Rotting body under the floorboards

Wordsmith

If it is a rat and it has been poisoned, I am still in the same situation - that of having a smell that needs to be investigated.

The tenant took off the skirting and took up a tiny bit of the floor (I am told), but found nothing and so the agent is asking for my go-ahead to take up the rest of the floor. The tenant also said that in taking up a bit of the floor they can see the floorboards underneath are rotting from woodworm. So ... it looks like the floor all up, replacement boards and woodworm treatment and then new flooring. And I haven't yet had the bill (around £1000) for a roof repair. OMG! I can see they are going to ask for a reduction in rent for the inconvenience, too. The insurance company aren't interested if it's a rotting rodent.

Gingernutmeg

My grandparents had a similar problem and they got the local pest controller out. He used some super-strong deodorising spray and it got rid of the issue. I've no idea what it was called but it might be worth calling a few pest controllers and seeing if they can do anything similar, before you remove the floor or skirting.

lostinrates

How did the rodent get there?

One of the frequent conversations in our village is ''the smell'' of dead rodents. For us its things the cats bring in, our neighbours have a vent that rabbits can get in to and die. Better sealing of our bneigbours vent grill would solve their problem, for us the cats are not going to stop hunting.

The smell is DISCUSTING rendering the room un usable for the duration of the rot. But, and I recognise how horrid this sounds to...well...everyone....once the rotting stage is over, the smell goes too. Sometimes, the rot finished before we've beenable to find the poor dead mouse or shrew (this is a cottage with holes and nooks and crannies, though, not a filthy normal house)

ailuro2

you can normally get under the floor from other rooms in the house too, so your laminate may survive, and the hall carpet, for example, could be taken up instead, then relaid.

wilt_2

Just a thought. When I moved into my new house last year the smell in the living room was unbearable but we hadnt noticed it when we had looked around. It smelt like something had died. After weeks of wondering what to do, looking about etc, someone noticed that it only got really bad when we had the lights on. It turned out to be the ceiling light casing(don't know if that's the right term) We called an electrician who replaced it and said it is a REALLY common problem. May be worth investigating first.

Suzy_M

Tenant found traces of woodworm? -As an indication of the general condition of the house timbers could the smell be from rotting timbers.

Wordsmith

Thank you everyone for your responses. I feel that I should get someone in to investigate a bit further, especially if it isn't even a corpse under the floorboards. The smell coming from, e.g. the ceiling or rotting timbers are interesting thoughts. I don't know who to call, though. What sort of person would investigate such things? A pest control person won't be interested in anything other than rodents, an electrician will only be interested in the electrics ... what trade can I look up in the Yellow Pages that might give an all-round view.

Also, how critical is it that I get the woodworm sorted out immediately (that is, the floor will have to be taken up anyway if the answer is now)? Obviously, I am not going to leave it forever now the problem has been found, but how quickly do the little critters do their damage - are we talking, weeks, months, years?

GDB2222

I'd get a local builder to make a trap in the floor and have a good look underneath. The trap can be in the hall, and unless he's a big builder he can just crawl under the lounge. Unless the woodworm is serious, I'd just spray all the timbers and keep your fingers crossed.

In medieval times, if a house got dry rot, they just pulled it down and burned the remains. Nowadays we have chemical treatments, so less drastic action is all that's needed.

Debt_Free_Chick

If it is a dead rat, you can bet your life there are more rats around. I'd just call out pest control - the LA should be able to recommend someone, but I'd ask the LA to check the cost against the council's charge for this service. Often, the council is cheaper (in my authority, it's free!). A decent pest control officer knows the tell-tale signs that rats have. First off, there will be a run to and from the property; there will be !!!!!! and faeces; and he'll know what rats look for in a good home e.g. ready supply of food & water.

I think you MUST get a pest control officer out to confirm that there are rats present and then put the poison down.

The tenants having to with a dead rat (if it is) is easy - dealing with an ongoing infestation is a bloody nightmare :eek:

To be honest, if you do nothing about a dead rat, the smell will eventually go away, once nature has completed the decomposing process. I'm not suggesting you tell the tenants to put up with it, but not taking up the floor is an option. Not getting the property checked for other rats is definitely not an option.

If the PCO can find no evidence of rats/mice other vermin/pests, then you can explore other options for the source of the smell.

tomarola

Wordsmith wrote: »

I haven't checked the smell myself as I live 600 miles away. The tenants have been very good in the past and I don't doubt their honesty, I just wondered if there was a less drastic way around the problem.

I would make a personal visit and see for yourself, sounds like someone wants new floorboards to me.