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Old 04-12-2021, 10:31 AM   #1
jacksonbgood47
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Smell inside 2020 Cougar

Has anyone experienced a faint nauseating smell inside their unit? Maybe propane but too slight to set off propane detector.
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Old 04-12-2021, 10:40 AM   #2
chuckster57
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What is nauseating to one may be a pleasant bouquet to another. There are a myriad of things that can make an RV smell especially when it’s new. There are several different ways of dealing with it too. Open windows, numerous different air fresheners, etc. as long as your having LP leaks or mold issues, I would keep it aired out.
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Old 04-12-2021, 11:26 AM   #3
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To me, propane always smells like garlic, which I find anything but nauseating.

In a new rig, you could be smelling outgassing from the wood or flooring, various adhesives, the wallpaper paste, the vinyl or leather seating, pretty much anything. I've known people who are put off by "new car smell."

If it's a brand new rig, you probably don't have a mold problem. On the other hand, if your blackwater connections are faulty, this is exactly when you'd start encountering that.

Or possibly even your gray water connections? To me, gray water has always had that same garlicky smell (maybe it's just the way DW cooks, but still).
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Old 04-12-2021, 01:21 PM   #4
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Since my wife saw a mouse in our trailer many months ago she douses it with essential oil spray and that is truly nauseating. I have mouse bait out and use a couple of those plug in ultrasonic mouse gizmos (no comments needed, wife insisted all anti-rodent techniques be employed). Some folks smell their black tank. Some formaldahyde (sp?) may be used in some of the interior stuff. You may have a dead mouse (yes rat poison does work); a million reasons for a stink. Also never though propane smelled like garlic. That is a new one. I think propane stink smells like propane stink.
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Old 04-12-2021, 06:49 PM   #5
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Walk in when my Lab had table scraps and it will redefine your perception of nauseating....
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Old 04-12-2021, 07:52 PM   #6
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Since my wife saw a mouse in our trailer many months ago she douses it with essential oil spray and that is truly nauseating. I have mouse bait out and use a couple of those plug in ultrasonic mouse gizmos (no comments needed, wife insisted all anti-rodent techniques be employed). Some folks smell their black tank. Some formaldahyde (sp?) may be used in some of the interior stuff. You may have a dead mouse (yes rat poison does work); a million reasons for a stink. Also never though propane smelled like garlic. That is a new one. I think propane stink smells like propane stink.
LOL you mean these?
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Old 04-12-2021, 08:14 PM   #7
wiredgeorge
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LOL you mean these?

Our gizmos are "Brison" brand. I have doubts if they do anything but it can't hurt I guess.
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Old 04-12-2021, 08:42 PM   #8
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Our gizmos are "Brison" brand. I have doubts if they do anything but it can't hurt I guess.
I have had mice crap right under ours in the basement. Wife insists on using them still. I sympathize with you.
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Old 04-13-2021, 09:58 AM   #9
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I have had mice crap right under ours in the basement. Wife insists on using them still. I sympathize with you.

Our vacation home in the mountains stayed unoccupied for months at a time. We had a plethora of insects, rodents etc. that got in the house or in the roof. I tried most everything including the electronic repellers. Ended up with about 8 of them throughout the house and one "specialized" one - and it actually seemed to work. It was a larger type unit that stood alone. It plugged into an outlet but sat on a countertop (or on top of the fireplace in our case). It had selectors to choose between small insects/spiders, bats, rodents etc. It worked the best of them all until we got puppy. The setting for rodents (wood rats) drove her crazy so we had to stop using it. Here is a link to what I had in the event anyone is interested in seeing if it works for them;

https://homeshielders.com/products/t...iABEgLNUvD_BwE
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Old 04-13-2021, 10:20 AM   #10
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This is the manual for your rig, https://keystone-rv-dealer-app.cdn.p...al_revised.pdf ,and starting on page 13, it discusses air quality issues in these RVs, and on page 16 it talks about formaldehyde, which is in many of the materials inside your trailer, and this chemical outgasses causing a nasty odor, and about the only thing you can do about it is ventilation, and eventually it will dissipate to the point you will not smell it anymore.
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Old 04-19-2021, 06:46 AM   #11
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Check if it's the smell of propane by releasing a tiny amount of propane from your propane tank and smelling it.

If the source of the smell is biological you need to (1) remove the biological material and (2) treat the affected area with Odoban at the concentrating recommended on the bottle specified for disinfection, not merely scent removal.

If you don't get rid of the source of the problem you will never get rid of the smell.
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Old 04-19-2021, 09:50 AM   #12
jacksonbgood47
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Purchased a flammable gas detector. Checked propane lines under kitchen cabinet. Alarm sounded. I disconnected propane feed line under kitchen slide out and rechecked no alarm. I hooked propane feed line back up and rechecked alarm sounded. Pretty sure there is a slight leak in one of those lines.
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Old 04-19-2021, 12:55 PM   #13
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Purchased a flammable gas detector. Checked propane lines under kitchen cabinet. Alarm sounded. I disconnected propane feed line under kitchen slide out and rechecked no alarm. I hooked propane feed line back up and rechecked alarm sounded. Pretty sure there is a slight leak in one of those lines.
Arm yourself with a spray bottle of very soapy water, locate the connections and give it hell.
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Old 04-22-2021, 07:18 AM   #14
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We had a smell in the front storage compartment of our fifth wheel The smell reminded me of propane or natural gas, but was just different enough that I was sure it was not one of those. It turn out that our battery was gassing. Took the battery out of the compartment and it was obvious that was where the smell came from. New battery, no more smell. Perhaps that is your issue.
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Old 04-22-2021, 07:39 AM   #15
jimp
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Smell Inside 2020 Cougar

Always make sure there is water in all the drain traps under sinks etc. as smells will come through from the holding tanks. Water evaporates from traps if not in use for a while!
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