Dead Mouse Smell for 5 Months, What Could Be the Problem?

Having a pungent smell in your home can drive you crazy. It gets even more frustrating when you do not know the source of the smell. The good news is that in most cases the smell only lasts a few days or weeks. However, when the smell takes months and does not show signs of ending you should be concerned.

There are many reasons why your house may give out a pungent smell. Some of the reasons are obvious and easy to solve while others are complex. The most important step to take is a diagnosis of the smell. Once you know what kind of smell it is and its source you can easily deal with it.

In this post, we try to solve a puzzle in regards to smell that won't go away for five months. A DIYer complains of having a pungent smell that doesn't go away. The house has undergone several attempts to get rid of mice.

Further, the attempts to get rid of mice got experts working on the gas oven. The real problem is that the house has a smell that cannot be distinguished for over five months. The homeowners do not know whether it is the smell of gas or rotten animal.

Causes of Pungent Smell at Home

In the case of the DIYer in question, the primary suspects would be a dead mouse or leaking gas. These two are among the most common causes of pungent smell in homes.

However, having ruled out the two, the question then becomes even more complex to solve. Below, are some of the common causes of bad smells at home that you may want to examine.

Mold in Wet Areas

Mold is one of the causes of odor that can take time to be noticed. Mold commonly grows in damp areas where there are water leakages. You may also find mold in the kitchen or the bathroom. You want to ensure that all areas that have constant water flow are clean to avoid the growth of mold.

If you keep smelling the pungent scent, you may want to check beneath the sink, and in other wet areas that may hide mold. In old houses with a basement, chances are that mold could grow in the basement or behind the wall. Check these areas to find out if it is the case.

One more important factor to remember about mold is that it can be poisonous. If mold grows in areas that can be accessed by children you should get rid of it before it causes any harm to your family.

Hidden Trash

The other common cause of bad smell at home is trash. Trash does not necessarily mean the waste you throw in your bin. It can also include the waste that falls down and hides in crevices at home.

For the case of our DIYer with a durable smell, it is important to check any open spaces in the walls around the kitchen. Trash such as onions and potatoes that fall into crevices could cause a bad smell for a long time.

In other cases, pets and rodents could carry some trash into the walls. For instance, if the mice caries leftover bones from your trash can, you may have to deal with the smell for quite a long time.

It is, therefore, necessary to ensure that when you are sealing rodent holes, you clean them up well. Get rid of any trash that could rot and become a source of nuisance.

Pet Odors

If you have pets at home, you should be very careful with what they do. Pets can carry trash from outside into the house. Further, pets defecate in hidden places and can cause a serious pungent smell at home.

You want to make sure that your pet is not doing any of the above. If that is the case, you should also consider the general health of your pet.

Decaying Animals

The other main cause of the pungent smell could be decaying animals. In the case of our DIYer, holes harboring mice were blocked. This could be one of the reasons why they are experiencing a pungent smell.

While small animals such as rats only give a bad smell for two to three weeks, there are situations where the smell could last longer. These are situations where the dead animals are locked in a damp environment.

If the dead rat is in a very wet environment, it will smell much longer than usual. Although the animal might completely decompose, the leftover wet surface will still give out a bad smell.

If the dead animal is quite large in size say the size of a cat or dog, you should expect to feel a bad smell coming out of the walls for several months. his can however be avoided by tracking it and getting rid of it.

Leaking Gas

The most common cause of a pungent smell at home is leaking gas. If you feel that there is an unusual smell at home, make sure you call gas inspectors to come and check your home.

Gas leaks can be quite dangerous and are likely to lead to fire outbreaks. To avoid this, make sure all gas leaks are checked and dealt with promptly.

Bottom Line

If you are experiencing a pungent smell at home, it must be coming from somewhere. The common suspects are usually the kitchen and the bathroom since they are usually wet than in other rooms.

You also have to inspect behind the walls. As a DIYer, you should find safe ways of getting behind your walls and dealing with imminent danger.