by avatamsaka »
Sun Jun 25, 2017 7:59 pm
Hello Everyone,
A month ago I read this forum for about 3 hours straight. I was desperate to get answers and very relieved in a way to find I was not alone, nor crazy, but I was at the end of my rope due to the wall odour/ stinky paint smell phenomenon. Only those who've experienced it can really understand, I think, how awful it is.
I had just moved into a new apartment which had been painted a couple of months prior by the landlord. The landlord just shrugged.
I will get to the point: I did further research after reading this forum and another forum, and further research and I decided to try something and IT WORKED. It's been a month and the smell is still GONE.
So, I wanted to share it with you all here.
I decided to spray the entire apartment - every single wall and in every closet - with hydrogen peroxide, to kill the bacteria. Then, after letting it dry over night, I wiped down every single wall again with hydrogen peroxide (literally dipped the mop into 100% H2O2).
I read on this forum and another forum that bleach did not work. Then I read on another site about bleach v.s. hydrogen peroxide as a disinfectant which said that bleach is not porous, so will not penetrate the surface of things, but hydrogen peroxide is porous and will penetrate. So, that's why I decided on hydrogen peroxide.
You will need:
- to pull everything away from the walls.
-Get a really good spray bottle (I got mine at Bed Bath and Beyond).
-A lot of bottles of 3% hydrogen peroxide (grocery store or pharmacy).
In hindsight, a hat and goggles or glasses, and maybe a mask to cover mouth and nose might have been helpful but we did it without any of these. My eyes were watering like crazy by the end (but not at first) and I only have a one bedroom apartment so, I can't imagine the work involved to get a whole house done this way but having more than one person on the job sure helps. For moral support too!
Letting it dry means streaks on the walls the next day but if you wipe every wall down the next day (I used a mop, also from BBandB) with Hydrogen peroxide again, you get rid of the streaks and give it a second go for good measure.
The apartment smelled SO CLEAN after this, I cried.
I hope this helps someone!!!
P.S. The apartment I am in has plaster walls I think - not drywall (it's an older building).
Good luck!