ion Generator. This is a unit with no moving parts that generates ozone, among other ions, that will rapidly eliminate virtually all odors within a given room. The amount of ozone generated is harmless and it only uses about four (4) watts of power.

I have successfully built and used several of them, giving one to each of my daughters and one to my marina. The marina uses it in a lounge where they have a mildew problem. It WORKS! Eliminates both the mildew odor and the mildew.

I use one in my basement when cleaning the artillery and it effectively reduces and then eliminates the Hoppes aroma in short order.

For details, go to http://www.ramseyelectronics.com/cgi-bin/commerce.exe?preadd=action&key=IG7 to see this item. (NOTE: You may have to cut and paste this URL into your browser as I am not certain that I managed to insert a clickable address here.)

Here is part of what the page says:

IG7 - Ion Generator Kit
Only: $74.90 (with AC adapter producing a 12v DC output)

This product has a shipping weight of 0.50 pounds.

Generate a Breath of Fresh Air!

Generate negative ions along with a blast of fresh air, without any noise!
Generates a steady state DC voltage at a constant current, not pulsed!
Generates 7.5kV DC negative, 400uA. That's a lot of ions!

This nifty kit includes a pre-made high voltage ion generator potted for your protection, and probably the best one available for the price. It also includes a neat experiment called an "ion wind generator". This generator works great for pollution removal in small areas (Imagine after Grandpa gets done in the bathroom!), and moves the air through the filter simply by the force of ion repulsion! No fan blades, no noise, just swiftly moving, charged air. Use the Ion Generator to pump your VanDeGraff generator to a faster charge time, and generate negative ions for health and healing! Includes ion power supply, 7 ion wind tubes, and mounting hardware for the ion wind generator.


Caution...do not grab the output of the transformer when the unit is plugged in. It WILL zap you but it is current limited and harmless. I have been "bit" several times but it only catches your attention with no harm done except to your dignity. :what:
 
Ballistol.

With folks going through Cancer, families of these folks, kids, and some with respiratory concerns like asthma, that is what we are using.

The odor goes away quick, non toxic and this stuff really does clean, lube and protect well.
Kids are kids, and though they do not waste it, they will use it for other things around the house as well. One less "worry" and the adults with these other serious concerns, find using it for household uses a good idea as well.

On the rare occasions something needs more heavy duty attention [like a tractor part, used firearm bought, small engine...] one of us others will do this outside, out in a barn, shed - wherever for these persons.

One lady, now passed, with her Chemo would get real sick with the smell of Dawn dish-washing detergent and Brillo pad soap.
She went to Ivory dish soap and nylon scrubber.
Gain laundry detergent was another smell. All or Cheer laundry detergent with NO dyes, no perfumes is what I recommended, what I have been using.

Common courtesy and respect is just part of being a responsible firearm owner in my book.
 
Try finding a green apple scented candle. The smell of Hoppe's and green apples seems to compliment each other, makes a good scent in my opinion.

BTW does anyone else find the idea of a Hoppe's scented candle to be appealling? Sort of like how gearheads have burnout scented candles now!
 
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