Hey everyone, I'm having a serious issue with a horrible rotten smell coming from a corner of my home office. I work from home and noticed it first thing this morning. Initially, I thought it might be from the trash can outside since I have a window AC unit near it, but after taking the trash out, the smell lingered and even got worse as the day heated up. I've walked through my house and can smell it in my office and the living room too.
After some sleuthing, I pinpointed the stench to the very bottom corner of my room. I even cut out a small section of drywall to see if there was a dead animal, but no luck. I've tried various remedies like baking soda, vinegar, and air fresheners, plus I'm currently running a dehumidifier in hopes it helps. The crawlspace and attic don't smell, and my office was an addition to the house that used to be a garage before I remodeled it.
I'm really at a loss here. Anyone have ideas on what I should do next?
4 Answers
I had a similar situation where an animal died in a wall that I couldn't access. We ended up encapsulating it with spray foam which took care of the smell quite nicely. Be sure to find out for sure if it's a dead animal first though!
If the smell resembles rotten eggs, you might want to seriously consider a gas leak. They add that sulfur smell to natural gas so you can detect leaks. Better safe than sorry—evacuate and call 911 immediately if that’s the case!
Have you checked outside vents? I remember when I lived in a duplex, my neighbor had a dead squirrel in their bathroom vent that caused terrible odors. Also, if you've got any plants like potatoes that are starting to rot, that could stink things up too. Just a thought!
Haha, no potatoes on my end! I checked that side and there’s no plumbing, plus my house runs on electric – I'm still convinced there might be something dead in the wall.
It sounds like a dead animal might have gotten in there somehow, especially since you mentioned you've already checked quite a bit without finding anything. It really sucks but sometimes they get stuck in places we can't reach. Keep checking out those nooks and crannies!
How did you confirm it was a dead animal? Just guessing or did someone come check it out?