Ozone Treatment
Using ozone generators to neutralize odor molecules at a molecular level.
Ozone treatment is deodorization using a generator that produces ozone (O3), a highly reactive gas that oxidizes odor compounds it comes into contact with. It is fast and it is effective on stubborn smoke odor, and it is only used in unoccupied structures.
The safety rule that is not negotiable
Ozone is a lung irritant. People, pets, and plants have to be out of the structure for the entire treatment and through the airing-out period afterward. That is not a preference or a liability formality, it is how the treatment is run. Crews post the building, kill the HVAC so ozone does not push into occupied areas of a multi-unit building, and re-enter with the space ventilated. If the occupants cannot leave, the answer is a different method, usually hydroxyl.
What a treatment looks like
- Seal and post. The area is closed off and signed, and everyone confirms the building is empty before the generator runs.
- Run and dwell. Treatment times are measured in hours, sized to the space and the severity of the odor.
- Air out. The building is ventilated and ozone is allowed to revert before anyone works in the space again.
The tradeoffs
Ozone oxidizes more than odor. It can degrade rubber, some plastics, and certain finishes over long exposures, and sensitive contents are usually pulled before treatment. It also does nothing about residue still sitting on surfaces, so it comes after cleaning, never instead of it.
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