Something died inside a wall in my finished basement. The smell is foul. It is not possible to get inside the wall. Is there anything I can do other than wait for the carcass to dry up? Spraying with Fabreeze helps for a while.
---MIKE---
Speaking from experience I'd rather not have, depending on the size of the critter carcass, the smell might get far more foul - you may not think it possible, but it can. There's always a way inside a wall. What exactly are you up against?
R
New Hampshire
It will pass in a month or so - a rat did the same in my home. Lasted for about 1 month but was livable as it was in the basement. We used Oust spray to mask it.
I suspect that the critter was a mouse. At first I thought it was cat pee on the carpet (I have two cats) but the smell is definitely coming from the wall. The wall is between the bathroom and the hall. It is pine panels. I don't want to destroy the wall. The smell seems to be lessening right now.
---MIKE---
I found a completely skeletized mouse in the wall of my basement. Could have been there for 40 years. It still smelled bad.
I worked my way through college doing trade embalming. Consequently I've smelled my share of unpleasant odors. If you search for autopsy or mortuary deodorizers you'll find a number of enzyme based deodorants that work quite well. Of course they need to be applied (injected) at the site of the corpse to be effective. I once had a possum die in a wall and was able to insert a trocar through the wall where the critter was and inject an enzyme based solution and effectively neutralize the odor with one of these materials.
Be a bit cautious spraying Febreeze. It is largely a cyclodextrin. Cyclodextrins are synthetic sugar molecules that, instead of being straight chain sugar molecules are circular. Look at it as a tiny sugar based bagel. The material responsible for the odor becomes encapsulated in the "bagel" so you don't smell it. However, it's still there in the cyclodextrin molecule. Clever, isn't it.
Cyclodextrins were developed to "encapsulate" medications so that they would not encounter a first pass metabolization in your liver (a protective filter) and therefore be delivered to the desired sites in greater concentrations. You may not want to afford odorants this same delivery protection.
---MIKE---
If you knew exactly where it was there might be something you could do but if not, its not worth tearing down the wall just yet. If it is a mouse, it will be gone soon. Running a dehumidifier might speed it up a bit. A good air filter with charcoal filter should work pretty good too.
Expanding foam insulation in a can is a good way to block up the hole that animal got into in the first place if you can find it. We used to get birds who would enter the attic and fall in the large gap between the bathroom walls and make a racket. Found the access hole, sealed it up, no more birds.
I miss the White Mountains of NH, my only regret after moving to CA from MA.
to further ask the same question: Do air ionizers help? Ozone generators?
---MIKE---
If you can determine the location, inject lime into the void.
You can use a bulb duster like this one (but I sure wouldn't pay 40 freakin' dollars for it).
- gpsman
On Sat 07 Jun 2008 06:47:15a, gpsman told us...
You could probably sutstitute a turkey baster that has an injection needle fitting on the end, for a fraction of the cost.
Thanks for all your ideas. The smell seems to subsided a lot.
---MIKE---
Ozone generators can kill the smell of dead cows being autopsied; I doubt your smell approaches that ;)
Free men own guns - www(dot)geocities(dot)com/CapitolHill/5357/
** Posted fromYou're welcome. Glad that it's getting better.
On Sat 07 Jun 2008 10:15:29a, ---MIKE--- told us...
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