is it stronger in the attic? closets? our very old house has an old wood smell, and near the closed over fireplaces you can still smell woodsmoke when its rainy and windy.

if your house has wall to wall carpeting you might consider removing them and not replacing til you see if the smell fades.

Thanks for your suggestion. I do notice an odor from the kitchen cabinets which I had bleached and resprayed with urethane. Seemed to take care of it for a while but now the smell is back again. It is a 65 year old house with all hardwood/tile flooring. Am worried because of the house design, it never had gutters until we put them on this year...worried it could be mold somewhere?

I moved into a home like that once. It was from too much humidity and lack of heat for 8 months. Might have even been mold. Found I had no insulation in the walls and until I renovated the home the smell remained.

maybe call a mold specialist, they should be able to sniff n tell.

65 isn't very old for a house. But having lived in a Victorian in San Francisco I know that smell very well. It's old damp wood. Perhaps there is mold which could be unhealthy. Best to get a mold specialist in. Otherwise, I'd remove smelly wood cabinets and perhaps re line the closets with cedar.