New house smells horrible!

6 years ago

Bit of a random question however we moved in to a new house (different not brand new) last week and I am struggling with the smell. Can't put my finger on what it is - probably doesn't help that we had some plastering done so that is adding to the existing smell. I am trying to open windows whenever poss and we are going to rip out a v thick carpet in the lounge which probably isn't helping.
I plan to clean the upstairs carpets too.
I have had a plug in air freshener but the scenery is v sweet and is t helping either!!

I wondered if there were some natural remedies to remove odour? I'm sure once we have decorated and removed the carpet it will start to smell like our house and not theirs!

Featured Answer

Victoria

6 years ago

You do the shake & vac to put the freshness back

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Comments (16)

Jonathan
6 years ago
Professionally cleaning your carpets will make a huge difference as will the plaster drying. As a short term measure you could use a product to shake on to your carpet and vacuum off.
(Fondly remembering 1980's ad with Jenny Logan)
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annarocks123
6 years ago
Cheap way to freshen the carpets would be to buy a large amount of bicarbonate of soda (on the internet, not supermarket), sprinkle over the carpets, leave for half an hour and hoover up. You can add a couple of drops of scented oil if the smell is really bad
kl55hp
6 years ago
What sort of smell is it? It may not be the carpets, or - not only - the carpets.

Could be drains, plug holes toilets, damp?

But could well be just 'tired house' smell.
Nate218
6 years ago
I've heard that leaving cut fresh lemons sitting out can remove odours
alinlondon123456
6 years ago
We had a nightmare when we moved into a rental house whilst our house is getting remodeled- we got the carpets and walls professionally steam cleaned, had an exterminator review the house for any dead animals/ active rodent activity, changed some carpets and curtains, invested in oil diffusers for all rooms (i'd try home sense- they have high quality diffusers at 50-70% off), and "saged" the house three times. It has made a big difference, but we still have to be very aware if the house starts smelling again. We've also put baking soda in all moisture-rich rooms (bathrooms, kitchen, etc...), which has helped.

There is a good recipe using white vinegar and baking soda that helps clean drains (https://crunchybetty.com/clean-your-drains-baking-soda-vinegar/) and also improves smells... Best of luck! It will get better :-)
alinlondon123456
6 years ago
PS- baking soda: bicarbarbonate of soda in UK
C Mack
Original Author
6 years ago
Thanks everyone! I will give these a try - had all the windows open all day yesterday too so fingers crossed!
PRO
Nordikka - Bespoke Furniture & Steel Doors
6 years ago
All soft furnishings need to be either professionally cleaned or
replaced . Masking smell with another smell won't work . You can also
look into actually filtering the air . I had one of those in a flat in
London where pollution and my cats hair was terrible it's quite shocking
to see how dirty the filter gets . have a look:
https://www.stadlerform.com/en-ch/home/
PRO
London Dream Building
6 years ago
Keep all windows open as much as possible. Definitely get a professional cleaning company for all carpets. Plaster smell doesn't last much longer than a week, so I wouldn't say it is from there. Air freshener would only disguise the smell but wouldn't remove it. Sofas and beds also tend to keep bad smell.

If there is an access, do check for some dead animals under floor boards or ceiling!

Cleaning tiles ( floors, splashbacks and bathrooms ) with vinegar would kill any smell and bacteria but don't apply on painted walls or furniture.
ellelib
6 years ago
I know how you feel. When we moved into this home I opened the door and couldn't go in without gagging, it certainly didn't smell when we viewed. I think to a degree I've gone nose blind but I also cleaned the carpets (bought a bissell) - oh my god the muck that came out was unbelievable. Also try bicarbonate of sofa on the carpets. Unfortunately the only real way is to get rid of the carpets all together (you never know what's in there) which we intend to do, but it's a long process. Good luck.
C Mack
Original Author
6 years ago
Yes, definitely think the carpet is a big issue so will see what it's like when that's gone!
acew1234
6 years ago
We bought a house that absolutely stank, despite deep cleaning every surface the only way was to remove all the carpets ( pretty awful job). I really didn't want them in the house ...God only knows what was in them!
ellelib
6 years ago
Well, I'll tell you what was in ours. Fleas! Apparently they can lie dormant and wait for an unsuspecting host to come along, which in our case was our dog. Months of treatments later and a chance conversation with the vet about how the fleas coincided with our move to an empty house with carpet and bingo!
ellelib
6 years ago
Well, I'll tell you what was in ours. Fleas! Apparently they can lie dormant and wait for an unsuspecting host to come along, which in our case was our dog. Months of treatments later and a chance conversation with the vet about how the fleas coincided with our move to an empty house with carpet and bingo!
madsadmum
6 years ago
On opening the door to our new home, the smell was overpowering. We certainly didn't notice it when viewing but it was eye-watering.
We took the living room carpet out that day. It didn't help. So next day all the carpets went. The smell got worse.
We tracked it down to a cupboard under the stairs. It used to be the downstairs loo and whoever converted it hadn't capped the sewage pipe off properly. The previous owners must have lived with the smell for years!

New house smells horrible!

Victoria

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New house smells horrible!

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