how do you get rid of that old musty smell from a basement?

Answer 1

Charcoal absorbs orders, put some charcoal in a couple of buckets around your basement, in a few days your musty smell will be gone.

Answer 2

All old houses smell musty, because they don't have sealed foundations. If they even have concrete, it is cracked, rotten and not sealed with tar on the outside like we do now. Bleach only kills mold, it doesn't prevent it from coming back. I think a lot of the smell from old houses comes from the 100 year old dust (even dry basements stink). I would pressure spray the whole basement and dry it out real good with fans and then seal any cracks real good (you can get special caulking for this, it sucks right into the crack). Then I would get a real good sealer paint (maybe garage floor epoxy, at least for the floor) and paint everything. For the money it will take to run a dehumidifier steady (which will be a lot over time) and it's only a bandaid that doesn't fix the problem, you would be better off to get to the root of the problem and seal the moisture out.

Answer 3

First and most important, find out WHY your basement smells. Mold can smell musty and some kinds are also very dangerous when breathed! It can be fatal!!!
If mold spores is the problem you will have to hire a pro! Otherwise, heat and dry the moisture out of the basement. Then wask every inch with bleach water. Usually 1/2 cup per gal. of water. Then if you like the smell..(I do) put out moth balls! This will make it smell fresh and will keep snakes,rats,spiders..ect out of your basement! Good Luck and Be Blessed! Rev .Susan

Answer 4

Take everything out of the basement, including old carpet. Start in the ceiling and go down the walls with Lysol. Put Lysol in warm water and wash it all down. Then do the floor. Let it dry real well and then spray with a can or two of Lysol. Wash windows and put up clean curtains. You are not getting good ventilation into the basement. It always remains damp, that is why you smell mildew or musty smell. You need to keep it clean and well ventilated. The Lysol, will get rid of the musty , mildew smell, but you need to get fresh air down there.

Answer 5

The odor probably comes from dampness. There is a product called damp rid that works well. Check Wal-Mart , Lowes, etc.

And by the way you can restore your hope chest......

There is a product that refreshes the cedar oils in the cedar wood.
I would suggest that you take everything out of the chest and use a fine grade sand paper on the exposed cedar. Do Not use anything heavier than 120 grit and just lightly sand it. Next take the replenishing oil of cedar and using a clean lint free cloth that you have applied the oil to. Rub the freshly sanded wood lightly with the cloth, if you apply to much pressure you will saturate the wood with the oil and leave an oil stain.
Look at this web site.
http://www.texascedaroil.com/index.html...

Answer 6

Remove all wet/damp items. Mildew is cause of smell. Anything with mildew on it needs to be removed. I sprayed straight BLEACH onto floor and let it dry. Ventilation is required due to strong odor. Then seal the floor.

Purchase dehumidifier and run it.

Try using plastic totes for storage versus the cardboard box. Cardboard wicks moisture from the air and eventually will cause the musty smell to return.

Good luck.

Answer 7

Combination approach:

Dehumidify for fairly quick relief of dampness, but you'll also have to look at everything in your basement for signs of mold and/or mildew. You may have to get rid of a few things, you may have to bleach a few things, or you may want to (after all that) redo the walls/ceilings/etc. altogether.

Answer 8

find out where the moisture is coming from to make the musty smell, once you find that, as the others have suggested get an humidify er, but it won't do any good if moisture is building up mold somewhere. find it, clean it and air it out. good luck

Answer 9

Lots and LOTS of fresh dry air. Open all the windows, put a fan in one pushing the air OUT, and make sure that all the closets and drawers in anything you have down there are open so that air can recirculate between them.

Answer 10

Air movement. Some folks use a dehunmdifier, or you could use an exhaust fan to move the air.