Katie Mott
New Member
My family and I moved into a house in October 2017 and since then we occasionally smell a skunky odor in the basement. It was incredibly strong when we first toured the house and we joked that the owners smoked a certain illegal substance, but didn't think much more of it. That summer had been particularly wet and we do have some moisture problems in the basement.
Since then the smell has continued, but is intermittent and we can't seem to figure out the reason for the smell. It's almost always worse at the top of the basement stairs (most likely from trapped, rising air) and is only noticeable in the finished part of the basement. The unfinished part, where we have most of the moisture issues, is fine. That is also where the furnace is located.
The smell is more noticeable in warmer weather and when there is a dramatic temperature change. Perhaps when it rains, as well. The smell was almost unnoticeable during the cold winter months so the only thing we know fore sure is that it is aggravated by warmer weather.
We have had all sorts of people come to look at the basement - several plumbers, HVAC companies, environmental services, etc. Some people can smell it and others cant. Our sump pump pit is open and is located in the finished part of the basement that smells, but it's not a rotten egg smell like sewer gas.
The only other consideration was our basement carpeting. There is a pad directly on the concrete slab underneath old berber carpet. But again, it doesn't smell like mildew. It smells like skunk.
Does anyone have any insight into what this smell could be and why it only shows up at certain times? We're going nuts trying to figure it out!
Thanks,
Katie
Since then the smell has continued, but is intermittent and we can't seem to figure out the reason for the smell. It's almost always worse at the top of the basement stairs (most likely from trapped, rising air) and is only noticeable in the finished part of the basement. The unfinished part, where we have most of the moisture issues, is fine. That is also where the furnace is located.
The smell is more noticeable in warmer weather and when there is a dramatic temperature change. Perhaps when it rains, as well. The smell was almost unnoticeable during the cold winter months so the only thing we know fore sure is that it is aggravated by warmer weather.
We have had all sorts of people come to look at the basement - several plumbers, HVAC companies, environmental services, etc. Some people can smell it and others cant. Our sump pump pit is open and is located in the finished part of the basement that smells, but it's not a rotten egg smell like sewer gas.
The only other consideration was our basement carpeting. There is a pad directly on the concrete slab underneath old berber carpet. But again, it doesn't smell like mildew. It smells like skunk.
Does anyone have any insight into what this smell could be and why it only shows up at certain times? We're going nuts trying to figure it out!
Thanks,
Katie