There's nothing wrong with them.

[Dave1982]

The other day I spoke with a gentlemen who had purchased 3 chairs and needed to return them. He claimed there was nothing wrong with the chairs, but that they'd already been assembled and they decided they didn't like them. I consulted with the MOD and we reached an agreement with the guy. He was within the 14 day return policy anyway, so there really wasn't an issue.

The chairs ended up being returned while I was off, and since they were assembled, they were put out with the display chairs.

Just one problem.

They REEKED of cigarettes. They smelled like the furniture that we took out of my late grandmother's house that had been exposed to cigarette smoke for at least 40 years.

"Nothing wrong with them" my arse!! This is the sort of thing that really pisses me off. The return policy states that any non-defective returned merchandise must be in re-sellable condition. Smelling like a stale ashtray is NOT re-sellable. The return should have been refused on that basis. Now we are stuck with three chairs that we can't sell and can't send back to the vendor, so they have been placed on donation hold.

I know this is far from the worst example of abused merchandise being returned, but it's still aggravating as hell.

[iradney]

are they fabric chairs? I've been told that sprinkling baking soda over nicotined furniture, leaving it for a bit and then vaccuuming it out seems to work wonders...

[AyreBiskits]

febreeze works too, we bring a bottle of it whenever we stay at a hotel. we don't smoke but i swear even the "no smoking" rooms reek of cigarette smoke. at least i hope it's just cigarette smoke.

[EricKei]

AB - Simple way to tell.

Stale cigarette smoke smells reminiscent of a city bus.

Stale...herb... smoke smells reminiscent of dirty sweat socks.

I know this only because I used to be a pizza dude, I SWEAR

[Sparky]

It's possible that the SC didn't even realilze there was a problem. I mean, he lives with that every day; he can't smell it. Of course that doesn't help you any.

Could you sell them at a discount? Some people might be willing to take them and work at getting the smell out. Smokers probably wouldn't even care.

[poofy_puff]

It sounds like someone needed a few extra chairs for a meeting or event and now the meeting or event is over so someone doesn't need the chairs anymore.

Rent-A-Center, anyone?

[Merriweather]

It's possible that the SC didn't even realilze there was a problem. I mean, he lives with that every day; he can't smell it. Of course that doesn't help you any.

Could you sell them at a discount? Some people might be willing to take them and work at getting the smell out. Smokers probably wouldn't even care.

Good point. My mom had no idea her house had a smell at all. When we lived overseas she'd send us packages now and then, especially candies my daughter missed. Even after going halfway round the world, we'd open the box, and cough from the smoke. Smoke flavoured tootsie rolls, anyone?

My daughter, on the other hand, having lived her life in a smoke free environment, was so sensitive that as a teenager, she'd come home at midnight from a concert, and have to go wash her hair cause she couldn't sleep with it smelling like second hand smoke.

[Andara Bledin]

febreeze works too, we bring a bottle of it whenever we stay at a hotel. we don't smoke but i swear even the "no smoking" rooms reek of cigarette smoke. at least i hope it's just cigarette smoke.

I hate Febreeze. There's something about it that almost makes me prefer the smoke smell. Almost. Plus, I know that a not-insignificant number of people have a bad reaction to it. Enough that eBay sellers recommend alternate options.

Good point. My mom had no idea her house had a smell at all.

Yup. You can only smell a certain type of scent for so long before you become physically incapable of smelling it again. The way you smell things and how that works is fascinating, if you're into that sort of knowledge.

Eventually, you become able to smell that scent again, but if you're around it constantly, you end up with minute doses pretty much all the time, so that you never really notice.

^-.-^

[Darkforge]

Yup. You can only smell a certain type of scent for so long before you become physically incapable of smelling it again. The way you smell things and how that works is fascinating, if you're into that sort of knowledge.

Tell me about it, My parents both smoke (I never have) and as i grew up in the same house as them I cannot tell when something smells of smoke.

I realised it when someone commented that i'd been outside for a smoke as my coat stank of it when I came inside and I couldn't smell anything. I realised that my coat, which was kept by the front door, was full of smoke from my parents, but my normal clothes, which were kept in a cupboard in my room (which normally had the window open) didn't.

Even now after having moved out 7 years ago I still can't smell it, but if I spend a week at home I do get a bit of a phlemy cough from the air there...


that aside, back to the actual suck, I'm worried that the chairs were that bad after only a few days (Not sure how many, but its less than 14) I mean they shouldn't be able to absorb the smell that fast surely?

[Dave1982]

They are fabric chairs, but since those chairs have gone clearance since I originally posted about them, it's really not worth taking the time to try to clean them.