Need help with Omnigrad mat
 

I just bought this Omnigrad mat, size 24 x 36 and when I took the wrapper off it had a real bad smell. ..I thought it would air out but after 5 days but it still smells bad. Has anyone had this happen to them?

I bought it at Joanna's but do you think they will refund my money just because it smells so bad?

I really don't know what to do Thanks

I would think Joann's would take it back if you have the receipt. I know there is a prior thread about it. Have you tried washing it with Dawn dish soap?

I noticed that some of the mats in the rotary cutter and mat area of Joann's were now wrapped in plastic. Wondered if it was because of the well known, long standing problem of that smell they have. That awful smell is common in cutting mats and in my experience impossible to get out. I would return rather than waste my time trying the numerous methods - washing with all kinds of soaps and detergents, soaking is baking soda, vinegar, airing outside - I know this because I tried all of the above and more to get rid of that smell from a mat. I even left it outside on my back porch for nearly 6 months and the smell was still so bad I could not stand it. Threw it away as it was way past the return window.
Return it and Good Luck!

Here is a link to a search of this forum for "cutting mat smells"
https://www.quiltingboard.com/search...rchid=14610208

I buy the Olfa mats... they have a strong odor. I felt the odor faded within a short time, though.

I bought a smelly one. I kept it "hidden" for over 2 years. It still smells some, but I have adjusted to the odor.

I won an Olfa folding mat. It was wrapped in plastic and very stinky. I put it in the attic and forgot about it until this post. LOL I'll go get it later and check it out.

It looks like they should with a receipt.

Knowing Murphy224's link would not work, I did my own search. Knowing that when you click on a link from the results will not show the actual text of the posts until you refresh the page, I looked at a few of them. One of them was https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...d-t288210.html and reading through (after refreshing) I found a link to http://calibreart.com/ and then doing a search for 24x36 size on Amazon I found https://www.amazon.com/Healing-Cutti.../dp/B01BTFEMAI (Not affiliated with off-site links )

Another one I found and skimmed through was https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...s-t148332.html at the end - page 4 - had a link to https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...s-t152258.html which gives a solution that worked for Gladys.

Hope this helps. I think the QB links above should work without refreshing. Why it works from here but not from the "Search" box - I don't know.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.

One article I read online said some mats are being manufactured using cheaper supplies causing major off gassing that gives the smell. Some may balk at the price of some brands of mats but they don't stink.

Several years ago, I bought a large Omnigrid cutting mat, and had the same problem. The odor was nauseating. I emailed the company to ask how long I could expect the mat to off-gas and they apologized, and sent me a new mat. Unfortunately, the new replacement mat they sent had the same odor. I threw both in the trash and bought an odor free Olfa mat.

The last one I bought smelled a bit like skunk. Either I adjusted to the smell, or it quit smelling- I've had it about a year now. Not sure when I stopped noticing a stink around it.

rob