Does anyone have any idea how to resolve damp smells?
Question:I moved into a house in december last year, but with recent heavy rain our electrics cut out in the kitchen and we had this awful smell in the living room which I put down to the chimney (we had no cowl on it). Thats been sorted and chimney swept but smell persists. The electrics sorted themselves out a couple of days later - with no intervention from me! Two kitchen cupboards smell too. We've lifted plints in the kitchen, no damp signs, floorboards look really good actually. the cupboards are all pretty clean and dry. I am running out of ideas and my boyfriend wants to string me up for complaining. Any ideas anyone?
Answers:
Probably coming from the crawlspace. You need to close your foundation vents and make sure you have a good vapor barrier sealing as much of the dirt crawlspace as possible. A normal house has what's called the chimney effect. The air naturally rises from bottom to top. If your crawlspace is wet and nasty, guess where the make up air comes from? That's a good place to start. There are books written about the effects of a poorly designed crawlspace, and improper drainage around your foundation.
i love your framentisim in your sentences. and i have the same prob those slugs keep coming through the wall.
Move house. it sounds like a rancid place that you wouldnt even want to invite friends, let alone family!
Check for water damage on the outside of the house...look for areas were water may collect at the base of the house. Water seeping into the house may have rotted timbers that support the frame of the house.
If you have a basement or a crawl space l would check there also.
Install a dehumidier and do what you can to stop water infiltration. Things like caulking and fixing leaks.
It's POSSIBLE,...:-),.. that the supply,return cables for the kitchen electrics (ring main) run through the living room under the floor and that with all the rain the water table rose under the floor and created a short circuit under there,maybe in a junction box,which would explain why you lost your kitchen electrics, When the water receded the electrics returned to normal. The junction box however may now be arcing/overheating, and creating a smell, usually a fishy smell, if it's bakelite. As for the kitchen cupboards, only thought I can offer is that there too, there are electrical fittings, maybe undercupboard lighting, that are overheating. I know you asked specifically about damp smells, my suggestions are made only in case that isn't acually what you can smell.
More Related Questions & Answers...