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1-20 of 32 Results
  1. General DIY Discussions
    I've just replaced the ceiling tiles in my basement (they were old, stained, etc) with Armstrong Ceilings #932 but they smell pretty terrible. It's hard to describe but it seems this issue isn't completely uncommon. I'm not sure what to do because this is in the basement where air circulation...
  2. HVAC
    The central out/in vents on the roof of my apartment complex seem to be dangerously close to each other. Lots of apartments have complained about smells from inlets for years. The ventilation has passed inspections several times throughout the years, so I don't think it's a pressure or balance...
  3. Concrete, Stone & Masonry
    Hi all! We had a qualified asbestos remediation company remove asbestos tiles and mastic from our basement. They used a low VOC solvent to remove the mastic, but we simply cannot get the solvent smell out now. We’ve been using negative air machines for over a week with some improvement. It’s...
  4. Flooring
    Hi all! Really glad to have found DIYchatroom. My 1955 house has a 1963 addition that has it's original 9x9 green mottled resilient vinyl tiles (which I am leaving in place and undisturbed because of the presumed asbestos in them) glued to the original sub-floor with a yellow colored mastic...
  5. Painting
    First off, I am in no way a professional painter. I have a room where I suspected the tiles contained asbestos. It was suggested to me by will remain anonymous that I should cover the tile with an oil based primer (I used zinsser cover Stain) before putting down new flooring (LVP). I ventilated...
  6. Plumbing
    I just installed my water softener and now the water has a musty smell like an old towel. Here's the story. We moved to a new house in 2016 and the water softener is actually from my old house that we took apart and moved with us. We finally got around to installing it and filled it up with salt...
  7. Building & Construction
    I recently renovated my basement and discovered that moisture had been getting through the wood foundation into the walls. The handyman I had helping me suggested that we use roofing cement (basically tar) on the inside surface of the wood foundation to help mitigate the water. Wrongly trusting...
  8. Carpentry
    My daughter is super sensitive to chemical smells, and to make a long story short, her wood kitchen table now badly smells of products used to clean it (Original Pledge, Old English Furniture Polish, and Murphy's Oil Soap.) Trying to remove the smell (Free-n-Clear Dawn Dish Soap and a...
  9. Electrical
    Hello all, I modified a circuit (few months back added lights to my kitchen), and after first inspection inspector asked for me to put a AFCI breaker on the circuit I was touching. That circuit is a MWBC (older house). The breaker covers a MWBC 15A circuits 6 and 7, which is pretty much my 2nd...
  10. General DIY Discussions
    We moved into a house a year and a half ago. Never had any problem with bad smells in the shower until now. The house was built in the 1960s. The shower walls are tile. I didn't clean the shower for about 9 months after we moved in, and we never had a smell, which is why I don't understand why...
  11. Carpentry
    Today my husband removed a quarter inch from the bottom of our old wood exterior door to make space for new tile. That was several hours ago, and the door and rooms near it still smell strongly of burnt wood. Our carpenter has brought freshly-cut 2x6s and plywood into the house, and there is...
  12. Electrical
    I'm trying to identify the source and solution to a rotten onion smell coming from the light sockets, receptacles, and electrical panel only when it's warm outside and the sun is out all day. The smell is very strong and takes over the whole house. I live near Nashville in a ten year old two...
  13. General DIY Discussions
    We built our new house 3 years ago. We have a totally self contained suite and their hood fan and laundry vent directly outside. For the past three months every time they cook the smell of stale oil like french fries gets into our venting system upstairs and smells our house up. This happens...
  14. Appliances
    I have a whirlpool Cabrio washing machine. I was having problems with it smelling awful. A combo of vomit, sewer, dog like smell. All my clothes reek. But I also have another washing machine drain pipe upstairs that sits open. It never smelled and suddenly it was producing the most rank...
  15. Plumbing
    Hello, We bought a house last year with 2 bathrooms of which 1 was only partially finished. It has since been finished and is used every day. The second bathroom gets used a few times a month only. Since we moved in we have noticed that sometimes there is a strong sewer smell in both...
  16. Plumbing
    A couple of weeks ago, I contacted a local plumber in town because we had an awful sewer smell coming up through our drain in our kitchen. He recommended extending our vent pipe that vents through our roof. With his recommendation, I bought 2 feet of 3" PVC piping and a coupling to add to the...
  17. Plumbing
    Hi folks I was just appointed head of facilities at a brand new 19 million dollar building. I do have to do some janitorial work as well. so Im pretty busy. I have been smelling a very foul smell coming from the 2nd floor, mens room floor drain. The building has a Basement, 1st floor second...
  18. General DIY Discussions
    We moved into a new home at the end of September. The house is a 1962 split level that has some significant updating. We live in the north east. Our basement over the past three months has a very strong odor. Most people say it smells chemical and is very strong. The basement is divided into...
  19. Building & Construction
    Hi there! A friend of mine recently bought a townhome. His garage has this funky - almost rotten garbage - type smell. He had the lower half of the drywall removed to see if there were any dead critters in the walls which ended up just being a waste of time and effort. Two things we...
  20. HVAC
    I woke up the other day to a smell and smoke coming out from the kitchen ac vent. I went and check the ac unit and shut it off. I notice that the heat coils are coming on when the ac unit stops. The coils are located on top of the inside unit. I remove the top to look at the coils, I started the...
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