What That Stale Smell Is Telling You
The stale smell you notice when you first walk in is real. Olfactory fatigue causes you to stop detecting it within minutes, but the compounds producing the odor are still in the air. It is your home's way of telling you that ventilation is not keeping up with the sources of indoor pollution.
Common contributors include cooking residue that lingers in fabrics and on surfaces, body odor and skin cell accumulation in bedding and furniture, off-gassing from building materials and furniture, pet dander and waste products, and moisture in concealed spaces. In a well-ventilated home, these compounds are diluted and exhausted before they accumulate to a noticeable level. When ventilation is inadequate, they build up while you are away and hit you all at once when you open the door.
Why You Should Not Just Ignore It
The stale smell is the detectable layer of a broader air quality condition. If you can smell it, there are likely compounds in the air that you cannot smell that are also accumulating: CO2, fine particulate matter, and chemical vapors from materials throughout the home. The odor is the warning light. The air quality investigation tells you what is behind it.
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