Get rid of Kilz smell: If you’ve ever bought kilz and gotten it home only to discover that it smells terrible, you know how annoying that can be. The smell of kilz is often described as that of smelly socks.
It’s a lingering odor and one that can affect how comfortable you are in your own home.
While some people might be able to work around the smell of the paint, others may have a hard time. In either case, there are ways to get rid of the paint smell so that you can use your room without being bothered by it.
Fortunately, finding a solution to the problem is easy enough once you know what it is. Take this guide for what it is: a guideline to get rid of that oil-based paint smell in your home without spending thousands of dollars or resorting to impractical methods.
Table of Contents
How To Get Rid Of Kilz Smell: Overview
Kilz is an oil-based paint that’s used to cover up the smell of mildew, mold, and other odors. The problem is that it can also leave behind an unpleasant odor. To get rid of this odor, you’ll need to eliminate the source of the problem and then use some natural cleaners.
If your Kilz has been on your walls for a while and you want to get rid of the smell, there are several ways that you can try:
Use a Dehumidifier
The Kilz smell can permeate through any material, but one of the best ways to get rid of it is to use a dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers remove moisture from the air, which will reduce the amount of moisture in your home and help prevent mold growth. If you don’t have a dehumidifier, you can also use fans to blow out the odor.
Open Windows and Doors
When using dehumidifiers or fans, make sure that you open all windows and doors so that fresh air can come in and circulate through your home. This will help get rid of the Kilz smell as well as other odors that may be lingering in your home from cooking or pets. There are dogs or cats in your home, make sure they are taken out for walks so that they won’t be breathing in any toxic fumes from Kilz or other paints/finishes used around the house during this process.
Use Kilz as a primer before applying paint, make sure to work in a well-ventilated area with plenty of fresh air. You have any doubts about your ability to handle this product safely and without causing harm to yourself or others around you, hire a professional painter instead of trying to do all the work yourself.
Use an Air Purifier or an Ozone Generator
If the smell of Kilz is still present after running a fan for several days, you might want to use an air purifier or an ozone generator to purify the air in your home or office space. These machines will cleanse the air of any harmful chemicals and odors which may be lingering from painting or from other sources such as cigarette smoke or pet dander. Ozone generators are especially effective due to their ability to destroy airborne bacteria, viruses, and mold spores which can cause respiratory problems if they are allowed to build up.
Use Charcoal Bags:
Charcoal is a great deodorizer for your home. You can purchase charcoal briquets at your local grocery store or hardware store. You can also use activated charcoal, which will work just as well but will take a little longer to do its job.
Place the charcoal in an airtight container and place it in the room where the Kilz smell is the strongest. Leave it there overnight, and you should notice a difference in the morning. This method works best when combined with another method further in this list.
Try Vinegar:
Vinegar is one of the best ways to get rid of the smell of Kilz since it’s an acid that eats away at the paint and smells alike. The vinegar will help clean up the area and remove any lingering odors. You can also use baking soda, which has similar effects on paint products.
Mix equal parts vinegar and water in a spray bottle and spray your window sills and trimming around doors and windows with this mixture. You can also use ammonia instead of or in addition to vinegar for extra odor control power! The longer the mixture sits on these areas, the better it will work at absorbing odors, so let it sit overnight if needed!
How Long Does Kilz Smell Last?
How long the smell lasts depends on how much kilz is used during painting and how much ventilation is available. It can take anywhere from 24 hours to several days before all traces of Kilz have been eliminated from your home, depending on how much was used during painting and how much ventilation exists.
The smell of Kilz will go away, but it takes a while. You can speed up the process by using a fan to blow in fresh air, but make sure the fan is positioned so it does not blow directly on the painted surface.
The best approach is to let the paint cure for at least three weeks before painting over it or moving furniture back into the room. If you’re in a hurry, you can use a deodorizer such as baking soda or charcoal briquette to absorb odors.
Kilz Primer Fumes
Paint fumes are dangerous when they come in contact with the skin, with wet paint being the most dangerous. It affects your breathing, especially those allergic reactions to paint fumes that cause nausea, dizziness, headaches, breathing issues, etc.
Most hazardous compounds are in the additives, and the ingredients spread out while painting the wall. As a result, it enables the paint to release strong fumes that might harm your health.
The length of time paint fumes is based on the paint used. The fumes of standard paint can take 13 to 23 weeks to disperse completely. Sometimes it can take up to two months for oil paint to fully cure.
Is kilz Toxic to Breathe?
Yes, inhaling kilz vapors can be vital to your health as they cause drowsiness and dizziness. Prolonged or excessive inhalation may lead to respiratory tract irritation.
Therefore, it is important to use an air-purifying respirator with an organic vapor cartridge or canister that may be permissible in situations where airborne concentrations will likely exceed exposure measures.
However, because the protection offered by air purifying respirators is restricted, use a positive pressure air-supplied respirator. If there is any chance for an uncontrolled release, exposure levels aren’t known, or other scenarios where air respirators may not provide sufficient protection.
In case you inhale, get some fresh air. If breathing, get artificial respiration or receive oxygen from trained people. Seek medical attention to be safe.
How to Get Rid Of Oil-Based Paint Odor
Usually, the amount of duration the paint fumes linger is based on the type of paint. Standard paint takes 14 to 24 weeks for them to dissipate completely. Oil paint takes up to 2 months to cure.
This period is a long one. But the good news is, there are different ways to speed up the process, and these are:
Dehumidifier
Because Kilz can permeate through any materials, dehumidifiers remove moisture from the air while reducing moisture resulting in less moisture.
A Few Fans
Opening the windows is a must for any painting project. However, whisk the fumes out of the room faster by placing the fan in the center of the room.
Use of an Ozone Generator
Suppose Kilz’s smell still lingers after running a fan for several days. In that case, you might consider an Ozone generator effective due to its ability to destroy airborne bacteria, viruses, and mold spores which may lead to respiratory issues if they build up.
Set of Bowl Vinegar
Just pour white vinegar into bowls and put it around the room. The acetic acid in household vinegar neutralizes the molecules carrying odors for quicker results than in culinary white vinegar.
Bag of Charcoal
For faster fresh air, take activated charcoal from the hardware store. Its porous nature creates more space for odor-causing molecules to get absorbed.
Conclusion
We hope that these tips have helped you tackle the Kilz scent problem. At the end of the day, too much Kilz paint on your walls is going to produce a pungent smell in your home, and most homeowners will not like it.
If you’re wondering how to get rid of that smell, there are actually several ways you can go about it. You can paint over the existing paint or stain, blast the area with a special Kilz smell remover spray, or even repaint the walls using an additive specifically geared towards removing smells. The options are there, but you really have to ask yourself if you want to put forth the effort required.