Selling a car can often be a tricky business, whether it’s used or new. However, used cars have the quirks of previous owners, so the cleanliness of the vehicle can be a point of conflict over whether or not it will be sold. This includes stains that can be cleaned or recolored, parts that are particularly worn, but most of all, a very specific odor. At best, this could simply be the lack of that “new car smell,” but at worst, it could be the disgusting smell of years of cigarette smoke or the Fluffy dog. Fortunately, almost all odors can be removed with a simple device known as an ozone machine.
In a car, an ozone machine sends ozone (O3) to every corner of the vehicle killing any mold or bacteria and chemically changing the most harmful odors like smoke, sweat and even urine into something completely harmless and deodorized. That’s not to say that you need to own a circus master’s car to benefit from an ozone machine, because the device works to remove almost all types of odors, on all levels. While other products, like sprays and washes, are great for localized areas (i.e. vomit or drink spills), they can’t reach every inch of the vehicle like ozone does. This is because ozone is gaseous and diffuses throughout the car as the standard air from which it is derived.
Using an ozone machine in a car is pretty straightforward. Obviously first get an ozone machine. While renting is perfect for a one-time use for a private seller, anyone deodorizing multiple vehicles, whether for personal use or for sale, should seriously consider owning their own machine. When ozone hits a car, it is best to clean it as thoroughly as possible beforehand. This means cleaning the surfaces and vacuuming the carpets and seats. Also, remove any spare tires that are inside the vehicle. Once this is done, all doors and windows should be closed except one that has been left open enough to allow flexible conduit to exit the machine. While many machines come with ducts, any drying duct should do the trick for those who don’t. If one wants to be especially careful, seal the area around the duct in the window with cardboard and tape so that the ozone has no way to escape. Then start the machine for half an hour to two, ventilating the car after all is said and done. Once the ozone has dissipated, a slight ozone odor (like bleach) is not unusual, but should disappear within a couple of days.
There are a few other things to remember with this process. First of all, ozone is a pollutant and a poison, so everything in the car during the crash treatment is likely to die. Also, due to the small footprint of a car, almost any ozone machine should work, but the higher the output (in milligrams of ozone per hour), the faster the job will get done; the best ones can do it in about twenty minutes. However, the main thing to remember on a car is rubber seals. With prolonged exposure, ozone can crack and dry out pure rubber, destroying many of the rubber o-rings in many parts and potentially cracking the spare tire (although they are mostly made of rubber compounds). Due to this fact, if the smell is strong or remains after a treatment, it is better to do a series of short treatments than a long one.
With all of this in mind, ozone machines provide one of the best ways to remove unpleasant odors from a vehicle, whether for sale or simply for personal enjoyment. While there are drawbacks to the method, as with any other, it is still more effective and efficient, for both the sole seller and the commercial distributor, than any other.
