Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Smithington]

The last three apartments I lived in in Korea had unpleasant smells. Not only from the sinks and drains, but from the apartment itself. I don't know what chemicals they use to in constructing the apartment, but I can smell them. And it gives me headaches. Moreover, in the last three apartments the furniture smelled terrible. There was one room I never went into because when I opened the door I wanted to vomit. The closet in my bedroom had such a nasty chemical smell that I taped it closed to lock the nasty chemical odours inside. I would often sleep with my window open (even in the winter) for ventilation, but that let in the pollution from outside - not to mention the noise.

Honestly, why do many Korean apartments smell so bad?

[jondepoer]

I think it might be lack of ventilation combined with strong smelling food. When I moved into my current place, I left the windows open for a week, fumigated the fridge, bought a dehumidifier and an air cleaner. I also cleaned up all the mold with proper mold cleaner, and it hasn't come back.

[shostahoosier]

My apartment smells bad from my building having a very simplified plumbing/sewage system.

The drain in my floor is for both my shower and washing machines. I'm almost certain that sometimes I can smell the "bathroom odors" from the apartment below me.

A friend of mine had a similar problem in her apartment. You might get used to it though. Mine doesnt bother me as much as it used to but when I visit my friend's apartment I always feel ill while she hardly notices.

[motiontodismiss]

Lack of any centralized ventilation, strong-smelling food, poor construction, sewage/drainage problems, construction methods that often use harsh chemicals and even carcinogens, MOLD.....the list goes on and on.

[highstreet]

Mine smells fine.

[transmogrifier]

Yeah.

It's the gimchi.

[Troglodyte]

Can you describe the chemical smell? Is there just one smell coming from all those places? Or is it a variety of smells?

I think there are many possible causes.

Tell your boss about it and see if he can recommend a solution. If it can't be resolved, consider moving.

[young_clinton]

Kimchi fart smell. I had it in my place. How long have you been in Korea? You might have to get used to it.

[Chimie]

Just start smoking in your apartment. Covers up all the other smells very well ;D

[Teelo]

Its possibly the drainage having a horrid lack of S bends in Korea :/

[soomin]

[wylies99]

Hopefully there's no mold issues.

[luckylady]

first off, buy those cheap rubber drain coverupper thingeys - the flat kind - and keep them over your drain when not in use, especially at night. sewer gasses do rise up and can cause odor problems. you'll notice in Korean homes even the kitchen sinks usually have the drains covered all the time.

second, look around for flower shops, plants for sale - open markets even - you'll see black charcoal pieces for sale, shaped like small cut logs, from about 2-4 inches in diameter to 5- 12 inches long, various shapes and prices. very common in plant decoration BUT what they are used for is to ventilate the air - often used in Korean bathrooms; I also use one for the same reason - just keep it on the top of the toilet tank.

keeping windows open can help but sometimes is not practical..

[Gorf]

It's Korea. Everything smells bad.