Mildew Odor Coming from Outlets

11 days ago

Help! We bought a 1930s colonial in upstate NY 2.5 years ago. We immediately did a roof tear off, due to a substantial leak. We tore out any drywall and insulation impacted by the leak and remediated any mold in the area. We also re-sided the house and sprayed it down with anti mold spray before re-siding with Hardie Plank. Today, 95% of the smell is gone. However, on humid days, a mildew smell emanates from the outlets on the exterior walls. I’ve filled them with foam outlet insulation covers and there is no visible mold inside. We have also installed an ERV, so we do have air filtration in the house. We have a baby coming in a month and it’s a priority to fix these before she arrives! Any advice is VERY appreciated! Thanks so much!

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Comments (3)

cat_ky
11 days ago
Have you checked out the attic, to see if it could be coming from up there. It could travel down the wires to the outlet box.
klem1
11 days ago
Friend you are playing a fools game by dinking around the net asking people to wag at this.. So you expect a baby? What do you think the pregnant lady(I assume you) is, a door knob? It's inexcusable not jumping on this at first suspension.

Odors are the bane of building managers. I've gone on countless calls for natural gas odor in buildings which are all electric. To that add all the times I've made calls for odors and on investigation, 5 individuals describe odor smelling like 5 totally different things. I'm not making light of your situation so my best advice is consult with a lab to find how to gather samples for lab analysis specifically targeting mold spores. Odds are no spores are found,meaning although it smells like mold, it's something else. If spores are found, odds are they are not harmful. What I'm suggesting is to find out well in advance of baby arriving. A mother shouldn't have to worry about another thing besides baby until her mind and body are 100% back to normal. If it's harmless, you can rest easy and concentrate on the baby. If it turns out to be dangerous you can seek alternate lodging,file insurance claim and start remediation.
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Charles Ross Homes
11 days ago
Hi, Anna,

Infiltration (leakage) of outdoor air is fairly common in homes. Older homes, with little or no air sealing, will tend to have higher air infiltration rates than homes built to meet modern building codes. Infiltration can occur around windows, doors, electrical receptacles, and penetrations in exterior walls. The rim joist is a major source of air leakage in homes with crawl spaces or basements. Infiltration of humid outdoor air can increase indoor relative humidity without suitable controls.

Higher relative humidity (>50% RH) is conducive to microbial action--some of which may produce odors perceived as "musty/moldy" without actual mold growth.

If you have an air conditioner, it can help to dehumidify the indoor air-- provided the dewpoint is higher than the air conditioner's evaporator coil temperature and provided the thermostat is calling for cooling. In upstate NY (at least the part where I grew up,) cooling might only be required for a few hours a day a couple of days each year. If that's the case, you'll need to consider other alternatives to maintain the indoor relative humidity below 50% when air conditioning is not called for. Your local NYS health dept. may be a good resource or at least direct you to others who can help with your specific needs.