How to Get Rid of Musty Smell Under House
- oakvilles [OP]
- Newbie
- May 23, 2019
- 17 posts
- 3 upvotes
Jul 4th, 2019 10:56 am
How to get rid of musty smell in home?
I'm a new homeowner, just moved in about 3 months ago. But I'm away 90% of the time for work, so the house is practically empty most of the time. So every time I return home, I notice a sharp "damp", musty smell...not sure how else to describe it. Is this because of potential mold in the air ducts? Do I need an air quality meter to assess air quality in the house? How can I get rid of the smell? I suspect the air filter in the vent may be the issue, but could be completely wrong...
- #2
- engineered
- Deal Expert
-
- Feb 11, 2007
- 17662 posts
- 19822 upvotes
- GTA
Jul 4th, 2019 11:14 am
oakvilles wrote: ↑ I'm a new homeowner, just moved in about 3 months ago. But I'm away 90% of the time for work, so the house is practically empty most of the time. So every time I return home, I notice a sharp "damp", musty smell...not sure how else to describe it. Is this because of potential mold in the air ducts? Do I need an air quality meter to assess air quality in the house? How can I get rid of the smell? I suspect the air filter in the vent may be the issue, but could be completely wrong...
Look for water leaks and other signs of mold. Most likely around windows, the attic, or water pipes/sinks.
Run your HVAC fan constantly with a good, clean filter.
Run your ERV if you have one.
Run a dehumidifier to lower you humidity to under 50%.
Open all of your windows to get fresh air if it's not too hot.
Otherwise run your AC to keep the house cool, and make sure to condition all areas of your home.
I don't think IAQ monitors can tell you if you have mould, a few simple humidity sensors around the house will give you an idea.
- #3
- ChubChub
- Deal Addict
-
- Oct 9, 2010
- 2994 posts
- 1151 upvotes
- Windsor
Jul 4th, 2019 12:13 pm
oakvilles wrote: ↑ I'm a new homeowner, just moved in about 3 months ago. But I'm away 90% of the time for work, so the house is practically empty most of the time. So every time I return home, I notice a sharp "damp", musty smell...not sure how else to describe it. Is this because of potential mold in the air ducts? Do I need an air quality meter to assess air quality in the house? How can I get rid of the smell? I suspect the air filter in the vent may be the issue, but could be completely wrong...
engineered has some good suggestions; I'd absolutely do those first, if you have the equipment he mentions.
Musty comes from excess moisture somewhere; it might be inside a filter, it might be inside insulation, it might be in wood, but rest assured, it is somewhere (or was, anyways).
If you're smelling it when you come in the front door, there is a good chance it's close to there. However, we acclimate to smells quickly, so maybe come in the back door next time, and see if you're hit with the same smell, meaning it's "everywhere".
If you have a basement, you should start there hunting. Buy a few humidity sensors (cheap ones) on Amazon or something, put them all together for a day (to see how far off from each other they are, mark their offset with a sharpie if any are dramatically off), then place them here and there in your basement; you're looking for abnormally high readings. Also, if you have a basement, and HOPEFULLY it's not finished, you can look at your blocks/foundation, or even floor, and look for anything stained/black.
You almost definitely don't have mold in your ducts, unless your home was a grow-op or something. Your mention of an in-line filter in a vent seems odd, but I'd absolutely remove those and give them a sniff; the source of this smell will be much stronger when you get close to it (but, again, we acclimate to smells, so keep that in mind).
You might also want to look at sink-drains, especially any you don't use (a basement bathroom, for example, or a never-used wash basin); gross stuff can collect in those p-traps pretty easy.
One who is offended by truth, has no place among those who seek wisdom.
- #4
- gfnstew
- Member
- Apr 17, 2016
- 347 posts
- 252 upvotes
- Toronto
Jul 4th, 2019 1:16 pm
I just finished a major gut job on my house, both main and upper floors (but not basement). It had a very musty smell when we moved in a few years back and I believe it was the following causing it:
1) the house never had AC (90 yr old house). I also believe they did not have a dehumidifier in basement. The humidity levels got up over 70% the first summer I was here and I got a dehumidifier for basement when I saw this. This drastically reduced the smell.
2) when gutting the place, I noticed a huge difference in smell when I removed the old carpet on the main floor. The carpet and underpad must have held a lot of moisture.
I have now installed AC and keep the humidity around 50% or so. They smell is gone. On the extreme humid days, I can smell a bit of it in the basement so then I turn the temp lower on the AC to reduce the humidity.
How to Get Rid of Musty Smell Under House
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