How To Get Rid of Skunk Smell

Removing the skunk smell from people is one of the most straightforward processes on this list.

1. Take A Bath Immediately

Showering immediately should be your first step in removing the smell. It is a straightforward step in how to get rid of skunk stink. But to achieve that faster, wash your entire body in the shower using a deodorant soap or a grease-cutting dish detergent.

Obviously, soap or a grease-cutter is unsuitable for your hair, so wash your hair with a shampoo made for oily hair. This practice should not generally be a problem as you are unlikely to get skunked in the head. But if you already have the shampoo, it is an extra precaution.

2. Soak in Baking Soda

What happens if the skunk stink persists after taking a shower? You are now frantically looking for options on how to get rid of the skunk scent. Bathing a second time will not help because you already used the soap or shampoo.

Regardless, we have another solution for you that works - soak in a bath! For that, pour 2-4 cups of baking soda in hot water in the bathtub. Soak in the solution for 15-20 minutes and then rinse.

Inspect and check your body thoroughly for any potentially missed spots where the stink chemicals might still linger.

Before we get started, we recommend ensuring that your pet's eyes are not affected if your pet got sprayed. If your pet's eyes look uncomfortable or irritated, we recommend taking your pet to a vet, as the spray is similar to tear gas, which can be blinding.

1. Make a DIY Pet Skunk Odor Remover

If you do not want to end up learning how to get rid of skunk odor in your home while working on your pet, remember this - Bath your pet outside! Quarantining your pet somewhere is also wise, as it could take a few weeks to eliminate the smell, and they might transfer it onto surfaces inside your house. 

Mix 1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide, 1/4 cup baking soda, and two teaspoons of dishwashing soap. Wash and rinse your pet thoroughly using this solution without getting it in their eyes. 

Avoid leaving the lather for over 5 minutes, as it can bleach and lighten your pet's fur. You can buy hydrogen peroxide from any pharmacy or mart. Alternatively, you may substitute with white vinegar, which is less potent.

Cautionary Note:

Dispose of this solution by diluting it with water and pouring it down the drain instead of storing it in a bottle. Storing it in a bottle can result in it exploding due to pressure inside.

You may also follow up with a proper pet shampoo that imparts a lovely scent while your pet is still in the bathtub to forget the nightmare.

2. Store Bought Odor Remover

Alternatively, you can use a store-bought product such as a Skunk Odor Remover shampoo on your pet instead if you do not want to mess around with chemistry or simply for convenience's sake.

There is less risk in case the composition gets into their eyes, and safer for their fur. Follow any instructions written on the bottle and rinse the solution off thoroughly, then air dry the fluffy fur of your pet.

1. Mix Laundry Detergent With Baking Soda

Baking soda is the holy grail of chemicals when removing skunk stinks. Plus, this approach is straightforward. Mix your laundry detergent with 1/2 cup of baking soda in hot water and air dry them. That should remove the foul smell from most clothing and fabrics. 

We recommend air drying as forcibly drying in your clothes dryer may result in the machine getting infused with the odor if the detergent and baking soda mix fails to remove it.

If you have delicate fabrics that may not survive the rough handling of the washing machine, then use the same solution of detergent and baking soda to soak the delicate fabrics in a tub or a sink.

After 30 minutes, rinse and air dry the fabric. Repetition may be required due to the lack of heavy laundering, even though this is a far preferable alternative to throwing away your skunked clothes or ruining them due to heavy washing.

Alternatively, if you have money to spare and soak washing a fabric several times is not your thing, you can buy and use a store-bought commercial product such as a Skunk Off Liquid Soaker to remove the repulsive smell from your delicate fabrics with less effort.

You can also use this in the washing machine instead of the detergent and baking soda mix for improved efficacy. It might be your best option if you have to remove the smell from the mattresses, although we would rather not ask why your mattress stinks of skunk in the first place.

Skunks eat a wide range of food inside your home - from pizza to raw eggs. They're always searching for food so it can enter your home curiously.

The skunk smells can linger for up to days or weeks. And you obviously cannot sit idle, hoping it will go away on its own because you cannot. The smell might follow you in your dreams.

To prevent that, we have included several measures on how to get rid of the skunk smell in the house. 

1. Open The Windows

Open all of your windows. The sunlight will oxidize the odor of the compounds produced by the skunk and shorten its lifespan by converting them into odorless sulfonic acids, so ensure as much sunlight can come in as possible. 

If possible, you can also run electric fans of the central heating system or ACs to circulate the air to dilute and weaken the floating thiol compounds.

2. Place Vinegar

If your place does not get much or intense sunlight, then another way to neutralize skunk musk is by placing bowls of vinegar. Place bowls of distilled white vinegar in the affected rooms for two or three days.

The vinegar absorbs and neutralizes the odor much, like the sunlight. Remember to keep the vinegar bowls away from your pet and children because if they accidentally consume them, no matter how weak the vinegar, it can inflame the stomach lining and result in acid reflux. 

To avoid this, you can pour them into inexpensive plastic containers and punch holes in the lids. 

3. Use Steam Cleaning

Steam cleaning is a fool-proof method for how to eliminate the skunk smell because it washes away the odor compounds stuck in fabrics that cannot be put in the washing machine, such as couches, carpets, and mattresses. 

When steam cleaning these surfaces, water alone is not effective. You should use a solution like vinegar, so ensure your steamer can handle vinegar. If not, it might corrode the metals inside.

And if you are worried that the vinegar might eat away at the fabrics, you can use hydrogen peroxide, which is gentler and one of the ways to get rid of the musty smell.

4. Using Bleach and Water

If you have to clean the skunk scent off hard surfaces such as marble-tiled floors and furniture, you can use a mixture of a 1:9 ratio of bleach and water. It will perfectly remove the foul smell.

As with all things, we recommend testing it first in a small area to prevent damage or discoloration from bleach due to the sheer variance in materials that may be used in an object, which makes it impossible to list all the recommendations and non-recommended materials for using bleach.

5. Replace The Air Filters of HVAC

You should change the air filters of your respective HVAC systems once the odor is gone if you have utilized air conditioners, heaters, or furnaces to get rid of the stinking smell. It will help avoid reintroducing skunk odor in the house as the smell compounds may get into the filters of these systems.

The compounds are pretty persistent if not neutralized chemically. They can remain in your air filters until you finally use the heating or the air conditioning after a few weeks, only to smell your house stink up again. After all, it is better to be safe than sorry.

So your unlucky car got skunked while the skunk was spraying its territory with its musk. Well, at least it was not your house, so unless the musk somehow got to the insides of your car, this should be pretty easy to clean, as the exterior is made of hard surfaces.

1. Let The Sun Shine

As we mentioned previously, the smell dissipates under ambient sunlight, meaning it will not stink anymore. If the smell somehow got to the interior of the car, then roll down the windows to let the sun hit the upholstery.

If you are in a hurry and letting the sun do its thing might not be fast enough, continue toward the recommendation below.

2. Place Bowls of Vinegar

This solution is more effective than simply letting the sun do its work. Place bowls of distilled white vinegar in the front and the back seat of the car and ensure it is spill-proof.

The vinegar will neutralize the odor but will still need 2-3 days to work. If you need them to work even faster, then mix a de-skunking solution specified below and wash the car.

3. Mix a De-Skunking Solution

Since the car exterior is all buffed hard surfaces, metal or otherwise, they will not stain easily. You can, therefore, mix a 1:9 solution of bleach and water. Alternatively, you could also use a 1:9 solution of hydrogen peroxide and water to wash down the car.

You could also use both of these solutions for cleaning the upholstery, but since they can bleach depending on the interior material, first test whether they can get bleached by the solution.

4. Baby Shampoo or Commerical Product For Interior

If the previous solutions were too harsh and you suspect might be capable of defacing the materials, you could use a baby's shampoo to clean your upholstery. I mean, everyone has those in their homes, right? If you don't, you do not have to buy one. 

Instead, buy a commercial product to clean the interior of the car. It will be of more use to you in cleaning your car's interior in the future, even if there is no skunk smell, instead of buying shampoo for what we assume is a babyless household.

Are you wondering how in the heck does it smell of skunk in your house? Did a skunk sneak into your home or the skunk  to eat in your yard and wild? Actually, no. As we previously discussed, skunk musk scents can spread and permeate to nearby objects if you are not careful.

It could have been your skunked pet or skunks simply going around and marking their territory with their sprays, and the unfortunate victim happened to be your home or car.

You may have caught that we previously compared skunk musk to tear gas. That wasn't a joke. Both are scientifically classified as lachrymators, which means they are designed to irritate the eyes and nose while causing excess mucus production, tears, and even nausea. 

Not only that but when skunks discharge their oily, yellow spray from their anal glands in self-defense, they can reach over three feet and vaporizes quickly, permeating practically everything it touches.

Skunk spray also dissipates slowly, tormenting the victim like no tomorrow. What causes its staying power, though?

The secret to their staying power is in the larger thiol-containing compound of thioacetates, which can remain stable and dormant but quickly morph into foul-smelling thiols once they come into contact with water or humidity.

So, the stink can reoccur for days or even longer after the skunking initially occurred if you did not clean it properly the first time.