SMELL after the flood...

[Robinrs]

My house is still a wreck but on it's way back after the flood. The floors and lower cabinets will be put in this week but I have a non tangible question...

There is a strange SMELL in the house, not mildew, not mold, not really even OFFENSIVE but a smell nonetheless. If I remove a piece of clothing from the house I REALLY smell it elsewhere but it goes away after one wash.

What I'm worried about is that this will still be an issue in my furniture, etc after everything is over.

We have the air conditioning running, we had big fans,etc in the house and it was aired out for about a week. All of the moisture is gone but that SMELL is still there.

I had a co worker come to my home with me last week and she said it reminded her of her trip to post Katrina New Orleans...

Any suggestions? Anyone ever been thru this? Any help would be wonderful. I hope to be moved back in in less than a month but would like to work on getting rid of the smell before we return.

Thanks in advance.

 

[mrsv98]

Did you change the filters in the A/C? Was everything wet removed, ie. insulation, dry wall, etc?

You might want to try Freshwave Crystals, they really helped after we were skunked...blech!

Good luck, I hate when my house smells yucky!

 

[TinklednPants]

This happened to me once. It turned out to be Grandma.

 

[L107ANGEL]

This happened to me once. It turned out to be Grandma.

Robin did you have a mitigation company out there?

 

[maroo]

My house is still a wreck but on it's way back after the flood. The floors and lower cabinets will be put in this week but I have a non tangible question...

There is a strange SMELL in the house, not mildew, not mold, not really even OFFENSIVE but a smell nonetheless. If I remove a piece of clothing from the house I REALLY smell it elsewhere but it goes away after one wash.

What I'm worried about is that this will still be an issue in my furniture, etc after everything is over.

We have the air conditioning running, we had big fans,etc in the house and it was aired out for about a week. All of the moisture is gone but that SMELL is still there.

I had a co worker come to my home with me last week and she said it reminded her of her trip to post Katrina New Orleans...

Any suggestions? Anyone ever been thru this? Any help would be wonderful. I hope to be moved back in in less than a month but would like to work on getting rid of the smell before we return.

Thanks in advance.

I know EXACTLY what you are talking about.

The smell of Katrina. I passed a dumpster the other day and it was windy...and I said to the person next to me...It smells like Katrina. She agreed. It isn't a foul smell...and not mildew...just a different scent of flooded gunk. Makes me sick to my stomach just to think about it. Katrina may have had a smell more of sand, too...which you shouldn't have much of there?

As time goes on...and as you clean all of the wet stuff out...it will dissipate.

I am so, so sorry for all of the trouble - flooding is horrible!

I would use lots of baking soda (isn't that what absorbs odor?)...maybe put several large boxes of it around the house...take all of your clothes out of the house and wash them. And don't bring them back until the smell is totally gone.

Use Febreeze on all of the curtains (that can't be washed) and furniture.

Anything that can be washed down with a little bit of bleach in water...that helps, too.

Pine Sol seemed to make it worse after Katrina? Maybe I just hate that smell? I certainly hate that smell now. Bleach did much better. But don't put too much or you will bleach out your walls. We washed every single surface of several different homes. It helps.

Make sure there are no dead animals around. Sometimes we were able to find small rodents that got washed up and get rid of those and that helped.

 

[Eeyore'sthebest]

Robin,
Sorry you're going through this. I've been through 2 floods so I know the smell you speak of.

1) Did you rip out all the drywall, insulation, underpadding, everything that can retain moisture?

2) Did you bleach the walls and floor (after the drywall and insulation are out) and allow that to thoroughly dry? We bought an industrial heater and used it in every room. This is a very important step.

3) Did you have all the duct work professionally cleaned? If you didn't replaced furnaces or air conditioner units make sure all filters are replaced.

4) What about the hot water heater? Remember that has insulation against it even if you can't see it.

And thoroughly wash everything. Use bleach for as much as possible. Stick stuff outside for airing out.
It is a horrible, dirty river smell that you have and only time and thorough cleaning gets rid of it. Sorry you're going through this.

 

[NotUrsula]

It's the smell of organic decay; the same smell that you get from freshly turned-over mud. (I've always thought that it smells just a bit like horse manure, myself.)

It comes from the gases emitted by the decay of various organic debris that is in mud, which is always suspended in floodwater. Once you take away that water and expose the debris to air, it starts to smell. On a porous surface there is no way to truly get rid of it. On a nonporous surface the best bets are chlorine bleach and the eventual passage of time.

 

[Robinrs]

Thanks for the advice everyone.. some of it is downright scary!

The restoration people will be taking care of the house, what I'm concerned about is the furniture, etc, IN the house that are absorbing this odor. The floors, walls, moldings and cabinets are being replaced, the ductwork, appliances, etc are being checked and overhauled, thank God, but I'm just wondering if I need to be on the look out for a new mattress, etc.

Febreeze has never really worked for me so I'm looking for some gel absorbers that I can place around to absorb the odor, has anyone tried these?

I feel amazingly blessed that this is my only real problem, there are people still homeless and others who lost their homes and have no insurance. I've been in my sister's home since 10/22 and want to be home but at least I have a warm place to live.

 

[Eeyore'sthebest]

Thanks for the advice everyone.. some of it is downright scary!

The restoration people will be taking care of the house, what I'm concerned about is the furniture, etc, IN the house that are absorbing this odor. The floors, walls, moldings and cabinets are being replaced, the ductwork, appliances, etc are being checked and overhauled, thank God, but I'm just wondering if I need to be on the look out for a new mattress, etc.

Febreeze has never really worked for me so I'm looking for some gel absorbers that I can place around to absorb the odor, has anyone tried these?

I feel amazingly blessed that this is my only real problem, there are people still homeless and others who lost their homes and have no insurance. I've been in my sister's home since 10/22 and want to be home but at least I have a warm place to live.

Robin, what a wonderful attitude to have. I'm not being sarcastic either. I've been through 2 floods. If you keep the attitude you will survive and thrive. I've watched many people become bitter, angry and resentful. It just eats them up. I'm happy to know that you have a warm, safe place to live during this time.

 

[agnes!]

Thanks for the advice everyone.. some of it is downright scary!

The restoration people will be taking care of the house, what I'm concerned about is the furniture, etc, IN the house that are absorbing this odor. The floors, walls, moldings and cabinets are being replaced, the ductwork, appliances, etc are being checked and overhauled, thank God, but I'm just wondering if I need to be on the look out for a new mattress, etc.

Febreeze has never really worked for me so I'm looking for some gel absorbers that I can place around to absorb the odor, has anyone tried these?

I feel amazingly blessed that this is my only real problem, there are people still homeless and others who lost their homes and have no insurance. I've been in my sister's home since 10/22 and want to be home but at least I have a warm place to live.

Coffee beans or freshly-ground coffee can work wonders to 'remove' odors, just place many containers inside/near your furniture, in closets, etc.. I'm not sure how scientific it all is, but coffee is something I rely to remove offensive odors. Replace the coffee in the containers every other day.

If you can get the stuff outside in the sun and fresh air, that will help.

Chuck your mattress.

I would check with any antique dealers or used furniture dealers or even just Google "flood smell furniture". I'm not sure anything will remove the odor from wooden furniture. If you have anything that is upholstered, it might have to be tossed or completely re-done...

Get all your clothes & towels & sheets, etc. out of the house (even if the stuff didn't get wet, it still absorbed the intitial odor and is still sitting there absorbing that odor after the fact). Go to a laundromat and wash *everything*, everything that is dry-cleanable, get it dry-cleaned. After everything is clean, do not take anything back to your house, instead put it all into storage somewhere, maybe at your sister's.

Either wash or dry-clean (or toss ) ALL your window treatments.

agnes!

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Charcoal is great at removing odors. I would buy a bag of plain charcoal NOT one that has lighter fluid added to it. Place several lumps of charcoal in several dishes placed through out the house. Change the charcoal every other day untill the odor is gone.

I would also sprinkle baking soda on the carpet and furiture let it set for a bit then vacuum it. Make sure to change your vacuum bag before you vacuum so that you have a strong suction power when you suck up the soda. You can get a 5lb bag of baking soda at Sam's club.

I would also try placing dryer sheets through out the house. To give my house a fresh smell I place dryer sheets on the air vents.
As for the furniture I would sit it out in the sun. The sun will help dry the wood.

I know you said you had the A/C running. I would try turning on the heat. THe heat will help dry out the items in the house that might still have some moisture in it.

 

[Robinrs]

Robin, what a wonderful attitude to have. I'm not being sarcastic either. I've been through 2 floods. If you keep the attitude you will survive and thrive. I've watched many people become bitter, angry and resentful. It just eats them up. I'm happy to know that you have a warm, safe place to live during this time.

LOL, I had a choice and I chose to find the rainbow lining in all of this. It could've been so much worse.

My son went thru a bit of a depression but seriously, it brought us closer. He closed down a bit but now he's talking. Even one of my cats became physically ill from all the moving... it happens...

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. I HATE having to get rid of my mattress, it's less than a year old and ultra comfortable but I cannot imagine sleeping on it again. So far it's the most expensive thing I've had to replace in the house. Everything else I'm craiglisting!

 

[Ms Marigny]

Oh how I know that smell....we call it "the Katrina smell".

After we tore out the walls and got the mold off of the studs, we sanded down the hardwood floors- this lessened the smell some. We also aired out the house for weeks and made sure everything was completely dried out. But for the remaining smell, we left out boxes of baking soda all over the house as well as shallow pans of cheap kitty litter and coffee grinds- both absorb odors. We also lit candles all over the house (our house looked like a place of sacrifice...). That also helped with the smell. However, the last bit of lingering odor just dimished over time.

Fabrics will definitely absorb the smell, so wash anything with fabric- either in the washing machine if you can or with a steam cleaner.

Good luck to you- I know how icky and annoying that smell can be!