There are many different smells in our homes that can cause concern, especially if you cannot identify where they are coming from. Odors can mean several different things in a home, some of which may need to be addressed quickly, while others are less concerning.
With concerns of indoor air quality and associated health issues increasing, identifying odors and addressing them properly is important. In this article, we will discuss carbon monoxide in the home as well as a nail polish type odor.
What Does Carbon Monoxide Smell Like?
Carbon monoxide does not have an odor. This means you cannot smell carbon monoxide. If you smell an odor in your home, such as nail polish, it’s not carbon monoxide.
Carbon monoxide is an odorless and tasteless gas, so you cannot detect it without a carbon monoxide detector. Carbon monoxide can lead to serious health problems and can kill you if exposed to high enough concentrations for too long. For this reason, it’s extremely important for all homes to have properly functioning carbon monoxide detectors.
In fact, in the United States, nearly all states have passed legislation requiring homes to have carbon monoxide detectors.
Carbon monoxide in the home is generally the result of improper burning of a fuel, such as natural gas. This becomes especially problematic without proper ventilation. Some sources include fuel used in a gas stove, ovens, water heaters, dryers, and other gas appliances. If you believe there could be a carbon monoxide leak in your home, you should get out immediately and call emergency services as quickly as possible.
According to the CDC, the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning include some flu-like symptoms, such as headache, dizziness, weakness, upset stomach, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion.
Regardless, if you are smelling a nail polish type odor in your home, you’ll have to look elsewhere.
What Causes Nail Polish Odors In A Home?
A few reasons your home smells like nail polish could be a natural gas leak, chemicals, HVAC issues, faulty appliances, and sewer gas. Some of the chemical ingredients in nail polish are volatile organic compounds (VOCs) or solvents, such as ethyl acetate and toluene. These chemicals evaporate easily, leaving a “nail polish” type odor behind.
Many of the conventional consumer products we use in our homes contain the same or similar smelling chemicals.
Everyone interprets smell a bit differently, so what may smell one way to you could smell differently to someone else. On a related note, some people also confuse the odor of nail polish and nail polish remover. Nail polish remover, often acetone, has a stronger smell than nail polish.
Non-acetone nail polish removers often contain some of the same ingredients as nail polish. This could be why some people confuse the smell of nail polish and nail polish remover.
To help detect and track down odors, especially those with a nail polish smell, you may want to use an air quality monitor that can detect VOCs.
Natural Gas Leak
Natural gas is also an odorless gas. This means a natural gas leak can go undetected and cause major safety issues. For this reason, a substance known as Mercaptan can be added to natural gas to give it a smell. Such additives give natural gas a rotten egg smell, that many believe smells like nail polish.
Sewer Gas
Some believe nail polish smells like sewer gas. Sewer gas builds up in sewage systems and can make its way into your home if its not properly contained or vented. This usually can occur if you have a block in your sewer vent or if there is a crack in your sewage pipes.
Normally, water using devices, such as toilets, sinks, and showers, have a curved pipe attached close to the drain. The curve holds some of the water you wash down the drain, forming a barrier between your sewage system and your home. If there is a crack on the sewer side of this curve, or there is no water in it, sewer gas can leak into your home.
Check and see if there is a stronger smell coming from any of the water using devices in your home.
HVAC Leaks
It’s often claimed that HVAC refrigerant smells like nail polish or nail polish remover. A refrigerant leak in your HVAC system could cause a nail polish or acetone type smells in your home for this reason.
HVAC refrigerant is a fluid that runs through the air conditioning system and is responsible for cooling your home. In the case of a heat pump, refrigerants are used for heating and cooling. Refrigerant can leak out of your HVAC system or heat pump system.
You will likely notice that your system is less able to maintain the room temperature in your home. If this is the case, you should contact an HVAC technician. To prevent this from happening in the first place, ensure regular maintenance of your system.
Faulty Electric Appliances and Devices
When electric appliances overheat, they can emit odors that some believe smell like nail polish. This is especially true if they appliances use chemicals on their circuit boards similar to the ones found in nail polish.
Cleaning Products
One potentially overlooked source of a nail polish odor is cleaning chemicals. Many conventional cleaning products contain a range of solvents, fragrances, and alcohol that can smell like nail polish. These cleaning products typically have a strong odor that many find overpowering.
We swapped most of our cleaning products out for a more “natural” cleaning product. It not only has far less potent odors, but also can help deodorize your home. Since it uses only a few ingredients and does not contain solvents, fragrances, alcohol, propellants, or chemicals to hold the solution in the air, its also a better option for those with chemical sensitivities.
It’s also better for the planet and cheaper than many other cleaning products.
Other Smells
There are many other things that could potentially smell like nail polish. This is especially true if they contain similar VOCs and other substances found in nail polish. Some other smells that may smell similar to nail polish are gasoline, caulk, sealants, paints, furniture, varnish, flooring materials, and nearby construction.
Of course, the smell could be the smell of nail polish itself. The smell of nail polish can linger in the air. It’s also possible someone else used nail polish recently or didn’t properly close the cap. If nail polish spills and is not properly cleaned, it can leave a lingering odor that is difficult to find.
How Can I Eliminate A Nail Polish Smell In My Home?
The best way to remove the smell of nail polish in your home is to remove the source. There are several different reasons why your home could smell like nail polish, but they are all best removed by removing the source.
Removing sources of odors is something you may want to consider doing quickly, as each odor could have potential health impacts, especially for sensitive groups, such as pregnant women, young children, and elderly people.
If you have not yet found the source, or the nail polish odor continues to linger in your home after removing a potential source of odor there are a few things you could try.
You may want to open windows to bring in fresh air. If opening a window is not is not possible, or not helpful, you could try running your air conditioner. You could also try running an air purifier or an air scrubber.
Air purifiers and air scrubbers both often have charcoal filters to help remove the volatile organic compounds that can cause unpleasant odors. While air scrubbers are a less common household item, they are more likely to have a charcoal filter than an air purifier. Air scrubbers also typically filter much larger volumes of air, such as an entire house, while air purifiers are more likely to only be sufficient for a single room.
You could also use air freshener, but this is not recommended as they can decrease the air quality in your home. They are also a less sustainable option than filtration.
Covering or removing odors also doesn’t address the root cause of the smell. Depending on the source of the smell this could potentially be dangerous. For this reason, its best to eliminate the source of the nail polish type smell. Then, use methods such as opening windows or doors, air purifiers or air scrubbers, or eco-friendly cleaning products and reusable charcoal deodorizers to eliminate lingering odors.