mrieder79 Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 I have a batch of about 30 megs and makos that smell terrible. I forgot and left them in the soaking tub with barnacles for waaaay too long. The barnacles rotted and the teeth soaked in the rotten barnacle water for several days. I tried soaking in white vinegar to no avail. After that I let them air out for about 2 weeks but the smell is still there. Currently they are covered in baking soda. Don't know if that will work. I thought about maybe using boiling water if the baking soda doesn't work, but I'm not sure if that would ruin the teeth. Any other suggestions are welcome. Luck is the most important skill of a fossil diver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 I dont think i'd risk boiling water. But by the same token i have no suggestions to help, sorry. "Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe" - Saint Augustine"Those who can not see past their own nose deserve our pity more than anything else." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edd Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 You can make me a donation, I'll deal with the smell " We're all puppets, I'm just a puppet who can see the strings. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squali Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 Try lemons. The oils in the rind last a while and may bind with the stink helping to mask/ remove the odors. It's hard to remember why you drained the swamp when your surrounded by alligators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scylla Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 Try a quick spray with febreeze. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 Give 'em a good soak in a 10% bleach-to-water solution, rinse & air dry. 1 "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcbshark Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 I've used lemon juice or toothpaste to get fish smell off my hands, maybe worth a try. Either that or I'll take one for the team with Edd and you can split them between us, my display a fairly well air tight lol Every once in a great while it's not just a big rock down there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 I would avoid the fabreze..,. that just coats them with fabreze, rather than actually getting rid of the smell. I would try leaving them out in the sun for a while... But then I am just guessing. I think the baking soda ought to work. keep us posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 The odor is the result of bacterial action on recent organic material (barnacles, algae, etc...). A 10% bleach soak will take care of it by killing the bacteria and sterilizing the teeth, rather than masking the odor. 6 "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrieder79 Posted November 15, 2015 Author Share Posted November 15, 2015 (edited) Since I've already used a bunch of baking soda, I'll let them sit for about week in the baking soda. If that does not work, I will try the bleach. If that does not work I am planning on finding a safe place to leave them exposed to the elements and see how that works. I am hoping the baking soda or bleach works because the idea of leaving my treasures out in the open is not appealing to me. How long of a soak would you recommend for bleach? Are we talking minutes, hours, or days? Edited November 15, 2015 by mrieder79 Luck is the most important skill of a fossil diver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 A few hours should do it, then rinse and air-dry. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyc Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 I'd like to join Ed and Jeff's team Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoWilliam Posted November 16, 2015 Share Posted November 16, 2015 I'd like to join Ed and Jeff's team Count me in too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashcraft Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Be careful with the bleach, could chemically affect the teeth. Peroxide is also strongly anti-bacterial, and less likely to react with the teeth itself (although it too is a bleaching agent). Brent Ashcraft 1 ashcraft, brent allen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashcraft Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 You might also try soaking it in a degreaser. Oil might be the problem rather then decay. Gasoline would work. Brent Ashcraft ashcraft, brent allen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 Be careful with the bleach, could chemically affect the teeth. Peroxide is also strongly anti-bacterial, and less likely to react with the teeth itself (although it too is a bleaching agent). Brent Ashcraft I never saw any sign of damage, this after hundreds of cleanings of teeth and bones from the Calvert Fm. Dilute bleach for stink, peroxide to loosen adhering clay. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashcraft Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 I would go with Auspex's experience over my supposition. Depending on the bleach, they can be acidic, so it would be matrix dependent. Brent Ashcraft ashcraft, brent allen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilselachian Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 I never saw any sign of damage, this after hundreds of cleanings of teeth and bones from the Calvert Fm. Dilute bleach for stink, peroxide to loosen adhering clay. Would agree with Auspex re the use of bleach, having subjected hundreds of shark teeth to a "bleach soak" without the slightest hint of any deleterious results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megaholic Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 (edited) While we are on this subject... How can you remove the green stains from fossil bone and teeth that were exposed to the Florida warm water for years? And DO NOT USE STRONG BLEACH SOLUTION it will damage the roots on megs! This I know to be true. I would trust the bleach for odor, and would also consider strait acetone, which is totally harmless to your teeth. I should think it would kill bacteria too??? Edited November 18, 2015 by megaholic "A man who asks is a fool for five minutes. A man who never asks is a fool for life". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 ...DO NOT USE STRONG BLEACH SOLUTION it will damage the roots on megs!... A 10% solution is not strong: 9 parts water, 1 part bleach, for a couple hours; rinse well, air dry. 1 "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megaholic Posted November 19, 2015 Share Posted November 19, 2015 Since you are a diver, you might have a bottle of SINK THE STINK wetsuit/BC/anything cleaner. It uses an enzyme to cut the really bad odors that can happen in a wetsuit during a long dive... I would bet it is safe to use on your teeth, I have seen it do magic on packed wet dive gear coming home from Australia. MH "A man who asks is a fool for five minutes. A man who never asks is a fool for life". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshHendrick Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Another useful tool for killing bacteria when bleach may be too risky is freezing - I worked retail through college and learned how to keep jeans clean and remove smelly odors from sport shoes without washing them by using this method. Even worked on my old boxing gloves - freezer kills most bacteria that causes those kinds of odors. Throw them in a plastic bag let sit for a couple days. House hold freezer works OK - if you can get it in the back where it's coldest, but a chest freezer works the best. Side note: I'm not sure if it's safe to freeze these fossils - I'd make sure they are 100% dry, of course - but other than expanding moisture, please advise if freezing them poses more risk than bleach so I don't attempt this as sometimes I get some funky smelling things, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandgroper Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Eucalyptus oil is very good disinfectant, I don't think it would harm the teeth but others may know whether this is true. It certainly works very well in a variety of other applications. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted January 31, 2016 Share Posted January 31, 2016 Eucalyptus oil is very good disinfectant, I don't think it would harm the teeth but others may know whether this is true. It certainly works very well in a variety of other applications. and it may leave the teeth with a pleasant smell! "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrieder79 Posted January 31, 2016 Author Share Posted January 31, 2016 Well... I bleached them. And forgot about them... and probably didn't dilute the bleach enough. So I started out with teeth that were clearly from eastern georgia and ended up with teeth that look like they came from bakersfield! LOL. It actually looks really neat. I don't have any light teeth from diving so it's a nice change of pace. There was no physical damage to the root or enamel, both are still intact, just lighter. my advice to others: MEASURE THE BLEACH. I eyeballed it and clearly made a mistake. SET A TIMER. I got caught up with parenting and next thing I knew it was too late. Luck is the most important skill of a fossil diver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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