We moved into our home a little over a year ago and can't determine a smell. When we moved in we had the walls painted and thought the smell was from the paint. We only notice it when we have been away from the house for a few days. The smell is not musty or bad - it's just a strong smell. It doesn't smell like an animal or a pet smell. It smells almost like a chemical smell, I can't explain it.

I have sniffed everything and it seems to be coming from the walls, mostly on the first floor in the living room. Can a paint smell last over a year? We had the house re-sided, all the electrical done - what else can it be? We also had a mold test done. It's driving me crazy because I am very sensitive to smells and it makes my asthma flare initially after being away. We don't have wall to wall carpet and I don't remember this smell in our other home. We didn't have the floors done ourselves but the hardwood appears to have been re-finished not too long ago.

Any help would be appreciated.

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Originally Posted by oct18

We moved into our home a little over a year ago and can't determine a smell. When we moved in we had the walls painted and thought the smell was from the paint. We only notice it when we have been away from the house for a few days. The smell is not musty or bad - it's just a strong smell. It doesn't smell like an animal or a pet smell. It smells almost like a chemical smell, I can't explain it.

I have sniffed everything and it seems to be coming from the walls, mostly on the first floor in the living room. Can a paint smell last over a year? We had the house re-sided, all the electrical done - what else can it be? We also had a mold test done. It's driving me crazy because I am very sensitive to smells and it makes my asthma flare initially after being away. We don't have wall to wall carpet and I don't remember this smell in our other home. We didn't have the floors done ourselves but the hardwood appears to have been re-finished not too long ago.

Any help would be appreciated.

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Contact a professional cleaning company and have them come out and give you an estimate. They will be more familiar with the odor. It could be something that died in between the walls or under the foundation.

You can purchase a air ionizers and it will remove the odor. I am not talking about the cheapies since they do not do a very good job. A unit like the Pentex/Wein Vortex VI-2500 will keep your home smelling fresh for a long time.

oct18 -

Did you ever fix the smell? We moved into a house recently and have the problem. There's a chemical smell coming from the walls in the master bedroom. It's not a dead animal and it's not mold. It's driving us crazy! I hope you fixed your problem. Any info would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Could be famaldihide. I've been in newer homes and homes that have recently been remodeled, and the smell of famaldihide is present. It seems it's used in some particle board, panels, glues, etc. My father purchased a new mobile home back in the mid 90's, and it smelled of famaldihide for years. The only thing that seemed to cover it up were his constant years of chain smoking. (don't know which is worse)

I could smell it in the trailer, but it never really bothered me. Some guest would come over and it would be enough to irritate their senses.

If the you have a wood floor that was recently refinished, it could be the stain, wax or varnish they used to refinish it. Wood stain seems to have a fume that lingers for a while. The last thing I stained emitted a fume for at least a year.

Were you ever able to resolve your chemical problem? I too have had a paint odor or at least masking itself as paint odor for 15 months now. One bedroom on the 2nd floor. We replaced all the sheet rock, insulation and moldings. Nothing. We don't think we have mold as there are no signs. Only when the paint is put on does the odor not go away. Any advice? I am beyond desperate and frustrated. Thx!

I had a similar problem. I purchased a gallon of very pricey paint and just didn't have the time to get to the project, so I stored the paint in the garage until the following spring. Little did I know that paint can spoil. The paint underwent extreme temperature changes. When I painted the room the following spring an awful odor filled the air for 2 months. The paint professionals suggested that I purchase a good primer and prime the walls to seal the odor and wait 2 days and then repaint. The paint will take a full ten days to completely cure, but the odor will be gone.

I had a similar problem. I purchased a gallon of very pricey paint and just didn't have the time to get to the project, so I stored the paint in the garage until the following spring. Little did I know that paint can spoil. The paint underwent extreme temperature changes. When I painted the room the following spring an awful odor filled the air for 2 months. The paint professionals suggested that I purchase a good primer and prime the walls to seal the odor and wait 2 days and then repaint. The paint will take a full ten days to completely cure, but the odor will be gone.

We have recently been getting this "fresh latex paint" smell, mostly in our bedroom. The house was completed 5 years ago, and that's when it was painted last. It's driving us nuts... can't figure out what it might be. We're in the country, not near other homes/ buildings, no dead critters stuck in the walls, etc. Anyone else relate to this? Any ideas?

I have had a lot of success with Room Shocker. It is an odor eliminator that works like a fumigation bomb. It really works, is environmentally friendly, and super easy to use. You definitely have to check it out at http://www.biocidesystems.com/roomshocker1.html