How to remove a funky smell out the house.?

Question

i purchased a 2 family home with a basement. The basement has a funky smell in general there is no real source from where it is coming from. the smell has gone upstairs to my 2nd floor apartment. i have wash all the wall and painted all walls. i mopped with ammonia and bleach ( not at the same time) i did the air freshner, but the smell is still there. and the smell gets worse in the summer time. in the winter time the house smells nice n pretty, but once the temp reaches over 80 degrees is nothing but funk. I clean my house evryday and take trash out. can some please send me some good ideas, and no i'm not selling the house. the smell is not foul is just funky.

Answer 1

The odor is most likely off-gassing from fungi growing in your basement. As one of your answerers suggested, a dehumidifier will solve the short-term problem of excess relative humidity. Radio Shack has cheap digital hygrometers that tell you what the relative humidity is. Above 50% you are asking for problems with mold. The reason the smell gets worse in the heat is that the higher temperatures encourage mold growth.

You might want to take a careful look downstairs to make sure you don't have ground water seeping in. This is a serious problem and should be resolved quickly. Meanwhile, I've found two products that are non-toxic and are effective at the elimination of odors by desroying the source:

Zero Odor

http://www.zeroodorstore.com/how_zero_odor_works/?mys=read_how_zo_works

T-2

http://www.myodorcontrol.com/site/1429557/page/553669

Answer 2

You have a funky house.

Not sure what kind of budget you have but you could try buying an air purifier which you can probably get at Home Depot. You might also want to bring in a home inspector to see if he/she can figure out the source of the smell. Might seem a little costly now but it's your investment and it should be taken care of.

As for the source of the odor, it could be lots of things, like mold, pet odors, funky cooking spices, etc which will probably be more apparent as the humidity and temperature rise. If you *just* bought the house you might want to consult the realtor who sold you the house and get in contact with the people who lived there before you. Your money shouldn't have been invested in a dump. Take them to the highest court in the land. :)

Answer 3

You need a dehumidifier for the basement. The funk you smell is from the high humidity in the basement. You can purchase one from Home Depot or Lowes for under $200.00. Set the control for mid way and let it run. You'll be surprised at the amount of water in the air. You'll have to empty the pan every day for about a week, but the smell will be gone before that.

Answer 4

Since the problem seems to be in the basement, you might want to seal it to make sure there aren't any leaks in it. Since you've cleaned with bleach and ammonia, I doubt there's any mold left alive down there.

Good luck!

Answer 5

Put like 4 or 5 ounces of bleach mixed with water in a spray bottle and spray your basement walls well... should work... just don't get it on you....

Answer 6

Sounds like you may have a mold/fungus problem. Unfortunately, these often happen behind walls where it's hard to see. It's an expensive problem to have fixed.

If any person in the house has any problems breathing, you need to have your house checked for mold.

Answer 7

un-used coffe grounds sprinkle them on the floor and let them sit for a day or 2.... you can go somewhere cheap and get the cheap coffee...i learned that tip from a friend of mine who is a painter and that is what they use to get the smell of it out of the house!!! Good Luck

Answer 8

Try Vinegar & Water spray it every where you use 4c of water and 2Tbsp vinegar put in a spray bottle & go nuts lol.They say it kills everything in Home Remedy Book

Answer 9

get some breathable pouches and put baking soda in them and hang them all around the basement....maybe it will absorb the odors like it does in the refrigerator!

wood chips are also good for absorbing odors....try cedar wood chips....you can re use stockings to hold the cedar chips

Answer 10

if there are any windows wipe with vinegar around the frame, set out small dishes with vinegar these we get rid of the smell, wash any drapes, Vacuum out any heat holes...