Suggestions about odd kitchen smell. Featured

Absolutely I have had that problem. Expanding foam for the big cracks and decorators caulk for the little gaps

Doing some research, it's not a foul or decaying smell. It's dry, dusty, "bricky" ?

Ah, caulk ... that's an idea :) Thanks.

As I was running through the specifics, it occurred to me that maybe there's something about wood shrinking very very slightly in drier weather that is opening up a gap somewhere.

Out of interest, do you have any airbricks in the outside wall(s) of the kitchen? If so, can you detect the same smell through those?

yes. efflorescence and a touch of mould perhaps on some underfloor brickwork Nothing to worry about, but worth getting rid of.

I fianlly replaced a kicked in ventilation grille in my kitchen (gies to underfloor space) and no more mice have appeared. A slug did manage to get through the gaps tho, If we wanted to live in contact with nature we wouldnt build houses.

Very likely. I have an outside door that varies from perfect fit to completely jammed according to the weather ;-)

If you do have movement foam may be better than caulk

There may be an airbrick there - I have decking that runs along that wall though (to allow SWMBO level access to the house from the path). I might be able to peer through the slats :)

But the smell isn't in anyway "damp". The best way to describe it is "dry" and "musty". Exactly like the void the floorboards cover.

If you have mice , it could be dead mice. They also love expanding foam...

Dave

I hope it isn't dry rot. Do you have suspended floors throughout the ground floor ?. If so, is there proper cross ventilation ?.

The floors are getting on for 24" above the ground. The guy who fitted the heating commented on how deep the void was and all airbricks are open so there is a good cross flow.

The problem here is I have no idea what dry rot might smell like. However I do recognise this smell as the dry, dusty smell you would have in a cellar. Which corresponds with what's below :) So I am working on the assumption that somehow air is being pushed into the kitchen from below the floor thanks to some small gaps.

Why it comes and goes (it's receded a lot with the fact it's turned slightly cooler and damper) is more the mystery.

I think a tube of caulk and some squeezing it into the gaps and then waiting and seeing is the best approach.

Lol1. They also love PVC insulation...

I think its unlikely. All spaces that don't get a huge amount of fresh air and aren't inhabited end iup smelling musty. It sounds like what old sheds and cellar smell like

So do I.

Most older wooden floored houses have brick pillars to put the floor joists on, and that leaves the joists not necessarily in contact even with the walls so rot is unlikely.

Is there any way you could borrow a fog machine? Fill the void with fog, see if/where/how it comes in?

Available as "theatrical", and I see they are also used to test cars for leaks in the exhaust system, crankcase, interior air etc.

Thomas Prufer