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Aug 15, 2024 · A musty smell in your house is never fun, but it's surprisingly common and pretty easy to fix. If your sick of the smell and are looking for a quick solution, there's a lot you can do. We've got a lot of tips to help, like making sure your...
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- Mold and mildew. 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.
- Dust and grime build up. If you cannot find any sources of mold in your home then the source may be a little less sinister. ‘ Musty smells are often caused in the home by a build-up of dirt and grime, which can cause a lingering, unpleasant smell,’ explains Amanda Lewis of Elbow Grease. ‘
- Improperly dried clothing and linens. Although drying clothes quickly is convenient, not leaving clothes and linens to dry for long enough can leave them smelling musty and cause a permanent odor in your home.
- Home humidity above 60% Trying to work out what humidity your house should be in winter can be difficult. Nevertheless, a humidity over 60% can trap odors and create a musty, damp lingering smell around your home.
- Rotten Eggs. About half of the homes in the United States use natural gas for heating, hot water, cooking, or drying clothes, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
- A Fishy Smell. If something smells fishy in your home, it might not be the lingering odor from last night’s tilapia. In fact, you may want to call an electrician ASAP.
- Sewage or “Bathroom” Odor. Don’t blame the bean dip! If you have a sewer smells in the bathroom, you may want to call the plumber. That smell may mean that your plumbing system or vent pipe is clogged, or that you have a broken sewer pipe.
- Cat Urine. Even people without feline friends may smell cat urine, especially after it rains, and wonder how to get rid of cat pee smell that’s plaguing them.
- Your Carpeting Needs Cleaned. There are many reasons why wall-to-wall carpet throughout the home has fallen out of favor—a major one being that carpet retains odors.
- The Ventilation Is Inadequate. According to Murphy, inadequate ventilation is another primary source of those musty aromas. “Limited fresh air can lead to stale, musty conditions,” she explains.
- There’s A Leak. Leaks can also cause musty odors, but the bigger problem is that they aren’t always visible. “Hidden leaks within walls or under floors can perpetuate ongoing mustiness,” Murphy explains.
- Mold Is Growing. While mold on surfaces can be obvious, such as when you see it growing on a wall or ceiling, that isn’t always the case, explains Momplaisir.
- Mary Marlowe Leverette
- Locate the Source of the Musty Smell. It's time to take a look and a sniff around. Until you identify the source of the musty smell, you'll never be able to get rid of it—and it can get worse.
- Repair Leaks and Control Excessive Moisture. To get musty smells under control, repair any leaks that you find. If you don't, the odors cannot be controlled.
- Clean Away Mildew. When you see evidence of mildew, it's important to get rid of it before or after you solve the problem causing the issue. You can try using diluted chlorine bleach, as it's highly effective in killing mildew on surfaces like ceramic tile and grout, cement walls, and washable fabrics.
- Increase Air Circulation. Whether you find visible evidence of mildew or not, the musty smell signals that you need to increase air circulation in the home.
Feb 13, 2024 · Below are 12 reasons why your house might smell musty. A moldy smell is usually quite sweet and can be sickly, which differs to that of a musty smell, which smells stale and old. However, the two terms are frequently mistaken, and a musty smell could be a sign that mold will soon become a problem, so we have included some causes of moldy smells ...
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Aug 31, 2023 · A musty or damp smell can indicate that mold is growing somewhere out of sight. The overt appearance of mold, which is marked by green, black, or white patches on surfaces, is...
