Locating And Dealing With A Mystery Musty Smell In Your Home
Once water has damaged an area of the home, it can be difficult to get rid of the musty smell that it has left behind. If the clean-up and restoration are not done properly, the smell could remain in the home forever–worsen over time, even. Here, you'll find a few tips that can help you figure out where the smell is coming from and what to do when you find the problem.
Find the Source of the Smell
Close all of the windows and doors so that you don't have any drafts blowing the odor around. Now, follow your nose – it shouldn't take long to figure out what area of the house it is coming from. Once you know the general area, it's time to look for the actual source.
Using your nose to guide you, go to where the smell is the strongest and begin moving anything away from the area. Check each item for signs of moisture damage as you move them. If you've moving boxes that are filled with moisture-damaged goods, you'll be pulling the smell around the house and could be moving the source of the smell.
If you get through everything and still haven't found the source of the smell, chances are it's somewhere inside the walls, ceiling, or flooring. Yes, that smell can become trapped in concrete, so even if it is a hard surface, don't exclude it as a source.
Clear the Area and Ventilate
The best thing to do after you'd found the location of the odor is to clear the room entirely. Move the contents outside so that the sun and fresh air can remove some of the smell as you work.
Open the windows and doors and place fans in each that pull fresh air in from the outside. If humidity is high during the day that you're working, keep all of the fans running outward–you don't want to pull in any more moisture with the fresh air. Run a dehumidifier non-stop. This machine will pull the moisture out of the air, as well as the materials that hold moisture.
Hire Water Damage Repair Professionals
The longer it takes to find and repair the source of odor, the worse things will get. Talk with your local water damage repair services for help. They'll not only be able to find the source quickly but also make the recommend repairs to avoid this problem from reoccurring in the near future.