I'm going back to Wisconsin in a couple weeks to take care of my mom's house and sell it. She had a stroke in September, was taken to the hospital and I brought her home in October. We briefly went by the house to get a few things before we left. She had no running water or toilet. She has an outhouse and carried the buckets out to it. Her last bucket is still sitting by the bed. The whole house was saturated with the smell already. I'm buying the largest window fan I can find. Some ideas so far, wintergreen oil on your lip or a mask, filter mask with some kind of filter for fumes. Charcoal? I'll be spending a day or two at the laundromat, too. The clothes I brought back then had to be washed three times to get the smell out. I'll need to be in the house for a few days to get out family valuables. I'm not thoroughly cleaning the house, it will be sold as-is. What is the best way to make the house bearable for a few days? Most importantly, what kind of respirator should I get? I found many references here but no mention on what kind.
A dab of vics vapor rub in your mask. Run through and i do mean run open all windows and get out. Then make another run to get fan going to suck air out. Grab the bucket of nastyness on the way out. And let house vent. I duggest not eating before going in. The masks i like are the soft ones homedepot has. They seal against your face better then other. And have the vented front for breathing out. After aired out ide bomb it. They have foggers at janitorial supply stores that are similar to bug bombs. It fills the house with antimicorbials and a pleasent scent. But if your going to stay. You will still be smelling it. Ide pick a room to cleanse and sleep in. Or get a hotel room for the sake of your nose.
I have a 3M respirator with 6001 filters, for "organic vapors", probably charcoal, I guess. Someone also suggested Biocide "Room Shocker", containing chlorine dioxide. Amazon also suggested "Bad Air Sponge", but no mention of what is in it.
Think the one i used was noble sterimist. Ill find out. We used it on a rental that had bed odor still after cleaning. And after dumping money to get it ready for rent. We wanted something just good enough. That did the trick. Just dont enter the fog lol. It hurts to breath in.
You want a respirator with cartridges for "Organic Vapors." These are usually coded a magenta color. The cartridges should be changed after every 8 hours of use. Any time air can pass through them they are being "used." SO), seal them up in a Zip Lock style bag when not in use to extend the time they can be used. North, Willson, 3M, are some of the quality brands.
If you have air mover just find a table thats window height and close window on mouth of air mover. Stuff some blankets or something around window to seal it. That should give you better air flow then any store bought box fan. Ok other fogger we used was called Phenomenal
Good call. Most people dont know that about filter cartridges. They assume they only used it for a little bit. Looks clean so they put it away to use again a month later.
HEPA. I've cleaned carpets only a few months , however , I was an abatement supervisor where my bosses didn't care about regulation. It's important. Just use, not so cheap HEPA nosal n mouth. I laugh because we are all dying slowly it's natural. To increase the speed is stupid and uninformed
You'll want a respirator with disposable cartridges, the Organic Vapor cartridges. The home depot sells 3m respirators and the cartridges, I think its like $30 for respirator and one or 2 sets of filters. I use a little vicks vapor rub under the nose for bad odor.
You might even want to look into some disposable coveralls if you are goin to be working in there with that smell for a while otherwise you might come out smelling like that too.
An inexpensive 1/2 face respirator. There are others that cover the full face, longer lasting and more comfortable, but price will be around $150. This one is $14 and suitable for your short term need - https://interlinksupply.com/index.php?item_num=AX90
A HEPA filter is definitely desired for asbestos or similar projects where the contamination is in the form of particles. But in this situation, the need is to control vapor. HEPA would not be helpful with the odors. A particle filter can be added to the organic vapor cartridge if you feel there are harmful particles in the air that you want to filter out.
And if you can smell it something is wrong, usually you haven't fitted the mask properly. I've been doing sewerage based floods and 'accident' clean ups on carpet for years and have never smelled a thing.
First and foremost, I'm so sorry you're having to be the one to clean this up. It's especially difficult to do for someone you love, and having been through it with my own mom, I know how much it breaks your heart. My thoughts and prayers are with you. As noted above, OV/AG cartridges in a half-face respirator will be your best PPE for the odor. 3M brand are usually available just about anywhere you go, including hardware stores. Open windows, fresh air flow, and charcoal air filters will help with the airborne odor too. There are also Vaportek cartridges and membranes that, while expensive, are extremely effective. Heat and moisture make odor more prominent, so keeping the house as cool and dry as possible will help. Remove as many sources as possible, and any valuables that need help can be tackled with thorough surface cleaning, oxidizers, Hydrocide, and maybe hydroxyl or ozone depending on the situation. Chlorine dioxide can also be gassed through the home but it must be vacant when you do so and you must air it out thoroughly afterward. I don't think I need to tell you to take extreme precautions when handling any waste matter. Just because we love someone isn't a good reason to not protect ourselves. In the time it's been sitting there, many pathogenic coliforms have probably been multiplying rapidly, and you must take every possible step to prevent cross-contamination.