What smells should I worry about in my house? (2024)

What smells should I worry about in my house?

The smell of sulphur or rotten eggs almost always indicates an issue with gas supply. Natural gas is odorless, but suppliers treat the gas with a strong rotten egg smell to make gas leaks more detectable. If the smell is faint, but does not dissipate, turn off the furnace and ventilate your home.

If you smell a musty or moldy odor, you could have a mold problem—some people say that mold smells like dirty socks or feet. Mold can vary in severity from being merely an inconvenience to being dangerously toxic, so it's important to address the issue immediately.

A weird smell in a house can come from numerous sources, including appliances, furniture, carpets, fabrics or issues like mold or mildew. Occasionally, odors may be caused by sewer gas, natural gas leaks or animals that have died between walls, in attics or under decks.

Does the odd smell remind you of a household chemical or product? You may not be wrong. If products such as cleaners or paints are stored too close to the air handler unit, then fumes could be drawn in and blown throughout the home.

Black mold has a distinct smell. It's often described as musty and earthy and may even smell like rotting vegetables, plants, or paper. Some think it smells like cedar.

Mold is often described as smelling musty. Others have described mold as having an earthy or meaty odor, resembling the smell of wet socks or rotten wood. For many homeowners, the smell is unpleasant and pungent. As mold grows, it can emit gasses known as microbial volatile organic compounds, or MVOC's.

Mold will smell musty and stale. But if the mold has been growing in your home for a long time, the smell will be stronger like how sweaty socks or rotten meat smell. You can also buy a home-test kit for molds, but these are not guaranteed to give you accurate measurements of airborne particles.

Smelling like chloroform, or sweetish car coolant, Freon, while mostly odorless, is still detectable. Heavier than air, it doesn't linger for long, quickly dropping down to floor level. Though it won't make you instantly pass out, this chloroform-scented leak is still dangerous.

Carbon monoxide has no smell. It is an odorless, colorless gas that's a byproduct of combustion. Because carbon monoxide can leak from your gas furnace, stove, dryer, water heater, wood stove or gas fireplace, it is essential to put safeguards in place for immediate detection when a leak occurs.

How do I get rid of an unknown smell in my house?

Air it out: Open windows and doors to let fresh air circulate through the house. You can also use fans to help move the air and remove the smell. Use odor absorbers: Place bowls of baking soda, activated charcoal, or coffee grounds in areas where the smell is most potent.

If you want to simultaneously clean and freshen the air from bad odors, you should invest in a quality air purifier. Although an air purifier is more expensive up-front than candles or scented oils, it can be used for a much longer period of time, and it can actually clean the air instead of just covering up bad odors.

Sewer gas produces a very distinct rotten egg smell, caused when organic materials break down and decompose to form hydrogen sulfide. If you're unsure about the smell coming from your drains or sewers, call a licensed plumber who can perform an inspection or clear and clean blockages.

A freon leak will produce a smell between sweet and chloroform. Freon leaks can be toxic. If you suspect a freon leak, talk to a specialist who can use a freon leak detector to help address the issue.

While there are many causes, electrical fires can smell like “burning plastic” or “burning rubber” as the plastic insulation surrounding copper wires inside the walls starts to heat and melt, releasing strong unpleasant chemical odors. If the electrical fire progresses, you may begin to smell wood burning as well.

The most common cause of a sudden musty smell in a house, especially in winter, is the development of mold and mildew, often caused by humid conditions and condensation.

These compounds are known as microbial volatile organic compounds (mVOCs). Because mVOCs often have strong or unpleasant odors, they can be the source of the "moldy odor" or musty smell frequently associated with mold growth. A moldy odor suggests that mold is growing in the building and should be investigated.

Visual and odor cues can indicate the presence of mold, such as dark stains on bathroom tiles or a musty odor in certain parts of the house. Mold can also cause paint blistering on walls, lumpy insulation, and inadequate bathroom ventilation. Mold has a damp and stale smell, almost like wet paper.

“Musty” and “stale” are the most accurate descriptors of what mold smells like. The musty odor is a result of the hodgepodge of mVOCs produced by the mold and released into the air. In addition to mustiness, mVOCs are also responsible for notes of earthiness, rotting, or sourness.

Why does my home smell musty? Mold and mildew smell stale and pungent, similar to the smell of rotting wood. It's most common smelled in either places where mold spores can colonize undisturbed like basem*nts and closets, or in places where there is plenty of moisture like bathrooms.

How do you test for mold in your house?

Most mold is unmistakable, but sometimes small or largely hidden growths just make a surface look dirty. A quick test for mold can be done when you dip a swab in diluted bleach (1 part bleach, 16 parts water) and dab it on the wall. If the spot quickly lightens (or keeps coming back after cleaning), assume it's mold.

The Biomatrix mold monitor is more than the most technologically advanced smart home mold detector on the market. With the purchase of a Biomatrix device, your system will be monitored by a team of specialists, ensuring that your home is scanned for signs of trouble 24/7.

While a property owner may eliminate the mold inside the home, the mold smell may not completely disappear. The microbial volatile organic compounds (MVOC) that mold spores release cause the smell of mold. Not all mold produces the MVOC, and some spores may simply stop creating the MVOC at any given point.

If you have located the mold odor but do not see any obvious mold infestation, the spores may have spread behind or below the surface. This is because mold likes to "hide" behind wallpaper, paneling, plaster or baseboards, as well as under floor coverings such as carpet.

Leaking coolant has a sweet, warm smell, and is easily recognizable. It smells more like vapor than smoke, like the difference between steam from a boiling pot of water and smoke from a fire. If the smell is strong or you see vapor inside the vehicle, check for wet carpet...you may have a bad heater core.