You’ve been looking online for a new house and you’ve just found the house of your dreams, a perfect size for your family, every upgrade you were hoping to find.  As you and your realtor walk through the door of your perfect house, you smell it:  Marijuana.  As you feel your heart crumble in disappointment, you will inevitably ask yourself if this is a deal breaker or can this problem be addressed so as not to affect your health long-term?

Smoke residue in homes and cars is referred to as “third-hand smoke.”  Marijuana smoke is of extra concern, especially for families.  There are a few considerations to be made about smoke in the home to bring light to the way we address it.

  • Marijuana and tobacco smoke, while different, are similar in how they affect our homes and are similar in how they are to be cleaned and removed.

  • While smoke, regardless of its origin, is bad for your health, marijuana is actually less “toxic” because cigarettes are filled with toxins and chemicals that are additives to the tobacco itself.  Again, smoke in any form is bad for your health and can cause health problems, but the content of the smoke from the two sources is different.

  • “Third-hand smoke,” which includes residue on walls, in carpets, and in vents, as well as on clothes, drapes and curtains, and on ceilings, generally continues in its highest potency for harm for about 2 months after the last smoke, but it can continue to be harmful long afterwards based on the length of time smoking was present in the home and the concentration of smoke, i.e., how often someone smoked in the house per day.

  • The clean up process will be different depending on how integrated the smoke is into your home.  If you had a marijuana smoker in your home who was a “social” smoker, i.e., smoked once or twice a month at the most, your process for cleaning will not take as long.  If you had a marijuana AND cigarette smoker in the home who smoked consistently every day, more than once a day, your process for cleaning will be longer and may require a professional cleaning company to come in and assist.

Now, the big question:  How do we deal with marijuana smoke in the home?  There are a couple of things you can do.  First of all, dissipation of smoke takes time, but there is a little we can do to help speed up the process.

  • Get an air purifier and get it running immediately, preferably 2-3 days before you move in.  If you have a two-story home, you may need one upstairs and one downstairs, but have the air purifier running constantly for a couple of days before you start moving your stuff in.

  • Wash down all your surfaces.  You can use a natural cleaner, such as an apple cider vinegar base, or a chemically-based cleaner and wash all walls, counters, cabinets, baseboards, and ceilings.  This will get rid of any dust or grime that contains the toxins found in smoke.

  • Get your carpets cleaned!  Getting your carpets professionally cleaned will make a significant difference in the toxin level in your home, not only for smoke, but any other contaminants in carpet, including pet hair and allergens.

  • Call in professional vent cleaners and get your vents cleaned out.  Ventilation systems can house dust and debris that can provide a nice environment to store toxins that get blown throughout your house every time you turn on your air.

  • Depending on the duration and consistency of smoking in the home, repainting your walls with a stain and odor locking paint will go a long way to contain the health-damaging toxins found in marijuana smoke.

Don’t be dismayed if you discover marijuana has been smoked in the home of your dreams.  The long-term effects on your health can be eliminated through the plan of action as listed above, and this plan can restore your new home to the clean, healthy environment you can enjoy.