locating source of smell in a room
- Thread starter MassiveJim
- Start date
Rip it all up inspect each part as it comes up for signs of damp or mould (white dust on underside of chipboard most likely) you should be able to re use most of it, look for darker patches on the concrete slab. If it's an old garage there is potential the concrete is not damp proofed or has no membrane and is soaking up ground water.
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Bit of an update on this, I have now pulled up the chipboard floor to see what is underneath,
look at the lovely heating pipework
no damp patches but a bit of a smell near the front wall at the edge of the left window
This is the only piece of timber that was inserted into a gap in the wall the rest were butted up to the wall
There appears to be a DPC all the way around the room
So I went outside and had a look at the wall and it seems there are some small cracks in the wall which is probably where the moisture is getting in
similar on the other side of the window as well.
I have a builder due to come around to look at something else so I'll get him to address this at the same time.
I've submitted a regularisation request to building control online as well.
look at the lovely heating pipework
no damp patches but a bit of a smell near the front wall at the edge of the left window
This is the only piece of timber that was inserted into a gap in the wall the rest were butted up to the wall
There appears to be a DPC all the way around the room
So I went outside and had a look at the wall and it seems there are some small cracks in the wall which is probably where the moisture is getting in
similar on the other side of the window as well.
I have a builder due to come around to look at something else so I'll get him to address this at the same time.
I've submitted a regularisation request to building control online as well.
Part of the floor taken up now
I can't see any sign of the pipes leaking under the floor, but they are twisted around each other like spaghetti with no clips in sight anywhere.
Are there air bricks to ventilate the hollow space under the floor? If not then it's little wonder it's smelling as any moist air in the room will condense on the cold concrete and create damp. The concrete floor might not have a DPM either.
Soldato
Is that the damp proof course right up against the path there?Bit of an update on this, I have now pulled up the chipboard floor to see what is underneath,
look at the lovely heating pipework
no damp patches but a bit of a smell near the front wall at the edge of the left window
This is the only piece of timber that was inserted into a gap in the wall the rest were butted up to the wall
There appears to be a DPC all the way around the room
So I went outside and had a look at the wall and it seems there are some small cracks in the wall which is probably where the moisture is getting in
similar on the other side of the window as well.
I have a builder due to come around to look at something else so I'll get him to address this at the same time.
I've submitted a regularisation request to building control online as well.
I doubt th cracks in the wall would make much difference, the lack of under floor air vents will be an issue though and most likely the issue. That hole in the wall looks like the never installed the all properly in the fist place. Is it a converted integral garage? Whom ever did it did a proper cowboy job!
The rad pipes just laying around like that won't be doing much good either, cold pipes on cold concrete will sweat and attract moisture.
The rad pipes just laying around like that won't be doing much good either, cold pipes on cold concrete will sweat and attract moisture.
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DPC is 2 bricks up, just had to go hunting all the way around the house to fin dit though as its covered with mortar in most places.
It is visible (and at the same level) on the "new" part
It only really seems to be damp near that left side of that window, saying that the window ledge has blown and the caulking/mastic around the window has seen better days, and the wooden lintel above both windows is rotten.
And yes it is/was a garage. its defo a cowboy job, I am going to be putting this right myself, but to think someone paid a "professional" to do this makes me just shake my head.
I will level the floor either with sand or screed, dependant on what the builder and building inspector say.
I will lay a new DPM, then insulate with kingspan/celotex, then lay a floating floor reusing the chipboard I have just taken up.
Then on to decorating (which is all I originally intended to do)
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UPDATE:
Didn't take too many pictures.
So I pulled up all of the timber on the floor and used sand to level the floor (compacted)
Then a DPC was installed on top and 60mm PIR on top
This radiator has been removed, and also the socket as the wiring for it had been ran surface mounted inside trunking which I was not happy with
old rad pipework vs new
Started chasing all of the wiring for the wall the TV will sit on
some chases ended up wider than neccessary, for a couple of reasons,
1 - I found 2 blocks that were not cemented in at all I had to cut the wall enough that i could remove them and cement them in
2 - the intended location of 1 of the backboxes was right were the Gas earth line comes through the wall with metal capping over it
all chases filled in and wall covered in blue grit ready for the plasterer to skim
skimmed
That was back on 13th June, since then have been busy sanding (lots and lots of sanding)
had to replace one of the window sills as that had water damage and had blown (was only MDF).
Room is now fully decorated and ready for the carpet being fitted tomorrow.
It has felt like a hell of a lot of work and feels like it has taken forever without a proper living room.
I don't appear to have taken any pics recently so I'll upload later.
Didn't take too many pictures.
So I pulled up all of the timber on the floor and used sand to level the floor (compacted)
Then a DPC was installed on top and 60mm PIR on top
This radiator has been removed, and also the socket as the wiring for it had been ran surface mounted inside trunking which I was not happy with
old rad pipework vs new
Started chasing all of the wiring for the wall the TV will sit on
some chases ended up wider than neccessary, for a couple of reasons,
1 - I found 2 blocks that were not cemented in at all I had to cut the wall enough that i could remove them and cement them in
2 - the intended location of 1 of the backboxes was right were the Gas earth line comes through the wall with metal capping over it
all chases filled in and wall covered in blue grit ready for the plasterer to skim
skimmed
That was back on 13th June, since then have been busy sanding (lots and lots of sanding)
had to replace one of the window sills as that had water damage and had blown (was only MDF).
Room is now fully decorated and ready for the carpet being fitted tomorrow.
It has felt like a hell of a lot of work and feels like it has taken forever without a proper living room.
I don't appear to have taken any pics recently so I'll upload later.
Soldato
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I had no idea you could use sand as a floor base, I did think it was weird there was a suspended floor with no ventilation, that must have been the cause of the smell surely
If you haven't located the smell but have any emulsion walls, give them a good close sniff.
We had some valspar that has gone off, and when it got sunlight on it would give off an eggy smell. Took far longer than it should have done to track down that smell. A layer of BIN over the top and solved it.
We had some valspar that has gone off, and when it got sunlight on it would give off an eggy smell. Took far longer than it should have done to track down that smell. A layer of BIN over the top and solved it.
Caporegime
He who said the rhyme did the crime
I'm hoping this too.
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Yeh don't worry wasnt me, there were 3 cables in the wall that had just been chopped off at either end and then left there, some kind of audio cable I haven't seen before.
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I think we're a bit past the smell part now.
We've had plenty of sun in this room recently and I haven't smelt anything so I'm hoping that little problem has gone now
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final pics of the room before carpet tomorrow then.
The 2 walls painted grey used to have a grand total of 1 double socket (the right most socket)
now have 4 doubles in the corner as this is the location of the AV unit.
2 doubles centre low this is the location of the TV Unit
1 double mid wall as TV will be wall mounted
speaker plate for 4 x atmos ceiling speakers and 2 surrounds for the 5.1.4 setup
4 x ethernet in corner
4 x ethernet in central location for TV and later possibility of HDMI over ethernet
moved the aerial and satellite cables from old location near the right hand socket to a single modular faceplate in centre location
added 3 x brush plates with plastic trunking in the wall from behind TV to lower position centre and than to lower position on left hand side where AV unit will be located
another angle
view from otherside of room
Gone from 4 x double sockets to 14 x double sockets in this room, its overkill but I have had the electrician add surge protection to the ring so no need to have any extension cables anywhere now.
Cant wait to watch the TV with proper sound again, for the last couple of months the AV equipment hasn't been connected at all so have been suffering the built in speakers from the LG C9 which are pretty bad.
just sat here and had a thought, i've ponied up for nicer polished metal sockets and 90% of them will never be visible
The 2 walls painted grey used to have a grand total of 1 double socket (the right most socket)
now have 4 doubles in the corner as this is the location of the AV unit.
2 doubles centre low this is the location of the TV Unit
1 double mid wall as TV will be wall mounted
speaker plate for 4 x atmos ceiling speakers and 2 surrounds for the 5.1.4 setup
4 x ethernet in corner
4 x ethernet in central location for TV and later possibility of HDMI over ethernet
moved the aerial and satellite cables from old location near the right hand socket to a single modular faceplate in centre location
added 3 x brush plates with plastic trunking in the wall from behind TV to lower position centre and than to lower position on left hand side where AV unit will be located
another angle
view from otherside of room
Gone from 4 x double sockets to 14 x double sockets in this room, its overkill but I have had the electrician add surge protection to the ring so no need to have any extension cables anywhere now.
Cant wait to watch the TV with proper sound again, for the last couple of months the AV equipment hasn't been connected at all so have been suffering the built in speakers from the LG C9 which are pretty bad.
just sat here and had a thought, i've ponied up for nicer polished metal sockets and 90% of them will never be visible
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