Hello everyone, I’m feeling quite desperate right now and hope someone here can offer advice. We moved into our old apartment building this summer. From the start, I noticed a strange smell and initially thought it was from the previous tenant. Someone also inspected one of the four rooms for mold—everything was below the limit. The building is very old but fully renovated and well maintained. One room has herringbone parquet flooring, the others have plank floors. All rooms except the living room have new plastic windows, on which water also collects at around 0/-1 degrees Celsius (32/30°F).
My problem: the exterior walls have a stony, chalky smell, unpleasant—I can’t describe it better. I was away for a week, unpacked my clothes, and noticed they had fully absorbed this odor. It was really disgusting! I could barely wear them, and it’s driving me crazy. Does anyone have any idea what this could be and how to solve the problem? I feel very uncomfortable wearing any clothes that were on the clothes rack in that room. I’ve moved most of my clothes into wardrobes by now, but that hasn’t solved the problem. When I stand in the room and smell the clothes, I don’t notice the odor, but if I take them out to the balcony and breathe deeply three times, I smell it strongly again. I’ve also placed hygrometers everywhere; the humidity is between 55-60%, mostly around 57%.
What could this be?
Thank you to everyone who responds,
My problem: the exterior walls have a stony, chalky smell, unpleasant—I can’t describe it better. I was away for a week, unpacked my clothes, and noticed they had fully absorbed this odor. It was really disgusting! I could barely wear them, and it’s driving me crazy. Does anyone have any idea what this could be and how to solve the problem? I feel very uncomfortable wearing any clothes that were on the clothes rack in that room. I’ve moved most of my clothes into wardrobes by now, but that hasn’t solved the problem. When I stand in the room and smell the clothes, I don’t notice the odor, but if I take them out to the balcony and breathe deeply three times, I smell it strongly again. I’ve also placed hygrometers everywhere; the humidity is between 55-60%, mostly around 57%.
What could this be?
Thank you to everyone who responds,
I would suspect that due to the new windows, there is no longer sufficient air exchange. This is often a problem in renovated houses.
This can lead to a musty smell.
I would try using a dehumidifier and plenty of ventilation.
Have the exterior walls been checked for water (im)permeability?
This can lead to a musty smell.
I would try using a dehumidifier and plenty of ventilation.
Have the exterior walls been checked for water (im)permeability?
Hello Rick, thanks for your reply.
We ventilate at least twice a day by cross-ventilation, and the humidity is always below 60%. The dehumidifier arrived yesterday, so we wanted to try it out. Would using it once be enough, or does it need to be used repeatedly?
I don’t recognize this smell either, and chalky/stone-like describes it roughly. The basement smells different—more musty. When I enter the room where the clothes racks are, I don’t notice the smell at all. But the clothes smell completely different. That’s the strange part. In another room, I do smell it again. No matter how much I ventilate there.
According to the property management, everything is fine. The owners live in the house themselves, and the house is well maintained. The walls in the hallway don’t smell. In the other apartments I have been in, there is no smell either.
Are there walls that just “smell” on their own, or is that unusual?
What really drives me to the limit is that my clothes smell because of it.
We ventilate at least twice a day by cross-ventilation, and the humidity is always below 60%. The dehumidifier arrived yesterday, so we wanted to try it out. Would using it once be enough, or does it need to be used repeatedly?
I don’t recognize this smell either, and chalky/stone-like describes it roughly. The basement smells different—more musty. When I enter the room where the clothes racks are, I don’t notice the smell at all. But the clothes smell completely different. That’s the strange part. In another room, I do smell it again. No matter how much I ventilate there.
According to the property management, everything is fine. The owners live in the house themselves, and the house is well maintained. The walls in the hallway don’t smell. In the other apartments I have been in, there is no smell either.
Are there walls that just “smell” on their own, or is that unusual?
What really drives me to the limit is that my clothes smell because of it.
Have the walls possibly been newly plastered or treated in some way? Until the root cause of the problem is found, you will probably need to use the dehumidifier repeatedly. Ventilating twice a day may not be enough in airtight houses.
Since the issue does not appear in other parts of the house, I now suspect fresh wall coverings or paint.
The absolute last resort would be odor removal with ozone. However, I would strongly advise against this for now. Even then, the smell will return if the cause is not eliminated.
Since the issue does not appear in other parts of the house, I now suspect fresh wall coverings or paint.
The absolute last resort would be odor removal with ozone. However, I would strongly advise against this for now. Even then, the smell will return if the cause is not eliminated.
We already used an ozone generator in the summer when the apartment was still empty. However, only in the room where I notice the smell as soon as I enter. I also considered removing the wallpaper there and just painting the bare wall. But I decided against it when I saw the colorful walls underneath the wallpaper.
I know the new windows have been installed for about 5 to 6 years. When drilling, I encounter various materials. Without a masonry drill bit, it’s impossible. Usually, it eventually reaches red brick.
Do you think more frequent ventilation could improve the situation?
I still remember the summer when I blamed the smell on the previous tenants. Back then, I kept the windows open all the time and still noticed the odor. It has definitely gotten better.
I know the new windows have been installed for about 5 to 6 years. When drilling, I encounter various materials. Without a masonry drill bit, it’s impossible. Usually, it eventually reaches red brick.
Do you think more frequent ventilation could improve the situation?
I still remember the summer when I blamed the smell on the previous tenants. Back then, I kept the windows open all the time and still noticed the odor. It has definitely gotten better.
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