Stinky Cabinet

Cedar Blocks, maybe?

Have you tired activate charcoal? That works a lot better than baking soda.

Have you tried one of those air fresheners that is put in the car? Potpourri might help also. If this doesn't work, try calling Home Depot or going by there and talking with someone. Their employees know what their doing.

I love to use vinegar to neutralize odors (sometimes along with the baking soda) but since it is the actual varnish that is lagging around I wonder if you won't need to go through the effort of stripping it down to the bare wood and starting over with your own finish.

Have you tried using the baking soda with lemon?

Well Jill as I was reading my first thought was baking soda but I see you have already tried that, I am trying now to think what else would eliminate the smell, even though I don't like to use unatural products there is something here in the UK which is called Oust and they do a surface deordoriser and santiniser spray which wor=ked wonders inside my car when it had a strange almost sour milk type smell at one time, eggs are porous and also absorb ordors too. Lets hope someone else has some good ideas. Ellie :D

i dunno.. maybe put cans inside there instead of boxed stuff ?

I have asthma and I used to get sick everytime we painted. Now a days there's low ordor paint which is a great help, but the one thing that does work is putting vinegar in saucers and this may work here too. I have heard of using onions and it did help but the vinegar leaves no after smell and it seems to suck up odor. Try putting vinegar in bowls and shut the pantry door. Good Luck!!!

I see you have gotten some really good replies to this discussion. And A few suggestions that i will have to keep in mind. I was going to suggest calling a hardware store or something like that and explain the situation to them, but I see someone did suggest Home Depot. I also like the idea of changing WHAT you are going to store in there, canned goods might be an option. Anyway, good luck in finding a solution that works for you!

Hmm since it's still new maybe you should allow more time to let air into it. How about leaving it open during the day? Maybe the heat of the day could take a lot of it. Just wait before you put any food items there so that it won't smell of varnish

If I need to ever get rid of a smell I cut an onion in half and lay half in the cupboard. Try it out and see if it works. I would recommend not closing the door and leaving it in there overnight. It works for paint smells as I have tried it myself and I think the onion absorbs the smell. Good luck

Open it and leave it open with nothing in it for at least a week. Someone must have put 2 coats of varnish on it (or more) and didn't let the first coat dry completely. Varnish takes a long time to dry. If you can get air to it, this will help. Not a fan- this will "suface dry" only and make it a sticky dry! Be aware that if they used "real varnish" and not polyurethane or a stain, it may take a long time for this to dry. Some old chests that I have opened still smell like varnish that was put on it over 10 years ago. Around here we don't use varnish or a stain on the inside of cabinets. For faster use, sand it down on the inside- real good- and you may be able to use it sooner. I'm from Lexington, NC USA and have worked in furniture most of my life. Sadly, all of our plants have been sent overseas...