Have you heard of "building aromas" where refurbishing won't get rid of the smell?

[teaboyjim]

Have you ever heard of buildings that have been doing a particular function for years absorbing the smells and aromas of the buildings activity to such an extent that refurbishing the property and airing it are not enough to get rid of the smell?

 

[Brigade77]

In his later skooldays I tasked No'1 Son & his best mate to clear out a mid terrace we were about to refurb.

Some poor old bloke had spent his final years sleeping on a doss bag in the living room, amongst all the empty Vodka bottles rammed full of nub ends & chip shop paper wrappers. He'd been using a corner of the room as a toilet for some months, pi$$ & s#it everywhere, some of which had seeped into & under the floorboards & into the rubble in the void space.

I never went inside but I'm told on hot day it made your eyes water ! Bless 'em, they filled 4x skips with the stench & never complained once, unlike myself when my 2IC made me chuck a hefty £bonus there way . . . .

There are specialist chemicals you can get, so not to worry Jim, the smell does fade away after a few years but if you search 'Urine Bio Digesters & Odour Neutralisers' I'm sure you'll have it back smelling of roses before the hot weather hits us.

 

[securespark]

Not sure Jim has an odour problem, much less so one concerned with human waste.

 

[teaboyjim]

In his later skooldays I tasked No'1 Son & his best mate to clear out a mid terrace we were about to refurb.
Some poor old bloke had spent his final years sleeping on a doss bag in the living room, amongst all the empty Vodka bottles rammed full of nub ends & chip shop paper wrappers. He'd been using a corner of the room as a toilet for some months, pi$$ & s#it everywhere, some of which had seeped into & under the floorboards & into the rubble in the void space.
I never went inside but I'm told on hot day it made your eyes water ! Bless 'em, they filled 4x skips with the stench & never complained once, unlike myself when my 2IC made me chuck a hefty £bonus there way . . . .
There are specialist chemicals you can get, so not to worry Jim, the smell does fade away after a few years but if you search 'Urine Bio Digesters & Odour Neutralisers' I'm sure you'll have it back smelling of roses before the hot weather hits us.

That's a terrible story - you'd like to think people don't live this way any longer. I've looked at large buildings in the past and some of them had such a strong oily smell that I wondered if it would be able to ever get rid of it.

 

[teaboyjim]

Not sure Jim has an odour problem, much less so one concerned with human waste.

You're right securespark - it was more of a general interest question

 

[securespark]

I knew a house full of neglected dogs. The GF ceiling, joists and upstairs floorboards had to ripped out and replaced as the diarrhoea and urine had soaked through everything.

 

[teaboyjim]

I knew a house full of neglected dogs. The GF ceiling, joists and upstairs floorboards had to ripped out and replaced as the diarrhoea and urine had soaked through everything.

Yes securespark, exactly the type of thing I was thinking of

 

[conny]

Yes, bricks and plaster as well as timber can absorb aromas from any strong smells or sustained use of various things such as hot oils, gases, dust etc.

The best way to rid them is replace them but you also have to try to clean as deeply as possible any surrounding areas they may have been in contact with.
Even then there's no guarantee of success.

 

[teaboyjim]

Yes, bricks and plaster as well as timber can absorb aromas from any strong smells or sustained use of various things such as hot oils, gases, dust etc.
The best way to rid them is replace them but you also have to try to clean as deeply as possible any surrounding areas they may have been in contact with. Even then there's no guarantee of success.

That's interesting. Have you ever heard stories where it's really effected things seriously such as builders/developers restoring/refurbishing buildings only to find they haven't gotten rid of the deep seated tangs/aroma that nobody can fix? I don't know if concrete can absorb aromas and fumes in the same way that certain bricks can for instance

 

[conny]

I'm not sure if concrete can but, as it can take up to 20+ years to fully cure, I wouldn't be surprised.

There was a government building built in Bootle, Liverpool about 30 or 40 years ago, costing quite a few million £'s, on an old industrial site. The site had various businesses on it in it's heyday such as car repairers, dismantlers, small chemical distributors and food storage warehouses. These were all flattened and a new, 'modern' building erected with air con new H&V systems etc.
The absenteeism rate was way above average and it was eventually put down to 'sick building syndrome'. Whatever method they used, (or omitted), to construct it was held to be the reason. It was knocked down within 10 years and is now a car park.

 

[Alec_t]

can't wood absorb chemicals that make things smell?

Oak certainly can. That's why Scotch whisky is matured in old casks which previously held sherry.

 

[teaboyjim]

Oak certainly can. That's why Scotch whisky is matured in old casks which previously held sherry.

Good example!