Controlling smell

[OF]

A couple of times in the past month or so Members have posted 'how much is this going to smell' and 'what can I do to further limit smell' sorts of questions in the threads I haunt. I thought this might be a good time and place to give a couple of thoughts on the general topic?

First point, as we discovered with MFLB, you can 'destink' your herb by vaping off that first tasty hit or two and stashing the rest. Most of the smell is in terpenes, which boil off at lower temperatures than the magic part (THC). Such 'green ABV is still plenty potent (containing say 80% of the original THC, but with very little smell relative to the first hits.

Secondly, you might consider a capture system. Here's what I did as an exercise. I bought one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000DK35B/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It is small air filter that uses one of these HEPA filters specifically designed to 'mop up' the smoke smell from the room:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C7SCVUA/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That gets you part way there. Next I wired a small (say 4 X 4 X 2 inches) plastic box to the center of the grill with a hole for a tube in what would be the bottom of the box (part facing out). The rest of the box is packed with several layers of activated charcoal (again, a capture agent) filter cut to size:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L2NZOKK/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

IIRC I put an extra layer or two of the foam in under the grill as well. The fan is on low, the box buried behind a shelf (only the cord and hose come out). I put a line switch in the cord like on a table lamp so I don't have to work the switches on the box. You can barely hear it when my computer is off on low, very slight draft in the tube (you can barely 'suck up smoke' from incense)......an effortless exhale that has to pass through several activated charcoal foam filters before hitting the OSHA approved smoke filter. No nasty smells can escape. Unlike 'Smokebuddy' and some homebrew dryer sheet schemes I've seen. It also has the added benefit of scrubbing the room air over time (most of the inlet grill is not blocked by the box), should you leave it running.

Best Holiday wishes to all. A special Holiday, IMO, we celebrate Labor and what it means to us and our society. Some for the satisfaction and security a job brings to them personally, some looking for a job (or a better one) with hopes for the future, some celebrate the prosperity that Labor brings to the society we live in and some of us are so very happy you guys are working so our retirement will go smoothly. My personal thanks for that........

OF

 

[farscaper]

Carbon carbon carbon.

Odor stands no chance with the proper application of carbon.

You could make a sploof... that's a toilet paper tube with carbon stuffed and secured in one end. You blow your hits out through it... kids use their mom's dryer sheets some times... use carbon instead.
(Why does your room smell of bounty and pot?)

You could create a simple carbon filter... fish tank carbon is easy to find and works well... all you need is a way to attach it to a fan. Many do it yourself instructions exsist.

You can throw a little carbon in a muslin bag and keep it in the same box your stash is in. Although if it's in direct exposure your weed is gonna loose it's stink as all the molecules are attracted to the carbon.

You can even use a carbon filter for combustion and vaping... they are a little old school as they were popular before vaping took a main stream over trying to filter smoke to make it more palatable.








Carbon.

 

[OF]

Odor stands no chance with the proper application of carbon.

You can throw a little carbon in a muslin bag and keep it in the same box your stash is in. Although if it's in direct exposure your weed is gonna loose it's stink as all the molecules are attracted to the carbon.

You can even use a carbon filter for combustion and vaping... they are a little old school as they were popular before vaping took a main stream over trying to filter smoke to make it more palatable.

Yes, with a couple of qualifications. First, typical Carbon, like the coal photo above, isn't really useful WRT to smells. Ever smell a Coal Miner up close? All that Carbon didn't help much there........ This is a surface game, surface area carries the day. Coal is much too solid to help much. Activated Charcoal, OTOH, is since the activation part typically involves firing it in a 'lean' atmosphere to fill it with microscopic pores to vastly increase the surface area available to trap gas (much like is done to the balls inside catalytic converters in autos). A single gram of the stuff has more surface area than half a football field! Sometimes it's chemically treated to hold even tighter to loose gas molecules or other junk.

That would be "the proper application"?

It's the contact, at the atomic level, we need. Gas molecules must make atomic level contact to be captured so we need long contact times and a tortured path. A dryer sheet basically touches nothing on the way past, all it can do is add other smells. The attraction distance is measured in nano meters.

BTW saturated absorbent can be reactivated easily, you fire it again in an inert atmosphere (we don't want to burn out any more Carbon, just get it to release the captured material by thermal action.

My goal with the project was to make a truly effective filter that was easy to use, had huge capacity, and 'no' resistance to your exhaust. Other scheme work, of course, but IMO not as well as such an Engineered capture system as the HEPA filter and fan. 'Industrial strength'.........

We don't do combustion around here, I'll take you at your word it helps there for those ill informed souls trapped in that mode of consumption.

Thanks for helping get the word out, important to some no doubt.

OF

 

[farscaper]

Yes, with a couple of qualifications. First, typical Carbon, like the coal photo above, isn't really useful WRT to smells. Ever smell a Coal Miner up close? All that Carbon didn't help much there........ This is a surface game, surface area carries the day. Coal is much too solid to help much. Activated Charcoal, OTOH, is since the activation part typically involves firing it in a 'lean' atmosphere to fill it with microscopic pores to vastly increase the surface area available to trap gas (much like is done to the balls inside catalytic converters in autos). A single gram of the stuff has more surface area than half a football field! Sometimes it's chemically treated to hold even tighter to loose gas molecules or other junk.

That would be "the proper application"?

It's the contact, at the atomic level, we need. Gas molecules must make atomic level contact to be captured so we need long contact times and a tortured path. A dryer sheet basically touches nothing on the way past, all it can do is add other smells. The attraction distance is measured in nano meters.

BTW saturated absorbent can be reactivated easily, you fire it again in an inert atmosphere (we don't want to burn out any more Carbon, just get it to release the captured material by thermal action.

My goal with the project was to make a truly effective filter that was easy to use, had huge capacity, and 'no' resistance to your exhaust. Other scheme work, of course, but IMO not as well as such an Engineered capture system as the HEPA filter and fan. 'Industrial strength'.........

We don't do combustion around here, I'll take you at your word it helps there for those ill informed souls trapped in that mode of consumption.

Thanks for helping get the word out, important to some no doubt.

OF

The photo with the dude shoveling coal was for the purposes of levity.

As for the rest.. .

To the wind a fart was given...

if your pot smells.... blame it on a skunk.

 

[MyCollie]

I plan on moving within a year. Right now I have a small place with a balcony. The balcony is private and faces a park. I usually fill a Volcano bag in my bathroom (vent on) and then go out there or just take my Mighty outside. Odor tends to travel in my building rather quickly. The new place will not have a balcony but will be much larger (more rooms/bedrooms all away from my door). I'm trying to think of how I'll minimize odor and this was helpful.

I might wind up buying an expensive air cleaner and just vaping as far from my condo door as possible. I guess there's the towel-door thing too.

 

[Vapor_Eyes]

I use a smoke buddy jr. when I need to be discreet in regards to odor. Combined with an on demand convection vaporizer there will be virtually no smell.

With most conduction vapes some vapor will leak out while you are not hitting the vape, so the smoke buddy jr. isn't quite as effective, but it still drastically reduces the smell.

As for storage I use doob tubes. They are low profile and odor-free. They also work really well for loading most vapes.

 

[hinglemccringleberry]

for storage i keep my portable vape in a steel thermos, herbs go in sealed glass jars and all of the above goes into a carbon travel bag. double coverage. this makes me happy since my previous portable smoking kit was so bad you could smell it outside on a windy day from 10 feet away.

using the vape is a different story, i just do it where or whenever the smell wont be an issue. does that limit where and when i can vape, yes but it doesnt compromise me at all, since i dont have an interest in vaping in high risk situations anyway. im not a "gotta access it constantly" type of user. so no exhale filter needed. luckily i dont live in a high risk building

 

[CarolKing]

The thermos idea is a good one. I've never heard of doing that. You would probably need to add something so the unit wouldnt bang around inside the thermos. Wow @mccringleberry you are the Boy Scout of vaporizing. Always be prepared - the girl and Boy Scout motto.

Some folks are medical patients and need to vaporize on the go and it's important for them to be able to get their medicine in a safe manner. Preferably without offending anyone. All ideas are great.

 

[hinglemccringleberry]

The thermos idea is a good one. I've never heard of doing that. You would probably need to add something so the unit wouldnt bang around inside the thermos. Wow @mccringleberry you are the Boy Scout of vaporizing. Always be prepared - the girl and Boy Scout motto.

Some folks are medical patients and need to vaporize on the go and it's important for them to be able to get their medicine in safe manner. Preferably without offending anyone. All ideas are great.

haha yeah definitely. i have a few of those crown royal drawstring bags for my stuff so it doesnt bang around.
just add a smoke buddy and a non-stinky portable to my kit and medical patients would love it!

 

[OF]

One other thought to throw into the mix, as a user you're a LOUSY judge of smells, especially this one. Ever know a cigarette smoker who didn't think his closet reeked? Or a kid who successfully hid experiments with cigarettes from non smoking parents?

OF

 

[Delta3DStudios]

Carbon carbon carbon.

Odor stands no chance with the proper application of carbon.

You could make a sploof... that's a toilet paper tube with carbon stuffed and secured in one end. You blow your hits out through it... kids use their mom's dryer sheets some times... use carbon instead.
(Why does your room smell of bounty and pot?)

You could create a simple carbon filter... fish tank carbon is easy to find and works well... all you need is a way to attach it to a fan. Many do it yourself instructions exsist.

You can throw a little carbon in a muslin bag and keep it in the same box your stash is in. Although if it's in direct exposure your weed is gonna loose it's stink as all the molecules are attracted to the carbon.

You can even use a carbon filter for combustion and vaping... they are a little old school as they were popular before vaping took a main stream over trying to filter smoke to make it more palatable.








Carbon.

Hypothetically speaking, If one were to manufacture a chamber, full of carbon, and place it in front of a fan, wouldn't this effectively filter the air thereby cleansing it of any odors? Moreover, wouldn't a simple replacement of said filter ever year/6-months be sufficient in scrubbing the air of any residual odors?

 

[OF]

Hypothetically speaking, If one were to manufacture a chamber, full of carbon, and place it in front of a fan, wouldn't this effectively filter the air thereby cleansing it of any odors? Moreover, wouldn't a simple replacement of said filter ever year/6-months be sufficient in scrubbing the air of any residual odors?

Well, yeah sorta. Isn't that what the base unit in my opening post is? A optimized "chamber full of carbon" and a fan behind it? But that only eventually removes the smell. Using the exhale tube guarantees an instant 100% capture of your exhale.

It's a time and completeness advantage I'm looking to gain. If that's not important to you in your situation then just buy the base unit and use as it's intended? IMO they do a good job at that, but really need to be run on high lest the smells spread faster than they can be trapped from the room air.

OF

 

[Delta3DStudios]

It's a time and completeness advantage I'm looking to gain. If that's not important to you in your situation then just buy the base unit and use as it's intended? IMO they do a good job at that, but really need to be run on high lest the smells spread faster than they can be trapped from the room air.

I'm not looking for efficiency in my scenario. Indeed I am looking for an eventuality. *IF* I run said device in a room. Enclosed, with no fresh air, and no additional source of odors. Will said device eventually scrub the air of all odors?

Personally, I don't think so, but I'm hoping maybe it can scrub 75% of the air over an extended period of time.

 

[farscaper]

I prefer this personally. Replace the filter maybe once a year.... maybe two depending on how much moisture it picks up while in use... they come in many sizes. 4" being the smallest.... multipurpose too... just blow in the intake hose.

But they come as small as this

You can also go the route OF described in his op.

I made a sploof (smoke buddy) years ago for a buddy that had to move back in with his mom. All it was was a pill bottle with holes drilled in the bottom stuffed with activated fish tank carbon in a panty hose. The cap fit like normal so sitting on a desk it looked like a bottle of asprin. just take the cap off and blew through it. He was a "combuster" and it worked great for him.

I even did a walk in test and was surprised how well it worked for bustn'.

 

[BabyFacedFinster]

Very interesting thread.

I keep all my herb in mason jars and I keep all the jars in a travel handbag. When I open the bag, you still get a whiff of fresh herb that permeates the room.

Do you think filling a muslin bag with activated carbon would scrub out the smell if I dropped it in the travel bag? Sort of like a box of baking soda in the fridge?

 

[farscaper]

Very interesting thread.

I keep all my herb in mason jars and I keep all the jars in a travel handbag. When I open the bag, you still get a whiff of fresh herb that permeates the room.

Do you think filling a muslin bag with activated carbon would scrub out the smell if I dropped it in the travel bag? Sort of like a box of baking soda in the fridge?

Why not? They sell these...
https://www.amazon.com/Carbonite-Natural-Eliminator-Charcoal-Deodorizer/dp/B00MBGN3H8

 

[OF]

Personally, I don't think so, but I'm hoping maybe it can scrub 75% of the air over an extended period of time.

You should check it out. Such HEPA filters are designed to do just that, and generally do a good job. It's a diminishing returns thing of course, hard to get the last few atoms out and all, but given enough CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute) such filters are generally considered effective at a dozen or so air changes as I recall.

There's cheap junk that you see on TV that doesn't work well, of course, but gear like that is an exception. It's the filter, of course, nothing special about the fan.......

Best plan is, I think, to not foul the room in the first place?

OF

 

[looney2nz]

Great thread!

I have a Airpura air filter with a gob of activated charcoal in it and hepa as well.
(It's about the size of a 25 gallon drum)

I use that to clean my room air (at least until I research some of these other approaches!).

I keep my flower and concentrate in a rubbermaid container with a silicone seal in my mini-frig in my bedroom.

 

[looney2nz]

I prefer this personally. Replace the filter maybe once a year.... maybe two depending on how much moisture it picks up while in use... they come in many sizes. 4" being the smallest.... multipurpose too... just blow in the intake hose.

But they come as small as this

You can also go the route OF described in his op.

I made a sploof (smoke buddy) years ago for a buddy that had to move back in with his mom. All it was was a pill bottle with holes drilled in the bottom stuffed with activated fish tank carbon in a panty hose. The cap fit like normal so sitting on a desk it looked like a bottle of asprin. just take the cap off and blew through it. He was a "combuster" and it worked great for him.

I even did a walk in test and was surprised how well it worked for bustn'.

Who makes these units?

 

[syrupy]

Who makes these units?

Many companies. You can search on popular auction sites like e-Slay for "fan carbon filter combo". Vortex makes a really nice quiet fan s-line series. Or something like this for more of a budget. Having a speed controller helps with sound because these fans are not quiet.

@OF, I'm not getting a good visual on the extra box you're adding. The output of the Holmes fan is a flat wide area? I don't see how it mates to the box, or how the Holmes fan would have enough power to force the air through another layer of carbon filters.

 

[subway13029]

Yeah I'm confused on the tube you are talking about adding in the op. I'm very interested in this plan.

 

[looney2nz]

here's links to the current commercial products I've found (for those who aren't DYI):

http://www.sploofybrand.com/collections/products

http://xhalenow.com/

http://www.smokebuddy.com/index.php...or/smokebuddy-junior-personal-air-filter.html

these all seem to have limitations especially in regards to controlling moisture buildup in the carbon (accelerating the decrease in airflow), and it seems that the universal recommendation is to keep them DRY.
Do NOT use the caps on the smoke buddy units unless you are travelling, UNLESS you live in a high humidity area, and then you'd probably want to store it in the 'dry' area of a frig. Or maybe use a bunch of dessicant packages at the openings to keep the activated carbon dry.

Seems to be variables in terms of the size of the opening to blow into and as well as overall airflow resistance.

 

[t-dub]

One of the keys for odor control is air flow. All odors float in air, which acts like a fluid itself, which explains why fan blades and boat propellors look similar in form.

Living in a college dorm I needed a solution. One thing I noticed was the way the airflow in the building was designed. If I put a Bic lighter to the gap under my door the flame went under the door and out into the hallway with a lot of force. That told me why I could smell everyone's shower and stink etc in the hallways. To defeat this I put a large box fan in my window leading outside, it just happened to seal perfectly. When the fan was running the Bic lighter flame didn't go out from under my door any more, it came in. So I knew that smells I would be making were going out the window and not into the hallway. This is called a "negative pressure" situation and it is what hospitals use on rooms with people who have virulent infections. Its also why restrooms in our homes have strong fans.

Another area to consider is grinding or raw herb. These can be a lot smellier than vapor or vape materials. If you grind, or open your jar, and worry about the smell, do it outside or in front of a strong, controlled, airflow going in the direction you would like which should be "outside" or through a proper filter.

Blowing vapor through activated charcoal works great but just putting that stuff in a bag won't be the same because the air around that filter is not being forced through it. Kind of a "passive" deodorization if you will. Good for portable situations, but for domestic situations we want active deodorization imho.

So, control your airflow, especially in apartment or other communal living situations. If you can do this you may not need a filter at all as long as you're not combusting or growing.

Know what/where the offending smell is coming from so you can properly address it.

If you are going to use an air cleaning system be aware that the smells get put in the room, and are subject to drafts pulling them elsewhere, and are only removed as "air" goes through the filter system.

Like @OF stated, its the ability of the intake "hose" to grab the vapor and push it through the filter that makes the difference when exhausting that air back into the house. You have to decide if you are taking that approach, the whole house approach, air/evac approach, or a combination thereof. If you can vent contaminated air outside then a filter might not even be necessary.

 

[syrupy]

For a while I used a blower fan hooked up to duct that led outside. Worked great without a filter, so I can verify what @t-dub said.

 

[OF]

@OF, I'm not getting a good visual on the extra box you're adding. The output of the Holmes fan is a flat wide area? I don't see how it mates to the box, or how the Holmes fan would have enough power to force the air through another layer of carbon filters.

The outlet on the Holmes filter is on the top of the unit, behind the switches. You can see it clearly in the photos on Amazon. Air goes in the front, the filter is just behind the grill.

The box, actually one of these guys (FT-33):
http://www.tapplastics.com/product/plastics/plastic_containers/flex_hinge_polypropylene_box/229

I cut the top off and drilled a hole (or rather carved one with an xacto knife) through the side against the bottom so the tube slips in at the bottom and goes about half way in. Then I punched four small holes near the top edge (one to a side) for wires that poke through the grill to hold the box in the center. The box is then filled with squares of the Carbon foam and wired on and the grill (cover for filter) closed. Any similar box will work of course, that's what I had handy. I should have taken a photo before I buried it.......

You don't need a solid seal against the grill since anything that might leak out (unlikely, really) will get sucked into the filter anyway.

Imagine you were putting your lips to the grill and gently exhaling so none escaped to the side? That's what the tube and box does for you. Let you keep your lips right where they are........ A 'mountain to Mohamed' kinda thing?

BTW, keep the bore of the tube big (I used half inch ID Silicone) since the tube could be long (mine is maybe 4 or 5 feet) and we don't want to add much restriction?

OF