Hi OzBers, have really not been sure how to tackle this so any input is appreciated.
Some background:
House is a 2-storey terrace, shared walls both sides, a few years old. The affected rooms are at the front of the house, an upstairs bedroom (at least one window usually open) and hallway/laundry beneath it (not usually ventilated unless we leave the front door open, there's a little ventilation fan in the ceiling).
I first noticed the smell in the walk-in wardrobe off the bedroom, opposite the window and where the manhole to the roof area happens to be. The smell was very concentrated in the WIR but it was difficult to pinpoint a source, and there wasn't really any smell in the bedroom itself or near the windows. Since then we've been smelling it downstairs as well as in the bedroom's ensuite, but can never tell where exactly it's coming from. It started out intermittent but lately I think it's pretty constant downstairs, maybe since it's less ventilated there. I also did once smell it outside the front of the house.
It's not a burning smell, more like stale cigarette smoke or as my partner describes it, a dirty bong or ash that's been sitting in water.
We did recently have mould start to develop in the grout in that ensuite shower. Could this be indicative of something like a leak and if so, could that be the cause?
Other theories:
- Smoke coming through the ceiling from neighbours on the side nearest the manhole. They say no-one there smokes but that someone behind us does. We don't smell anything from the backyard though
- Smoke from someone standing or walking past the front of the house. Happens a bit too often and at odd times for that IMO, plus it happens even with windows closed
- Dirty drains. I've been putting some cleaning product in them but no noticeable difference yet.
- Something else with the wiring or our pipes??
i would say either it is a smoking ghost or your teenager is smoking while in the shower and blowing it in the exhaust fan