Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Musty Detached Garage

I have a detached 28 x 24 garage, no heat, no ac. It is humid, musty, everything in it smells like moldy dirt and leaves.

A while ago there was a thread about air cleaners a guy could run to clean the air and eliminate the musty smell. Can't find it.

Please give me options that have worked for others. I am going to buy something in the next few days.

Thanks....

Hard to say.


What about getting rid of the moisture instead?

Don't recall the thread, but I would think a couple of ceiling fans might fix it

https://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-FV...;hvtargid=pla-4584207590919615&psc=1

Would something like this work?

If it’s reasonably sealed get a dehumidifier and run the drain hose outside. I’ve used one in a 12x17 concrete floor basement room and in a +/- 30x20 crawl space with sheet plastic vapor barrier that sloped from about 2 ft to 5 ft. Made a big difference.

I think you’re referring to the thread about opening windows or doors then plugging up a box fan.

Or something like this. Cut one hole for this and another for fresh air intake.

https://www.globalindustrial.com/p/...adlclid=9832e83283f510b030e38ca73abe3507

Far easier.

Musty = moisture / mold
Forced air, ventilation, dehumidifier, weatherproof.
Gotta dry it out !
Kill mold

Problem should solve itself, may look into chlorine dioxide for after treatment, very effective !!

The short term solution is an ozone generator, usually under $100. Close the place up, let the generator run for an hour or two, let it sit for another hour, and then open it up and let it air for an hour before you go in.

In the long term, it probably needs ventilation.

As mentioned by others here, eliminate the source.

But - if you want to get rid of the existing smells that have permeated the space, get an ozonizer.

I bought a cheapy for about 85 bucks on Amazon, and it has worked wonders eliminating odors in a cabin I'm renovating. Years and years of cat piss, mouse turds, and plain old messy people living there. Greasy kitchen with no exhaust fan, etc. etc.

It took several cycles, but the smells are completely gonzo.

Used car dealers utilize these to get rid of cigarette smoke odors in upholstery.

Come on guys tell me what I want to hear. Lol. Definitely going to run a dehumidifier. I have that already and I know it would help. Cleaning the damn thing wouldn't hurt.

Thought some guys had run 'air purifiers' that sealed the deal.

The dehumidifier will run a looooooong time when first started. Set it to 30% humidity or so and wait till it stops. It’s pretty amazing how much water gets pulled out of the air and surroundings. For that reason the little catch bucket that is inside the DH is worthless.

https://www.amazon.com/Purisystems-Filtration-PuriCare-Woodworking-Collector/dp/B09MK3GLRC/ref=mp_s_a_1_7_sspa?keywords=air+filter+systems+for+garage&qid=1687534596&sr=8-7-spons&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.f5122f16-c3e8-4386-bf32-63e904010ad0&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfbXRm&psc=1

Might try something like this and a dehumidifier.

The smell is pretty bad and anything in it absorbs the smell very easily.

Me, I'd open it all up, and run a big fan.

Thanks. Kind of what I am thinking. This with a dehumidifier.

My link did not work. Amazon has lots of options, cheap to not so cheap. Maybe start out cheap see what works.

That's not going to do anything for the smell, that's to remove "dust, hard particles, etc"
An Ozone machine may work, but you would have to seal the garage, and it would run for days !
Fire restoration, and remediation companies know to kill the source. Look into SAFRAX for example.
After garage is completely dry, and clean,
Set a few buckets of water in garage, add CD and leave. wait a day, air out, repeat if necessary.

After 10 years working with Ozone I wouldn’t have that sh*t anywhere around the house. More downside than upside.

I'd start with putting gable vents in if they aren't present. If ya don't get the place breathing the mustiness will be back.