Help me unravel this mystery before I burn the contents of this room down

[NotAgainWilson]

As the title says, I am feeling like purifying this room through fire after a week of cleaning. washing and replacing stuff has proved unsuccessful to remove the stench a short term lodger left behind.

The room was spring cleaned before his arrival. He was around for 3 weeks. He had massively smelly feet (I said that as the mother of a sporty smelly child that I could barely stand at times, but this is in a different league, more than ten times worse and resistant), after a week around I asked him if he could do something about the smell stench, he apologised (he was lovely and polite otherwise) and said he would get odour eaters to sort it.

It didn’t make a difference so, as I had told him when I rent the room that I would be going in to open the window to ventilate the room every morning, I got the super strength version of Odor Eaters and sprayed all his shoes every morning and left the window open the whole day. This helped the smell not to extend to other rooms as before.

The last of his 3 weeks, he had a cold so stayed at home, therefore I was unable to spray shoes if open the window. He left the room tidy but the stench is still there. It smells as if you have crossed bad smelly feet with buttery toffee and is of such strength you feel like vomiting.

The room was also left covered in some white fluff, very similar to the fluff you may find under the bed if you don’t clean for years, but it was EVERYWHERE, all around the floor, walls, furniture, picture frame and a lot of it has gone into the radiator. I cannot imagine such amount of fluff being produced in three weeks, much less so by a single person no matter how dirty they could be.

I have removed more than bucket load of fluff, vacuum cleaned and washed the walls, floors, furniture and the inside out of the radiator, used a whole can of Odor Eaters, Oust and a full bottle of Ecover as well as leaving the window open every day, one week later the stench is now a smell but is still unbearable.

I have bought a new duvet and pillows. But I am convinced that this situation can be due to either an endocrinology related issue or bacteria, and therefore not safe. Shall I burn all the bed linen? the whole room? I am at the end of my tether, have spent a week cleaning and again every day over the last week and the smell is still there.🤮🤮🤮🤮

Is there anything stuck down the back of the radiator?

I'd also suggest cut lemons and onions and bicarb sprinkled l liberally around left then hoovered up and and wipe with white vinegar over all surfaces.

Though agree with PP any sun get mattress and anything else outside - sunlight has anti bacterial properties and will give it all a good air.

Only other suggestion on-line I've seen you've not said you tired is air purifier - but not sure what that would do that a good air won't.

Not a huge amount to add but could it be that he left an unpleasant gift for you if the "break up" was not amicable? ie a rotten fish head behind the radiator etc? You hear these (probably urban myths) about people leaving things to rot in hidden places to have revenge against someone etc.

Have you been around on your hands and knees, going slowly around to sniff everything?

Could the white fluff be fungal in nature? Have you checked down the crevices inside the radiator if that is where the smell is stronger? Could it be something that has either been poured or spilled on the floor and is now under the boards?

I'm honestly mystified, sounds like something has died in there!
Try bicarb of soda, a few dishes of it around the room should help to absorb the lingering scents.

I think you need to remove all the furniture and see if a) the furniture smells in another room or b) the room still smells

All the things you are trying will really only cover up the odour or clean the surface....vinegar itself is quite smelly and somethings will react with paint or varnish. Other cleaners will provide a source of food for some organisms.

It's sounds ridiculous but is the fluff from inside the mattress or something? Has he hidden something in there?
Or as others have said it could be mould.

You need to empty the room and leave door closed windows open.....for a week or so and see what happens.

Have you, dare I ask, sniffed the mattress? :/ I can't comprehend just how smelly he could be, especially if he was washing so excessively. And the fluff mystery... sorry, I'm having a giggle.

Where did he go!? A new home? Back to his own home, assuming he was lodging with you for a work project?

I once read a thread about an aggrieved woman who dealt with her ex-boyfriend by stuffing prawns into the curtain pole in their bedroom. How did you end things with the smelly-footed lodger?

I think you need to call Dr Who and check this guys interplanetary visa.

It might be time to call in a priest.

EBay isn't just for second hand things. I think pp's were suggesting OP buy a new mattress from there.

I am also incredibly invested in the source of the stink and am surprised nobody's set up a smell detecting service yet, as there's always someone on here trying to identify a pong in their house. In my experience it's usually the reservoir at the back of the fridge or a forgotten potato, but probably not in a bedroom.

Light fitting's? Maybe!

But yes I'd be removing items to say a garage to eliminate offenders.

Could he have been a demon? They're supposed to smell quite bad. Brimstone and treacle, could that be the 'toffee' odour? 🤔

You need to get some incense burning, or perhaps sage if you're more of a pagan.

Is there any possibility he had a pet that you weren't aware of?

You say its worse under the desk...

Any possibility of something dead under the floorboards?

Otherwise... do you have a fan? Close door, open window, fan on full blast?

The 'science professional' angle opens up a lot of unpleasant possibilities... Butyryl chloride smells like stinky feet turned up to 11 and then there's legendary things like thioactetone

I also vote for removing all soft furnishings from the room so you can at least isolate where the stench is coming from.

I'm genuinely intrigued by this - my eldest grandson lived with us for a few years, and his room perpetually stank like a cage of ferrets. No amount of febreze or air freshener worked, I always made sure his bedding and clothes were clean and he was scrupulous about his personal hygiene and yet there it was. If he left his bedroom door open, the stench would flow out onto the landing and eventually creep insidiously downstairs...

It's no comfort to you, OP, but it only went away after he had moved out and my husband employed a scorched earth policy; the carpet was deep cleaned, the bed, mattress and curtains went to the tip and the room was repainted top to bottom.

Agree to getting rid of all soft furnishings. I think you need proper enzyme spray if it hasn't already been suggested, to kill the bacteria and reduce the smell.

Sounds like a bad bacterial fungal foot infection and he's been sockless on the carpet etc...

Yes, an exorcist

I would suggest trying to fumigate the room - get some Frankincense, close the doors tight and burn it in the room. You can also try dry sage. Another thing you can do is to wipe everything with methylated spirit or IPA, I used to use it when my cat was weeing everywhere, it helps to remove the enzymes in the wee.

Smells generally embed themselves into fabric, so either wash/ get rid of everything that is fabric. Also, have another look around to see if there's anything has been left behind.

Edited: I would dump the mattress, too.

Oooh yes, do this first. I remember reading about the swabs from inside someone's belly button bringing a new antibiotic to light! Fascinating stuff.

According to a pest exterminator 'that ain't a mouse!' Mice are so small they don't decompose and smell

The one in my small wardrobe did !

Can you get someone else to sniff test the room? I wonder if you've become accustomed to that room smelling and now it's stuck in your nose as it were?

Try putting surgical spirit (you can buy it at the chemist and prob amazon) in a spray bottle and spray down the whole room.

It works well for me on 2nd hand furniture I restore to get impeded smells out or for vintage leather jackets etc.

It will stink but the smell goes away v quickly.

Also good for stinky shoes or spraying on sports equipment that has embedded bo smells before washing.

Bicarb on the mattess

Something (or someone) is still in there.

Fire. Burn everything.

Are there spotlights in the room, or anything else where he could have hidden something smelly? He's more likely to have done that than leave anything under floorboards.