Item by item
| Item | Gentle first step | Avoid | When to get help |
|---|---|---|---|
| Books | Air them in a dry, clean room standing slightly open; store near an odor absorber without contact | Fragrance sprays, damp wiping of pages | Rare or valuable volumes: a book conservator |
| Oil and acrylic paintings | Keep them out of the work area; dust only with a soft brush | Any liquid cleaner, fogging or ozone | Visible yellowing or grime on the paint: a paintings conservator |
| Framed prints and photos | Clean the glass; replace the backing board and dust cover, which absorb odor | Opening old frames with mats stuck to the image | Mat or print visibly stained: a framer or paper conservator |
| Quilts and linens | Air outdoors in shade; wash only if the fabric and dyes are sound | Hot water or bleach on old textiles | Antique or fragile pieces: a textile conservator |
| Wood furniture | Clean finished surfaces; air out drawers | Soaking or harsh solvents | Finish crazed or sticky: a furniture refinisher |
| Clothing and soft accessories | Launder or dry clean, sometimes twice | Packing them with clean items | Furs, leathers and vintage pieces: a specialist cleaner |
Move them out before the house is treated
Heirlooms should leave the house, or at least the rooms being worked, before any cleaning or airborne odor treatment begins. Fogging solutions, oxidizing gases and even ordinary cleaning mist can affect paint layers, dyes, paper and old adhesives in ways that cannot be reversed. A spare room in a clean home, a climate-controlled storage unit, or a sealed plastic tote for small items all work as staging.
Odor in paper and textiles fades slowly with air, time and an absorbent nearby. Activated charcoal and baking soda in open containers placed next to, not touching, books and papers can help over weeks. Patience matters more than chemistry here; forced methods tend to damage before they deodorize.
Many families in older Country Club and Belcaro homes find the estate also holds pieces with real market value. Before you clean anything that might be valuable, ask an appraiser or conservator whether cleaning could reduce what it is worth.
A sorting routine for an estate's keepsakes
- Photograph each valuable or sentimental item before moving it.
- Keep smoke-affected items apart from clean belongings in transit and storage.
- Label boxes by owner and by whether they still need odor work.
- Start a list of items for conservators, appraisers or specialty cleaners.
- Re-smell boxed items after a few weeks before unpacking them into a cleaned home.
Questions for a conservator or specialty cleaner
- Is this item safe to clean at all, or only to air out?
- Could cleaning change its appraised value?
- What storage conditions do you recommend while the odor fades?
- How will you document the item's condition before and after?
General information for Cherry Creek, not a quote or professional advice. In an emergency, call 911.