[debbie95]

I have a foul smell coming from the back of my TV stand. I cleaned it nothing is underneath it I noticed flies flying around it but they were mostly flying around the outlet any ideas? Could there be a dead mouse in my wall?

[Catsmine]

A dead rodent in the wall is a distinct possibility. Without tearing out the wall, you could mask the smell until it goes away by taking the cover plate off the outlet and pouring some carpet powder through a funnel into the gap between the electric box and the wall covering.

If it takes longer to go away than a week or so, you may have a moisture problem in the wall.

[debbie95]

It's been about a week since we started to smell the problem then figured out where it came from. We took the outlet out and it smelled really bad. Do you know how long will it take if it is a rodent for the smell to go away ? I will try the powder trick thanks!

[Catsmine]

Unless there is a source of moisture to prolong the decay process, mice usually stop smelling in 3 to 10 days. If you have a leaky pipe or a lot of condensation around an air duct, it may take as long as 3 weeks. If you do you will probably notice some mildew nearby, too.