Skip to main content

Ready to hire?

Post your job in minutes, browse real reviews and choose who to speak to.Post a job

Need some tips or advice?

Ask a question
Damp Proofing

Musty smell - poss from undeveloped basement

Anonymous user 03/03/2024 - 3.47 PM

Hi all, So, underneath our house we have a large void area/basement which has not been developed and is basically compacted mud with some bricks thrown in for good measure (and sometimes some mushrooms). Nothing has been touched down there since we moved in 10 years ago. Over the last few months we have started getting a musty smell in the rooms above the basement area and are thinking that the smell is coming up from there. All that is between that area and the upper rooms is one layer of floorboards, carpet or wooden flooring. Could I be right in thinking that the smell is originating down there? If so, what can I do about it? There are a couple air bricks and vents down there but that's it. TIA.

Are you a tradesperson and able to answer this question?

Log in

3 Answers

West Country Works (uk) Ltd

Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Bristol
Sounds like a perfect environment for fungi to grow. Moisture in the air little or no ventilation and no light. So your basement is well below the damp proof course and there are no signs of damp around your skirting boards. Depending on how deep the basement is, this could be a developed space giving you another room? of course this will require a survey and a cost to tank your basement. Alternatively you should check all air bricks are clear and clean inside and out and consider removing all left over rubble from the basement. Cover the floor area with a ballast 14mm chippings to dust, 25mm covering of sand compacted down before covering with a DPM (damp proof membrane) this would at least stop the smell and restrict the growth of fungi.
Answered3 November 2023
5

Hawthorne Timber Preservations

Rating: 5 out of 5
Dover
Su Sounds. Like dry rot,
Answered4 November 2023
0

Nots Renovations

Rating: 4.9 out of 5
Sutton In Ashfield
Hi First thing I'd do is get a damp specialist in , to identify the fungi , need to ascertain if you've got wet rot or dry rot , if so it needs treating with the correct chemicals , secondly check that you have adequate air flow in the floor void, I'm assuming your not looking at having the cellar turned into a habital room and are just trying to eradicate the smell and excessive moisture going on down there?
Answered14 November 2023
0