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I live in a brick built house built in 1965, with solid concrete floors, and an extension to the kitchen which has therefore an extended concrete floor. A new kitchen with Karndean tiles on the floor was installed 6 years ago. 8 weeks ago we noticed a strong smell in the kitchen which began one day, not being there at all the day before. It is "chemical"-like according to some people, like a dirty damp dishcloth according to others, and not locatable to any one part of the kitchen - just "there" - especially after the room has been left with the door shut, eg overnight. We have even had to seal with masking-tape the door into the hallway to keep the smell out of the rest of the house! We have had experts in who confirm it is NOT damp, leaking pipes, electrics, gas, the gas boiler, a dead rat etc, wet MDF or the drains. We are at a total loss to know what might be the cause, as it is just “there” and very distressing in our inability to find its cause. Any ideas what it might be? Who do we ask for help – that we have not already asked? Is there anyone out there who has a new idea? Please suggest anything you like! We are a clean pair of people and cannot stand the smell!

jgh1949,
Most likely thing is a dead and rotting mouse under/behind the kitchen units. Do you by any chance have a cat?
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No we do not have any cats or other animals, and under the units is well inspected, clean and dry! No damp, no bodies... Sorry to disappoint you - any other thoughts?

jgh1949

jgh1949,
Try putting a plug in the kitchen sink and tape over the overflow over night.
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Hi, this is a long shot but we had an unidentifyable smell in our kitchen and we couldn't find the source for days. It ended up being from the back of the refrigerator. Somehow, and we believe it was milk, got spilt in the fridge and was collected with the condensation and went out the little hole in the back of the fridge where it gets evaporated. If you have ever smelt 'off' milk you will know it is an extremely nausiating smell. It might be worth checking there?

Good luck with finding it.

Thanks for the suggestion - but we actually took both the fridge and the freezer out of the kitchen to check their culpability- no effect on the smell..


Any more suggestions please??!!

stoneyboy wrote:jgh1949,
Try putting a plug in the kitchen sink and tape over the overflow over night.
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Thanks - done that but no impact and have indeed washed out all ubends, drains, sewers etc.- it is not a drain smell anyway. Thanks for the idea though!

Did any of the plumbers or professionals check under the tiles? There is angie's list plumbing reviews which has reviews of plumbers. Did you have any leaks in the bathroom that may have seeped into the kitchen and under the tiles? Also, did they check the ceiling and the attic above the kitchen? Another place to possibly check would be the vents and duct work as well as the vent for the range hood if you have one.

stoneyboy wrote:jgh1949,
Try putting a plug in the kitchen sink and tape over the overflow over night.
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Done that - and washed out all the drains and traps. Good thought - but sorry not the one needed....

Any one else got a brainwave?

jgh1949 wrote:

stoneyboy wrote:jgh1949,
Try putting a plug in the kitchen sink and tape over the overflow over night.
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Done that - and washed out all the drains and traps. Good thought - but sorry not the one needed....

Any one else got a brainwave?

Might be a chemical reaction.
A glue/adhesive reacting with something else?

Good thought - one we have had too, but the only adhesives are ones used 6 years ago when we had a new kitchen installed- Karndean floor tiles, Ceramic wall tile adhesives and wallpaper paste - the first two used by professionals, the last by me. Why should it take 6 years for the smell to arise? How could I identify the root cause? Help, anybody, PLEASE!
This is driving us MAD!!

There is mean that it arises after 6 years . You should check by your own where the smell is coming and call the plumber to check if their present any leakage .Or may be it cause of because after 6 years your some part of new made kitchen has been expired.this work is for the professionals.

Thanks for this - we have had every professional in you can think of - including 2 chartered surveyors, 3 plumbers, 2 drain experts, 4 builders, an electrical specialist, a gas specialist, British Gas, 2 damp experts. Have I missed anyone out? Any more ideas as to what might be causing it?

Thanks for this but we have had every professinal in you can think of - electrical specialist, gas expert, British Gas, 4 plumbers, 3 builders, 2 drains experts, 2 damp experts. Have I missed any specialism? I would appreciate any additional ideas as to what might be causing the smell?

jgh1949,
Is there any chance you have a dead animal in the ceiling void eg mouse, rat, squirrel ...... Do you or has anyone in the past used poison - are there rat poison boxes in your area?
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