How Long Does the Smell of Weed Last?

How to Overcome Addiction and Get Rid of Weed Smell for Good

Someone is coming over.  You don’t want them to be hit with the weed smell when they walk through the door.  How long does the smell of weed last?  Even more importantly, how do you quickly eliminate smells that tend to stick (like weed)?

Weed smoke can permeate a home for up to 48 hours, lasting longer in places with poor ventilation.  Smoking a lot all at once or choosing the wrong strain can make smells last longer.  Good news: Minimize the smell with a combination of air fresheners and air purifiers.  You can even clean with vinegar.  Even though all of this helps, recovery is the ultimate way to remedy the smell.

Icarus Behavioral Health in Nevada provides the treatment needed to succeed.  We offer a continuum of care.  We also accept many insurance providers that keep costs low.  Here’s how long the weed smell lasts and what you can do to stop it at the source.

Weed Smoke: How Long Does the Smell Last?

There’s no separating the smell from smoking weed.  It has a telltale odor, just like cigarettes, but stronger.  When you don’t want anyone to know you smoke marijuana, how do you eliminate the odor?

Consider some of these top factors to see when you can smoke and when you should abstain to keep the smell out of your home.

Ventilation in Your Room

When the weed smell lingers, it’s a sign you don’t have proper ventilation.  The smell can last several hours if you don’t have enough cross-breeze.  This means turning fans on high and smoking near an open window.  Exhaust fan systems, like the ones in bathrooms and kitchens, are also helpful when used alongside small devices like air purifiers.

Without ventilation, you may also struggle with secondhand smoke–a totally separate problem that bears mentioning.

Even under these conditions, the smoke smell might be here to stay.  Weed odors can linger for up to 48 hours without any aid from ventilation.  It works its way into furniture and fabrics, making it that much harder for the smell of weed smoke to disappear.  More smoke equals a more stubborn and persistent smell.

How Much Weed You Smoke

Another factor in how long the smell will last is how much weed you actually burn and smoke.  As you might imagine, the smell increases with the more weed you smoke.  A few hits might not produce any strong smell, and what little you can smell will only last for an hour or two.

However, you might smoke more to achieve a greater high.  Maybe you share your weed among friends.  Smoking five or more grams of weed results in longer clearing times.  The scent of the drug could last for up to 48 hours without help speeding it along.

Smoking vs Vaping

The lingering odor of cannabis plants tends to come from smoking.  But you could achieve the same high with vaping and get rid of most of the weed smell.

Why do vaporizers produce less smell than recreational or medical marijuana?

Smoking burns the plant, producing more smoke and smell.  When you vape the cannabis plants in lieu of creating smoke, all you do is heat it up, minimizing both smoke and smell.

It’s smarter to vape if you or your home can’t smell like weed.  The smell usually goes away in about one to four hours. But be aware, that vaping cannabis can also become problematic, with about 30% of cannabis users reporting trouble quitting when they attempt to stop without support.

Choosing the Right Strain of Weed

It doesn’t matter if you’re a medical cannabis patient or a recreational user; you likely know about various strains of weed.  Most people are familiar with indica and sativa, at a minimum.  But a deep dive into all of the various subcategories can help you eliminate the smell.

Don’t use strains with limonene or pinene.  They carry the strongest scent that lasts roughly 24 to 48 hours.  Instead, try strains like OG Kush that have a higher linalool or borneol acetate content for a weaker scent profile.  You’ll be happy to know that the smell will split in just a few hours.

Research will help you figure out the right strain, but it’s time well spent to reduce that smoke smell.

Tips to Eliminate Smoke Smell from Your Home

Not quite ready to give up your cannabis consumption?  Maybe you’re a medical marijuana user who can’t give it up.  Regardless of your reasons for sticking with it, there’s a lot you can do to reduce smell. Quitting weed is the top way to get a fresher-smelling place, but it’s not your only option.

These tips help but may not eliminate the smell altogether if it’s quite stubborn.  Mix and match until you find a path that works for you.

Increase Ventilation in Your Room

Turn out that skunky aroma from your home once and for all.  If it lingers, the next step is to increase ventilation.  Open a window or turn on fans that redirect the air.  Get air circulation going.

Another option to increase the speed at which weed smell dissipates is to install air purifiers.  Look for a purifier with activated charcoal filters or HEPA filters.  Both can neutralize smells much more effectively than other filters.

Replacing HVAC filters is an often-overlooked way to help with smell.  Most of the time, you can get away with replacing them once a quarter.  Increased frequency can ventilate a room better, though, especially with more volatile organic compounds in the air.

Air Fresheners and Odor Neutralizing Sprays

Eliminating a musky scent is difficult, no matter how you look at it.  But you can minimize the smell for just a few dollars, at least temporarily.  Cheap air fresheners and scented candles mask the smell in minutes, especially if you’re using an aerosol room spray.  An essential oil diffuser is a natural way to combat odor.

The problem is that these tactics mask the scent rather than remove odors once and for all.

These are good tactics to try in a pinch if someone is coming over and you know your place smells strongly of weed.  Avoid awkward conversations with your landlord or your family with these quick methods.  Getting to the root cause of smell after a smoke session is better for long-term results.

Baking Soda or Vinegar to Neutralize Odor

Fresh air isn’t an option?  Eliminate the earthy aroma simply by setting out some vinegar.  You and your smoke buddy will have to tolerate the smell, but it’ll keep your place smelling clean.

Vinegar’s acetic acid content helps eliminate odors at the source.  It naturally binds with the VOCs in weed, making it a great alternative to other methods.

Baking soda works similarly by binding to the terpenes.  Fewer VOCs are found in the air circulation with vinegar and baking soda left out, thus mitigating smell.

Proper Storage Techniques like Glass Jars

Everyone should start simply by opening the windows.  Focus on air purification.  But proper storage goes a long way too.  Poor storage lets the scent creep in if you aren’t careful.

Find containers with strong seals, ideally glass jars.  Glass is reusable and inexpensive, holding a lot, so you only really need one or two.  You can also use vacuum-sealed baggies or another type of airtight option.

Deep Clean Your Home

Proper ventilation and an exhaust fan aren’t working.  What do you do when the weed smell has been around for a while?  Deep cleaning, combined with the other tips, removes a less-than-pleasant fragrance.

Cleaning your home with a mixture of distilled white vinegar and water binds to the smell to get it gone quickly.  While you clean, light a scented candle.  Flip on an exhaust fan, open the windows, and push the smell out.

You may have to repeat this a few times for stronger odors.  Fabrics can hold onto smell tightly, especially if it has been around for a while.  Long-term ventilation and multiple cleaning sessions might be required.

Toilet Paper Rolls and Dryer Sheets to Make a Smoke Filter

Another common way to eliminate the smell of weed at the source involves a toilet paper roll.  Stuff the cardboard with dryer sheets and use it as a smoke filter.  Exhale from your joint into the toilet paper roll. This can help you eliminate odors at the source, but it may also bring back memories of college dorm days, and is not the most efficient route overall.

Are You Ready to Eliminate Cannabis Consumption for Good?

When you’re ready to eliminate the lasting odor of cannabis from your home, seek help for cannabis misuse.  Icarus Behavioral Health in Nevada offers comprehensive treatment at all levels with around-the-clock access to care.

From Detox for Cannabis to Intensive Outpatient Care

Our experienced clinicians will start by assessing your need for medical attention and treatment along our continuum of care.  If you have a cannabis use disorder and may be addicted to weed, a sub-acute detox process is a great first step on the road to recovery.  However, many clients move straight into our residential program.

Once you are ready to transition out of a more comprehensive level of care, partial hospitalization or intensive outpatient are great options.  They enable you to spend more time at home, practicing skills and spending time with loved ones.

Cannabis Treatment May be Covered by Insurance

Icarus Behavioral Health Nevada has negotiated rates with many of the top insurance providers.  We work with you to come up with a payment structure you can afford to get the help you need.  In some cases, treatment may even be covered in its entirety by insurance providers.

Get Help for a Cannabis Use Disorder at Icarus Nevada

No matter why you need help, Icarus Behavioral Health in Nevada helps you overcome cannabis use once and for all.  Our proven treatment system offers everything you need to thrive in a life without substance use.

Let our enrollment team answer your questions and verify your insurance benefits so that we can secure a spot for you!

References

1. Herrmann, E. S., Cone, E. J., Mitchell, J. M., Bigelow, G. E., LoDico, C., Flegel, R., & Vandrey, R. (2015). Non-smoker exposure to secondhand cannabis smoke II: Effect of room ventilation on the physiological, subjective, and behavioral/cognitive effects. Drug and alcohol dependence, 151, 194–202.
2. Aston, E. R., Farris, S. G., Metrik, J., & Rosen, R. K. (2019). Vaporization of Marijuana Among Recreational Users: A Qualitative Study. Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs, 80(1), 56–62.
3. Seltenrich N. (2022). Odor Control in the Cannabis Industry: Lessons from the New Kid on the Block. Environmental health perspectives, 130(6), 62001.
4. Seltenrich N. (2022). Odor Control in the Cannabis Industry: Lessons from the New Kid on the Block. Environmental health perspectives, 130(6), 62001.