Phantosmia refers to any smell you detect that isn't actually there. For some people, these odors are pleasant, like freshly baked sweets.
The Varying Smells Of Mold
While the classic pungent mildew smell is among the odor catalog, some molds also release sweet smells, earthy smells, while others can release odors resembling rotting meat.
What can make your bedroom smell bad? Other than your natural body metabolism, increased moisture in the air, poor ventilation, and carpeted floors can make your bedroom smell bad.
While there's a chance a sweet smell, like honey, could just be the scent of chemicals being produced by bacteria in your sinuses, there's also a chance it could be due to an increase of a chemical called ketones.
It could be due to dirty air filters, clogged condensate drain lines, damaged or rusty drain pan, broken condensate pump, or incorrect installation. If you start getting that weird sweet smell in the house, check if your air conditioner leaks.
Urine may smell sweet if it contains extra glucose, a type of sugar. Sweet smelling urine often stems from diabetes, but dehydration, a yeast infection, or a genetic condition known as maple syrup urine disease can also cause it. Urine can reveal a lot about someone's health.
Why does my house smell? A weird smell in a house can come from numerous sources, including appliances, furniture, carpets, fabrics or issues like mold or mildew. Occasionally, odors may be caused by sewer gas, natural gas leaks or animals that have died between walls, in attics or under decks.
Stagnant air — Stagnant air traps airborne particles like dust, mold spores, and even tobacco smoke from your clothes. This is especially true on hot humid days. If you don't have proper ventilation in your room, the air holds on to these pollutants.
Common culprits to watch out for include mold and mildew, dust, dirty laundry, stains and spills, pet accidents and leftover food. Once you determine the source of the smell, dispose of it and clean the area as needed.
Sweet Smell = Coolant Leak
If there is a sweet smell coming from your car, then it's most likely leaking coolant (or antifreeze, for anyone that lives where it gets below freezing). Leaking coolant is a major problem. If your vehicle gets too low on coolant/antifreeze, it will overheat.
An olfactory hallucination (phantosmia) makes you detect smells that aren't really there in your environment. The odors you notice in phantosmia are different from person to person and may be foul or pleasant. You may notice the smells in one or both nostrils.
Benzene Benzene is a colorless liquid with a sweet odor. It evaporates into the air very quickly and dissolves slightly in water. It is flammable and is formed from both natural processes and human activities.
If your breath smells like acetone -- the same fruity scent as nail polish remover -- it may be a sign of high levels of ketones (acids your liver makes) in your blood. It's a problem mainly of type 1 diabetes but also can happen with type 2 if you get a serious condition called diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).
All four types of MSUD have symptoms including: Urine, sweat, or earwax that smells like maple syrup or burnt sugar. (This disorder got its name from this common symptom.) This may not always be present in all types.
Story highlights. Carbon monoxide is a gas that has no odor, color or taste.
A musty or dusty smell is often a sign of mold or mildew, especially in humid or moisture-prone environments like the basement, laundry room, kitchen, or bathroom. Mold and mildew can create severe respiratory problems and can exacerbate allergies and asthma in sensitive individuals.
It's often described as musty and earthy, and may even smell like rotting vegetables or plants. You might notice a musty smell, but not be able to see any mold growing. In this case, you should look for areas that might be exposed to water. Mold needs moisture to grow.
Rotten Egg Odors
Natural gas and propane have a distinctive smell for a reason. For safety purposes, utility companies use an additive called mercaptan that gives colorless and odorless gases a smell that is hard to miss. Most people describe this smell as something like rotten eggs, sewage, or sulfur.
Sweating during sleep is normal, even if you don't usually sweat while awake. Bacteria on the skin that generally remains undetectable with regular washing may begin to break down sweat overnight—resulting in an odor in the bedroom.
Deodorize your stinkiest rooms by placing a mixture of 3-parts water, 10 drops of citrus oil, and 1-part vodka in a decorative bowl. This is especially effective in rooms with strong foot or body odors like mudrooms and laundry rooms.
Blocked Drains
Over time, this stagnant water sitting in the pipes can build up bacteria and produce pungent odors throughout the night. If you notice blockages but don't do anything to remedy the situation early on, you can soon suffer from sewage backup.
Transparent and lacking in color
Transparent, colorless urine could also be a sign of some other health disorders, including diabetes and kidney disease, or from taking diuretic medication.
As to why the dust is sweet, either you have Lead or Powdered Sugar. Although the first option is concerning, I would be deeply concerned with the second.
If your heat exchanger is giving off a brown sugar smell, it may be clogged, cracked, or otherwise broken. You should call your HVAC technician right away if you suspect your heat exchanger is having issues. Leaking heat exchangers can release dangerous gases along with the sugary smell.