# Bad Odor in the House **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 14, 2010, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632 "2010-07-14T04:18:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![flickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7bcc69/32.png) [@flickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flickster)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/1 "2010-07-14T04:18:44Z")
Help Started getting a strange odor in the house yesterday. Noticed is as soon as I walked in the door from work. After being in the house for a few minutes last night, you didn’t really notice it unless you stepped outside for a bit and came back in. Tonight it’s stronger - smelling like something dead and I can detect it all the time. I’ve checked throughout the house trying the hot/cold search method without success. Checked all the likely places including plumbing fixtures - nothing. I’m down to where I’m suspecting something may have assumed room temperature inside one of our A/C ducts. Unfortunately with high ceilings and concealed ducts, I’m unable to place my nose at the scene to confirm. Suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/2 "2010-07-14T04:27:17Z")
> [@flickster](#): > > I’m down to where I’m suspecting something may have assumed room temperature inside one of our A/C ducts. Unfortunately with high ceilings and concealed ducts, I’m unable to place my nose at the scene to confirm. > > Suggestions? Do you have any uncapped chimneys? We had a squirrel fall down one and die. The smell was awful. ---
**Author:** ![RetroVertigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@RetroVertigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RetroVertigo)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/3 "2010-07-14T04:48:45Z")
Perhaps sewer gas, or from the sump pump? ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/4 "2010-07-14T04:52:24Z")
I don’t know but if you find out can you let me know? I’ve been wandering from room to room, sniffing and sniffing trying to figure out what the bad smell is in my house too. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/5 "2010-07-14T11:50:22Z")
Dead mouse/rat/squirrel in the wall? This happened to us (in the bathroom) - the smell buildup was gradual, over the course of a week or so. It got BAD. Lasted a month, then went away as the corpse dried up. When we remodeled a year later, I found the mummified thing. Sucks, but not much you can do about it short of cutting holes in the wall. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/6 "2010-07-14T12:09:45Z")
A dead mouse was my first guess as well. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/7 "2010-07-14T12:15:46Z")
Rotting potatoes or onions would be my guess, which when I smell it I ususally suspect plumbing woes or worse. But no it’s the rotting potatoes under the sink. ---
**Author:** ![flickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7bcc69/32.png) [@flickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flickster)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/8 "2010-07-14T13:36:46Z")
The offending odor seems to be dispersed evenly throughout the downstairs portion of the house, no hot spots. Which leads me to believe something has gotten into the HVAC unit and either met an untimely death or just died there. In order to be evenly dispersed, the offending creature would have to be either inside the HVAC unit itself, or in the adjacent ductwork. If it was out in one of the duct runs after branching from the main, the odor would be more dominant in that room, which is not the case. ---
**Author:** ![J-P\_L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/j-p_l/32/3156_2.png) [@J-P\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/J-P_L)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/9 "2010-07-14T16:00:51Z")
Do you have a bathtub or sink that you do not use very often, the water in the trap may have evaporated letting in sewer gas as mentioned above. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/10 "2010-07-14T16:25:40Z")
> [@J-P\_L](#): > > Do you have a bathtub or sink that you do not use very often, the water in the trap may have evaporated letting in sewer gas as mentioned above. This, or a dead creature, are the two top choices. You might get help from an exterminator - they’re used to crawling around the little “extra” spaces of homes to find critters, live and otherwise. Also, nowadays with the economy the way it is yadda yadda yadda, it’s very easy and cheap to find a general handyman. You might find one who can deal with the high ceilings and concealed ducts. Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Mooch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mooch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mooch)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/11 "2010-07-14T16:38:13Z")
Have you got any flowers in water that are just past their prime? I’ve found that funky-ass rot-water to be the culprit sometimes even if the flowers still look good. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/12 "2010-07-14T17:05:03Z")
I am only posting so that this thread will be followed by the thread “Why do some people find female farting cute?” I’m having a juvenile day, I’m afraid. To the OP: Check under the fridge for a dead mouse. ---
**Author:** ![BobArrgh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobarrgh/32/2881_2.png) [@BobArrgh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobArrgh)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/13 "2010-07-14T17:15:31Z")
How long has it been since you have had your air ducts cleaned? If it has been a while (or never) you might has well have a professional do it. I think the last time we had it done, it cost $100. When they did ours, they had a hose connected to a vacuum on their truck, and they cleaned all the dust out of the ducts. If something is dead in your vents, this should solve the problem. If there is nothing dead in the ducts, then at least you have clean ducts and the satisfaction of knowing that you can look elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/14 "2010-07-14T17:43:34Z")
Check under the fridge - potatoes and onions roll. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/15 "2010-07-14T21:21:02Z")
I seem to recall a “straw in the nose” technique being touted as useful for pinpointing the directions of smells. If it’s coming out of your HVAC, though… FWIW, because of the proximity of another thread, I origially read the title as “Ball Odor in the House.” ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/16 "2010-07-14T23:30:53Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > I am only posting so that this thread will be followed by the thread “Why do some people find female farting cute?” You are now officially my favorite mod. Sorry **twickster.** ---
**Author:** ![pope\_hentai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@pope\_hentai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pope_hentai)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2010, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/17 "2010-07-15T01:43:51Z")
basement, or crawlspace? last time i had a mystery smell, there was a pile of not-a-cat-anymore under my house. ---
**Author:** ![flickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7bcc69/32.png) [@flickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flickster)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2010, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-odor-in-the-house/546632/18 "2010-07-15T23:26:10Z")
> [@pope\_hentai](#): > > basement, or crawlspace? last time i had a mystery smell, there was a pile of not-a-cat-anymore under my house. Neither, slab (typical Houston area construction) Had our HVAC tech come out today to check the units (located in the attic) just to make sure one didn’t have a dead critter inside somewhere decomposing and causing untold damage (just spent $1500 getting a coil replaced in one of them earlier this year).