[Lintu]

Hi everyone,

We were looking at a house today that we really liked, but noticed that there was a dehumidifier running (and it was running when I saw it the first time on Sunday, too). My husband felt there was a bit of a musty smell, too. Is this the norm for finished basement around here, or is it a red flag kind of issue? I've never had a finished basement and grew up in a place with no basements at all, so I don't have experience to pull from.

Thanks in advance!

[Stylo]

All basements get damp in this area. It's a matter of how much. You can look for water stains, mold, etc. which should tell a more complete picture. The musty smell is not a good sign.

[Lintu]

Really? Our basement has never been damp that I am aware of. It's not finished, though.

[NewJeffCT]

a lot of basements can get musty if you don't run a dehumidifier. A good home inspector can probably tell you better if it's a concern, though. Most likely, it is not. Sometimes, if the dehumidifier has been off for a while, it will need to be run for several days to get rid of the musty smell.

Our current basement is a finished walk-out and has no mustiness whatsoever. No need to run a dehumidifier ever so far.

Our previous two basements were not finished, and one was a walk-out, and we needed to run a dehumidifier to keep the air from getting damp (and then musty)

The basement of my first home was finished as well, but I also needed to run a dehumidifier there to keep the mustiness out.

[pickledpainter]

Gotta watch out what is lurking behind that sheetrock. Mold will kill financing now faster than crap through a goose. Banks don't want to hear about possible mold remediation a year down the road.....

[jesse_f]

If you can, peel up a piece of the carpet and see if there's any mold or mildew there.

[marketa]

yes! make sure your inspector REALLY looks out for moisture! When we were getting our house, our inspector said that it probably gets damp in the summer, and we'll need a humidifier. he also said that it was good the house came with a sump pump. We bought our house in the winter. Then spring came and one night all the snow melted; we went downstairs and had to wear rubber boots; the water was so high! we had to open the basement door and let the water leave; apparently the pump was too small for that much water. I am mad that the inspector didn't really tell us how bad it can get. there were no water marks on the wall, nothing; it just smelled funny. to this day i wonder if the inspector wasn't honest with us. i even wonder if there is any way he can be held responsible, but i doubt it.

[marketa]

also, some of my friends were looking at houses too, and one of them said that two of the houses they were ready to make an offer for ended up getting wet during storms. I guess it happens a lot in Connecticut, especially the older houses.

[clutchrider]

There are a good amount of homes that deal with water in the state but plenty that can be done to fight it and keep your basement dry.

Our home has a partially finished basement on one side and the other is concrete still. I run the dehumidifier in the finished section during the summer (separated by doors to the other side) just to keep the humidity down, no issues with musty smells. In the cooler months you should definitely not have to run one to keep the basement dry and if it has an odor to it, chances are it has or had water damage or still water somewhere causing the odor.

My brother and father both have sump pumps in their basements and have never had a drop since installing them. They are a great way to keep a basement dry and free from problems, but be sure you have a generator because they do need power to run.

I developed a leak along a foundation crack that was patched years prior to us living here. I still need to have it cleaned and resealed but I fought it from the outside at first by fixing the grade around the home so water would run away from the home and not puddle up. That combined with burying my downspouts has left me with no issues from this one spot for many months now.

[Lalalally]

Originally Posted by marketa

also, some of my friends were looking at houses too, and one of them said that two of the houses they were ready to make an offer for ended up getting wet during storms. I guess it happens a lot in Connecticut, especially the older houses.

I think it has more to do with other issues besides age, such as water table level and grading. There are some things you can do to prevent it though -- our first house had an unfinished basement and would get wet spots during extreme weather when we first moved in (and the spots were surprisingly not at all where you would expect -- they were smack in the middle, not near the edges or walls). My husband re-routed the downspouts though, and after that we had no issues. We never did finish the room off though for two reasons: One, the fact that it could get wet again was always in the back of my mind; and two, the ceilings were low, and so it was a little weird.
The house that we're in now is of the same era, only about 10 years newer than the first. The basement in this house though is bone dry and it is finished (just to rec room standards though -- i.e. not finished as nicely as the rest of the house is) and it serves as a perfect playroom, with normal 8' high ceilings. It's not a walk-out basement though, and so there is a slight mustiness/stale air smell to it to me. My husband says he can't smell anything, but I do. Nothing horrible, and nothing that air freshener can't handle, but when we no longer need it as a playroom and maybe want to start using it for ourselves, I would definitely invest in one of those air exchange units (I'm not exactly sure what they're called, but they bring in and move fresh air around).
I honestly wouldn't say wet basements are the norm around here -- sure they're not uncommon or unusual, but I know more people who don't have issues, than who do.