How Biochar Absorbs Odors Looking for an environmentally friendly way to rid your home or workplace of unpleasant smells? Biochar is the answer. Odors negatively affect your health and welfare, as nuisance smells affect people both physically and emotionally. Biochar absorbs odors, improving your quality of life. Odors Biochar Can Get Rid Of So, what is biochar, and how does it absorb odors? Biochar is a term used for organic biomass heated under high temperatures in the absence of oxygen, a process known as pyrolysis. Indigenous people in the Amazon Basin used a form of biochar over 2,000 years ago to improve the fertility of poor jungle soils. Today, this Terra Preta, or black earth, is still unusually fecund. This carbon-rich substance is extremely porous. This porosity allows biochar to absorb and hold odors. Think of biochar as a sponge, absorbing and containing odors such as hydrogen sulfide, often known as swamp gas. It is one of the most effective natural odor remedies available. Odors that biochar can absorb include: Cigarette Smoke Cigarette smoke in a home or building permeates everything, and the odor can remain for weeks or months. The toxins can remain on fabric, such as carpet or upholstery, for a year or more. Remove cigarette smoke odor with biochar, as it absorbs these toxins. Pet Waste Do visitors to your home immediately ask if you have cats, even if no kitties are visible? It’s likely that litter box odor is the telltale clue. To remove pet waste odor, put about a cup of biochar in cat litter boxes. Keep in mind that biochar is not a cat litter substitute. Too much biochar can make the litter box very dusty and uncomfortable for felines. Food Odor Studies on biochar’s odor-removal ability have been conducted worldwide. These studies conclude that biochar can absorb the smell of swine manure, wastewater, and dairy manure lagoons. Biochar can remove food waste odor, which is seldom as pungent as the large amounts of manure stored in commercial livestock operations! Trash Odor Just as with food odors, biochar’s ability to remove strong odors makes it a good choice as a natural odor remedy for both household and commercial trash bins. Biochar Applications In the Soil One of the great benefits of biochar is that it sequesters carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas most responsible for global warming and subsequent climate change. Sequestering carbon dioxide in the soil means it does not go into the atmosphere, wreaking havoc on the planet. For every pound of biochar used, two pounds of carbon dioxide are sequestered. The many plant biochar applications include: Boosting soil fertility Enhancing soil structure Improving disease resistance Better water and nutrient retention Drainage and aeration improvement Providing habitat for beneficial microbes Above the Soil Along with odor removal, other biochar applications above the soil include: Restoring degraded soils Treating wastewater Adsorption of heavy metals and other toxins Gas emission reduction, including methane and ammonia from manure lagoons What to Know Before Applying Biochar How you apply biochar depends on your intended use. For houseplants, simply top dress biochar on the soil and wet it. For trees and shrubs, make biochar about 10 percent of the soil mix in the root zone. Keep the soil moist for between five to seven days after the application. For new lawns, mix biochar into the top 2 to 4 inches of soil. Keep the soil moist for five to seven days. For gardens, mix biochar into the top 4 to 6 inches of soil, again keeping the soil moist for between five and seven days. Once applied, biochar can remain in the soil for literally thousands of years. Do not apply more biochar than necessary. Learn More From Wakefield BioChar Our biochar certifications ensure that you are purchasing environmentally sound products created by using natural practices. Feel free to contact us here at Wakefield BioChar to learn more about our products and how they work.