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Smelly basement

17 years ago

I don't use my basement except for the furnace and water and it has this smell that closed up basement have. Has anyone got a solution for taming it down.I would appreciate an answer. Thank you.

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Comments (9)

Chemocurl zn5b/6a Indiana
17 years ago
Your basement sounds like it smells like mine.

I have been told that a dehumidifier would help it, but haven't invested in one and likely won't either since they are fairly expensive to run and I don't see it as a necessity.

I just think of it as a 'basement smell' and don't store anything down there that I would be concerned about absorbing the smell.

You might also ask about it over on the Cleaning Tips Forum, or the Basement Forum.

hth.

Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Cleaning Tips Forum
OklaMoni
17 years ago
My dehumidifier would freeze up in the winters, cause the basement was to cold (where we used to live). But the rest of the year it kept the smell down. Meanwhile, I would put down used coffee grounds on cookie sheets (after I had let the coffee grounds dry), and replace it at regular intervals.

Moni
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yayagal
17 years ago
If there's no mold, then go out and buy any scent sticks in the aroma you like. They come in a package with a bottle of scent, a container and some sticks. Follow the directions and your cellar will smell lovely. I just found some at Home Goods on sale for only five dollars.
nodakgal
17 years ago
Its mostly from being closed up? I'd air it out, open any windows, providing its warm enough and put fans down there. Air circulation is good! For dampness and wet though, try a dehumidifier. But as said above it should be warm enough to prevent ice building up on it.
sharon_fl
17 years ago
I know! I had a dead animal (bigger than a squirrel ) in my walls-drove me outta here for FIVE days. My Pest Control company told me to go to Home Depot and near their paint Dept...(sk for help)..they have these mesh bags that hold what looks like pebble. Don't know what's in them but they are used for musty cellars, closets, dead animal, etc. I bought 3 and hung one in each third of my home. I thought the smell which was on ALL of my clothes would all have to be washed & he said "Sharon-I have been in this biz for 23 years & you won't even have to do anything to the clothes." Sure enough-within 4 days-all smell was completely gone! Great item! I think they were around $4 a bag...the size of a pint zip lock bag.
cynic
17 years ago
A closed up basement shouldn't smell any different than a closed up house. If it's the stale air, fresh air and circulation will take care of it. A lot of it is cured simply by air circulation. And being down there actually helps too. If water is your problem you need to do something about it. Airing it out occasionally makes a big difference. If you have a lot of cardboard boxes, they'll absorb the smells and can cause some too as will drywall, suspended ceilings and most any softer type materials. Solving the problem really depends on the source of the odor. If it's moisture, then a dehumidifier or even some of those damp-rid or whatever they're called can help. You didn't say your location so it's hard to give other ideas without knowing but other good deodorizers are vinegar, charcoal briquettes, even coffee grounds and vanilla. If you have mold and mildew you need to clean it and kill it, but again if you don't do something about the source, it'll reappear. Do you have a vent on the furnace blowing into the basement? I've noticed a big difference since doing that (for circulation). If you also have a gas water heater with a pilot light circulation will help a bit more since the flames will dry the air and actually a flame is a bit of an air freshener too. Yeah, not a lot, but anything helps.

If you have windows, open up and let the sunshine in! If you have a lot of paper, cloth and the like down there, get rid of it or seal it up. Use plastic totes instead of cardboard boxes for storage and oh yes, get any corpses out of there too! ;)
pattico_gw
17 years ago
I've heard that a bag of charcoal works to removes musty smells...Just lay the bag on it side and make a slit in the top and pull it open.

Good luck...

I miss having a basement.

patti
minnie_tx
17 years ago
OdoBan is good I think you get it at Sams
Takes away most odor even pet unine. I have to get some more come to think of it.
tami_ohio
17 years ago
As cynic says, the root of the problem needs to be eliminated first. After that, CHARCOAL!!!!!! And not the stuff with the lighter fluid already in it, either. Charcoal absorbs odor. I had a milk jug leak on the carpet in the back of my car in Feb of 2003. I cleaned it really really well. I thought, anyway! Within a couple of days, it smelled really bad. In Feb in Ohio! I put a couple of dishes with charcoal briquettes in them in the car. Within a couple more days, the smell was gone. That July, I spent in Cincinnati waiting for Damien to be born, no garage, just in a parking lot in direct sunlight. There was never anymore smell. If it was going to smell like rotten milk anymore, that was when it was going to smell! DH also turned off the refrigerator in our old camper 2 yrs ago, forgetting that, for a change, we had not emptied it when we came home because we were leaving again in a week, and I didn't want to have to reload everything again. Oh, the smell! Rotten meat, milk, and who knows what else, in the frige and freezer both. It took two or three bags of charcoal that time, but it worked.

Find the source first, then fix it and get rid of the smell.

Tami

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