getting rid of a rank smell in my living room before my nanny leaves in disgust.....

[margoandjerry]

Help. There is a really horrible smell (like off milk or cheese) in my living room which seems to be coming out of my storage heater....My nanny is looking at me as though I am Waynetta Slob and I think she secretly believes I store my cheese board in there.

My fear is that a mouse is decomposing in there (yes we have mice too but honestly, my flat is quite clean, really) but then I imagine that would not smell cheesy but rotten mousey.

I can't dismantle it but I'm wondering what else I can do. I keep spraying it with room spray (a gift - I hate that stuff - smells as disgusting as what you are trying to cover) but is there a product that absorbs smells instead of covering them? Anyone care to identify the cause?

Help me clean ladies

PS what is FLY?

If it is a mouse it might smell for ages ( sorry - we have them too!) I think that neutradol says it absorbs smell but i'm not sure.
hope it helps

You can't go on covering up the smell of a dead mouse. You have to dismantle the sorage heater and remove the offending item.

Yes you cant cover up a problem you must investigate to see what it is or it wont go away.

P.S I tried those nutridol thingies and they were good but they are a chemical in the air which cant be a good thing.

Just tell your nanny the truth! At least then she won't think it's your feet or something!

Get her to help you take the front off the storage heater, and then brace yourself for whatever it is! Sure one of your dc's hasn't been "posting" cheese and crackers through the vents?

There's nothing much in a storage heater apart from bricks and the heating element! I've taken them apart in my time!

Switch off at the mains, and unplug, if possible.

Unscrew visible screws, and you'll see what the problem is, if it's in there.

Are you sure there isn't a lost cheese sandwich somewhere, or a dried up puddle of spilt milk?

I use bicarb of soda - you can sprinkle it over everywhere carpets/upholstery etc and then leave it a little (not too long) and then hoover it up. The bicarb absorbs the smell, and you can also leave an open pot of the stuff in the room itself and it can work in absorbing the smell in the air. Don't leave it too long after you have sprinkled it around (about 5/10 minutes) as on occasion when I have been over enthusiastic and a bit heavy handed with it, it has left a pale stain on the carpet. I have quite pale carpets though, and I haven't tried it on any dark carpets,so don't know how it works on that.

In america there is a website called flylady.net and its all about creating routines to keep your house tidy.. doing things on certain days and certain ways. And that, is FLY.

She's only 7 months so too young for posting - but that's a new thing for me to worry about a few months hence!

I tried to take the front off last night but I can't do it so it will mean getting a man in and I was trying to avoid that as it will be 80 quid minimum...

I've told her it could be a mouse but I'm not sure because it doesn't smell right...it definitely smells off milky (and yes I thought it might be my feet at first LOL).

Ugh. I need a housekeeper as well as a nanny. Just staff, generally.

Sounds suspiciously like baby sick and/or spilt bottle down the back of the heater...

I had to take the front off one of my storage heaters when I was getting a bad smell from it. Inside i found several jigsaw pieces which were burning, a load of crisps, and some mini cheddars
I have a six year old which explains that though!
Why can't you get into yours? Can you not undo the screws? Opening it and getting to the cause of the smell is definitely the best way to deal with it.

we have a mystery revolting smell in the playroom

In all seriouseness i seriously believe it is a gohst in there

the smell is gross... comes and goes, can be very strong or nothing at all... been going on for about 1 month / 6 weeks now.

The carpet has been lifted and the floor boards lifted then checked under... the fire has been reomoved and the chimney checked... the carpet has been shampooed... all the toys have been cleaned... and we CANT get rid of it

Im hoping by the winter it will stop smelling

also the smell moves around the room!

Are you sure it isn't your dh doing sneaky trumps then not owning up every time you go in?

NannyL - this is my fear - it's a mystery smell and I will spend loads of money and never find the source. Also my mum's car had this mystery smell too - just appeared one day and won't go despite extreme car valeting measures.

Don't know why I couldn't get the front off - I've seen the engineer do it and I took all the screws out but it wouldn't budge. There must be a knack (I have massive storage heaters so maybe they are a bit heavy to shift?)

Anyway, my nanny's getting her husband up tomorrow to have a look

tbh I think her sense of smell is stronger than mine - I mean I occasionally get a whiff of it but she said she had to go out all day because it was so foul...yet I'm sitting here quite happily in the very same room.

Gonna try the bicarb trick though. By the way, those of you who use bicarb for cleaning and stuff - where do you get sensible quantities of the stuff? I presume if you use it for more than just the odd cake you need more than just those doll-sized tubs you get in the supermarket.

mayne the nanny's pregnant?

the mildest odour would have me gagging when pregnant

happened to see big bags of bicarb with the cleaning stuff in the pound shop today...

Im not pregnant btw lol

my nanny friends and the cleaner (and both my bosses and the children) smell it too!

pregnant

That makes a lot of sense - I remember having to walk out of a poncy shop even before I knew I was pg because the joss sticks were overwhelming...

I really, really hope not...