Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Smell from downstairs neighbour

69 replies

H3yth3r32020 · 20/07/2021 19:54

Not an AIBU but hoping someone will be able to help out!

We live in a first floor flat - purpose built but very old building. Lovely elderly gentleman is our downstairs neighbour. Flats are the same layout and he uses the 2nd bedroom as his room, meaning its below our spare room.

We've been getting the room ready for our baby to move out of our room soon and have noticed over the last couple of months a very strong smell of urine coming up from downstairs - we can't seem to clear our spare room (soon to be baby's room) of the smell, even when leaving the windows open all day everyday.

Obviously air freshener only masks the smell but can anyone think of any alternative we can try to prevent this?

From neighbour's point of view, he seems able to look after himself still and we've not noticed a smell around his person (though obviously with covid, contact has been quite brief recently!) so we're flummoxed as to how the smell could be so strong in his bedroom that its coming up to our flat - but obviously not something we can broach with him, so just looking for solutions we can try within our flat!

Appreciate this is a little niche, but we're obviously concerned about having a 6 month old sleep in there - so any advice is very welcome!

OP posts:
MrsTulipTattsyrup · 20/07/2021 20:02

It’s odd that a smell can make its way through his ceiling, the structure of the floor, the floorboards, and your carpets or floor coverings. How old is ‘very old’ in terms of your building? It might be possible if it’s lath and plaster but still quite unlikely, especially in purpose-built flats.

Have you been in your flat for long? Is it possible that it could be something in your floorboards (eg cat pee) which has been reactivated by recent carpet cleaning or the current weather conditions? I’d want to be very sure that the smell was coming from the flat below before even thinking about approaching him about it.

MrsTulipTattsyrup · 20/07/2021 20:03

Oh, and one other thought - old carpet can smell like urine when the glue breaks down.

plodalong12 · 20/07/2021 20:04

When did you move in? Have you been using the room for anything else or just been empty on arrival of your baby? I’m wondering whether the strong urine smell is from the previous owner who might have had a cat. If you don’t really go in the room or use it then perhaps it’s only now you’re noticing it

KibeththeWalker · 20/07/2021 20:06

Is it not more likely that it's something else causing that type of ammonia smell? Dodgy plumbing, chemical reaction somewhere being caused by a leak or maybe a dead rat or mouse somewhere?

I'd get somebody in to assess it- not sure who though!

ghostyslovesheets · 20/07/2021 20:09

did you paint it with Valspar?

Aquamarine1029 · 20/07/2021 20:10

Do you have a landlord? If so, you need to complain until this is sorted.

eurochick · 20/07/2021 20:11

A cracked soil pipe somewhere could do this.

CatOfTheLand · 20/07/2021 20:12

@ghostyslovesheets

did you paint it with Valspar?
I was literally about to say this. They had a few bad batches that made the walls stink of pee a few weeks after it dried
KingdomScrolls · 20/07/2021 20:12

I second the valspar question, we did and the first lot of hot weather the walls smelled like urine, it disappeared after that first summer but I wouldn't use it again

VerticalHorizon · 20/07/2021 20:13

Dennis Nilsen.

I'll say no more.

Eleoura · 20/07/2021 20:16

Does he have a cat and keep the cat litter in that room?

Original poster
H3yth3r32020 · 20/07/2021 20:17

We've been in the flat 5 years and the previous owner was here 20 years before that and didn't have pets. We've done a full renovation since moving in and the room has been used often as a spare room over the last few years and as my office while WFH during covid and there's definitely not been a smell before.

The building is over 100 years old - there is a chimney breast with a vent (no fireplace) and he'll also have a vent in his room, so thinking of it, it could be coming from there?

To be clear - we absolutely won't be approaching him about it! Its just not something we'd feel comfortable raising, especially as we don't have any concerns for his welfare/that he's not coping or able to look after himself.

OP posts:
Pinkywoo · 20/07/2021 20:17

VerticalHorizon I was thinking the same!

OP how old are your electrics? Dodgy wiring can smell awful, or some old light fittings too.

Original poster
H3yth3r32020 · 20/07/2021 20:23

Also he doesn't have any pets!

OP posts:
VerticalHorizon · 20/07/2021 20:24

Does it spell of rotting corpses?
If so, it could be a clue that it's rotting corpses!

VerticalHorizon · 20/07/2021 20:24

*smell

gamerchick · 20/07/2021 20:26

@ghostyslovesheets

did you paint it with Valspar?
Ah man, it's ruddy awful paint that bugger is. Every summer it stinks to high heaven of cat pee.
uktrippin · 20/07/2021 20:28

So did you use valspar then?

Thecurtainsofdestiny · 20/07/2021 20:28

We had this. Turned out that a neighbour's dog was peeing on our front door and it had all seeped into the carpetAngry

VerticalHorizon · 20/07/2021 20:29

Either urine to that paint, or ur not

MrsTulipTattsyrup · 20/07/2021 20:32

@H3yth3r32020

We've been in the flat 5 years and the previous owner was here 20 years before that and didn't have pets. We've done a full renovation since moving in and the room has been used often as a spare room over the last few years and as my office while WFH during covid and there's definitely not been a smell before.

The building is over 100 years old - there is a chimney breast with a vent (no fireplace) and he'll also have a vent in his room, so thinking of it, it could be coming from there?

To be clear - we absolutely won't be approaching him about it! Its just not something we'd feel comfortable raising, especially as we don't have any concerns for his welfare/that he's not coping or able to look after himself.

You’re right that the flats will share a flue for their fireplaces, so it could be coming that way - but he’d probably need to be peeing in his fireplace for it to be that strong! You could try having a good sniff around the vent though.
stayathomer · 20/07/2021 20:34

I'd say cat or dog too

coffeewithmilk · 20/07/2021 20:37

If you don't want to approach him directly (I wouldn't either as it's a touchy subject) why don't you make a generalised comment or concern that there's something wrong with the pipes and ask him if he can get any smells in his flat. Maybe then he will be concerned that whatever he is doing in that room is causing a stink and it may improve.

'Have you had any leaks or strong smells in your room, we seem to have it in our spare room and we're concerned as our baby will be there - wondering whether we need to call pest control etc etc '

Worth a shot

VerticalHorizon · 20/07/2021 20:39

Definitely do no approach him directly.
Try to approach from the side to avoid being downwind

MadinMarch · 20/07/2021 20:41

Could it be a rotting bird which has fallen down the chimney?

Swipe left for the next trending thread