Previous generations strongly believed in the power of mothballs to keep stored fabric items moth-free. Adding mothballs to the contents of a cedar chest was overkill then and overpowers the senses now. Sometimes the strong, unmistakable odor of mothballs renders a beautiful antique cedar chest useless, unless you know how to remove the mothball smell. I know how to get the smell out and make the interior of a cedar chest look and smell as good as new – here’s how.
Sunshine Deodorizes
If the smell of mothballs is mild, a couple days of sunshine and fresh air may be all that is needed to remove the odor from inside the cedar chest. Place the open cedar chest in direct sunlight during the day, move chest to protected area at night as moisture from dew or frost will warp the wood.
Tear Jerking Mothball Odor
If the mothball odor is at a nuclear level that brings tears to your eyes, a couple days of sunlight will not phase the scent. Try this somewhat labor intensive but highly successful approach suggested by the GardenWeb – Lightly sand the entire inside of the cedar chest with a fine grade sand paper. Use a light sanding hand but make sure to sand every inch of the interior. After sanding, use the dusting brush attachment of your vacuum cleaner and vacuum all the loose sand and dust particles for the interior of the cedar chest. Wipe the interior with a merrier cloth to remove any remaining dust particles and allow the cedar chest to air out for a couple of days (lid open).
Add More Cedar Scent
The sanding and airing out should remove all traces of the mothball odor and release a fresh cedar scent. If you want more of that fragrant cedar aroma in the chest, apply a little cedar oil to the interior. Only a little cedar oil is needed to restore full fragrance. Apply cedar oil to a cotton ball and dab it to the inside of the cedar chest’s lid, in a location (like back corner) where fabric items will not come into contact with the cedar oil. A fresh dab of cedar oil can be applied yearly to keep the cedar aroma strong and the moths at bay. Gaiam also suggests that cedar oil will keep fleas out of stored clothing.
Sources:
Mothballs
CedarChests
GardenWeb
Gaiam