We bought this house in 2022. Let me tell you.. it needed a lot of work. Still does, actually. That’s probably why we got such a good deal on it.
We started easy. Right after we moved in we started tearing up the landscaping. It was out of control. Weeds everywhere. Took forever.
We had to do so much cleaning. This place was so gross. The previous owners left it wrecked. Crayon drawings on the walls, holes everywhere, trash in the basement, half finished woodworking projects… you name it. The whole place smelled like old, musty trash.
We hit it hard with the clorox and Murphy’s oil and soon it started to feel a lot fresher. We painted the living room and bedrooms and the whole place started to shine.
We just couldn’t get rid of the smell. At least not in the bathroom.
At first, I just thought my husband was taking nasty poops in there, and I yelled at him for not spraying any air freshener or opening a window.
But then when I was there alone I noticed how the aroma lingered in that one room. It smelled like rotten eggs.
The bathroom has been a problem the whole time we’ve lived here. Fixed the faucet with no pressure? Now we have a slow drain. Ripped up moldy linoleum? Rotten floorboards underneath. Not to mention the sad, stained tub, hideous tile, and large brown stain on the ceiling.
No matter what improvements we made, something went wrong.
I started to notice other weird things around the house. Small things, but still strange enough to remember.
Clocks displaying the wrong time.
Ceiling fans randomly turning on.
Doors opening on their own.
Things not where we left them.
Food rotting too quickly in the fridge, or becoming frozen.
And of course, that dumb rotten egg smell in the bathroom.
I finally got fed up with it and decided to make the ugly bathroom as bearable as I could with a fresh coat of paint. And true, it did make it look a lot better. But the ceiling stain was very difficult to cover. No matter how much I rolled crisp white paint on that spot, it was still visible. I finally gave up and decided to do another coat the next day.
But the following morning the stain was back.
I gave it another coat. I could still smell that rotten egg smell, even over the paint fumes.
The next day I was frustrated to see the brown stain again, as dark and ugly as ever.
Here’s the thing. I had my husband check the roof, and there’s no damage up there, nothing that would indicate a leak.
If the stain isn’t coming from a roof leak, I thought maybe it could be in the attic. The access is tiny and my husband can’t fit through- so I’m the one who had to check it out.
I finally decided to brave it and brought the ladder inside. I popped the cover off and looked around.
It’s hard to say exactly what’s up there. It was very dark. My cell phone flashlight is only so bright.
I did see a lot of rotten insulation, and a few dead rats. Gross.
And right over the bathroom something dark and lumpy. Like a trash bag maybe?
Anyway, I was too creeped out to actually go look at it, and it stank up there, so I shut the access panel and climbed down. At least I know where the smell is coming from now.
I don’t want to go back up there.. I’m scared of what could be in that bag. Also rats.
So if anyone could recommend a good paint to cover the stain, or some good air fresheners, that would be great. Thanks.