Reply #19: That 'rotting produce' smell ....... [View All]

[Stinky The Clown]

... is a serious issue in older buildings or buildings that have been occuied by a restaurant or food store for a long time.

There's actually little or nothing that might be fundamentally wrong with the place. The problem happens when concrete gets wet with food ... mmm .... 'ooze' - this is the natural drippings that any type of food product gives off. It might be as benign as the condensation on the carboard box holding a head of lettuce or the nastier sounding thick liquid from a decaying orange or lemon that rolled off a cart and into some place where it went unoticed.

Over time, all these benign spills build up to a cumulative effect. Food 'ooze' is generally quite acidic. Concrete is deteriorated by acid. The ooze breaks the surface of the concrete and the organic material finds its way into the interior of the concrete. In a place where food is routinely handled, that concrete never quite dries out and the smell is the result. Even with a perfectly clean surface and with a perfectly safe food handling environment, the smell remains.

Places with wood floors are similarly prone, but the wood tends to mitigate things just a bit. Places with concrete floors (like grocery store back rooms) are the worst.

It is not unlike curtains that have hung for years in a house that has smokers. Even after the dry cleaner has his way with them, the curtains still have a smoke smell.