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1. 
   patrick_fairley | Aug 01, 2001 05:08pm | #1

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   We recently doubled the size of our house here on the shore of Lake Erie. The problem is a moisture smell in the old part of the house. We didn't touch some areas of the exterior siding (cedar) and these areas of the house (inside) retain a musty smell, like an old cottage that has been closed up. The smell is intensified when it rains, perhaps because we close the windows and the fresh air circulation is reduced. The north and west sides are frequently subject to driving rains; the south side, much less so, but the smell is equally prominent all around. Even when it's not apparent on entering a room or closet, you can detect it by sniffing right at the inside plaster.
   We removed the old siding around a window on the north side and found the sheathing to be a dark brown compressed paper board about 5/8" thick (the house is 1940's), bone dry, with some old water stains in places and smelling intensely of the musty odor. There was no mold and no dry rot. There was no original insulation (we had cellulose blown in when we did the addition). The smell was gone in that area for about 6 months - now it's back!!
   My long-winded question is that I'm uneasy to replace all the old siding and sheathing if I'll find later that the smell is impregnated into the plaster or sheathing or coming from something else. Doing this is a $15k+ job which would be disastrous to waste. The builder shares these concerns and isn't sure what to do. The architect says he doesn't believe the plaster or studs would retain the odor. The painter says he'll spray the back of the plaster and the studs with a bleach solution once the walls are open from the outside. I think everyone is guessing.
   Anyone with ideas or previous similar troubles? thanks