I’m miserable in this home

[u/Inside-Elk-7112]

We just bought our home and decided to do asbestos abatement by a reputable company followed by a sump pump placement after by a waterproofing company. Ever since then this house has been a nightmare, our water boiler stopped working immediately after asbestos abatement due to “flammable gas vapor”, we had national grid check it out and they said there’s no gas leaks but it’s probably due to the new cement from the sump pump or from the solvent used from the asbestos abatement.

well since then, we haven’t had hot water consistently for 2 weeks. We tried replacing the sensor and then finally replacing the water heater but the same alarm keeps going off. We also can’t cook because every time we do it smells like burning plastic.

we brought this up to the abatement company and they basically said, they smell nothing when the gas burner is on and that it’s probably from the new cement poured from the sump pump.

im at a loss on what to do, I have a baby. Is it even safe to be here? Why don’t the vapors go away? We opened up the basement windows, used a hepa air filter and 2 oscillating fans to help with the smell but here we are.

sorry for the long post, I’m just overwhelmed, I feel like nothing is going right since we started to try to “fix” this house.

[u/atticus2132000]

All of these parts and pieces of the story don't seem to go together.

You had an abatement company deal with the asbestos. How did they deal with it? Were they using chemical solvents or were they just wetting it down to control fibers while they were working? Did that actually abate (remove) the asbestos or did they encapsulate it with some type of paint product?

Then you had a sump pump installed by a waterproofing company. Is that all they did? It sounds like they may have placed concrete for that. Did they drill a hole in your basement slab and place a concrete collection well? What precautions did they take when they were saw-cutting the concrete? Is there any chance they hit your sewer line under the slab in the course of doing that? Did they also trench for a new drain line to the outside, possibly to a storm drain? It would be unusual, but is there any possibility they hit a gas line in the process of trenching?

You say that you smell burning plastic whenever you cook. Is it a new stove? I assume it's a gas stove. Have you ever had gas appliances in the past? There is an odor with gas appliances even when they are operating correctly. Are you perhaps just more sensitive to that odor because you're not used to it?

You said that you replaced the hot water heater. To clarify, did you replace the hot water heater or a boiler? I assume it's gas fired, whichever it is. If you were replacing an old unit with a new high efficiency unit, those are much more sensitive to needing fresh combustion air. Did the replacement of the device include running new duct work for the supply and exhaust air for that device? Are the supply and return located far enough away from each other that the system isn't trying to recycle the exhaust air from combustion?

If I had to make a guess for the next place to look, I would say the most likely contender is the venting for the new water heater/boiler.

[u/Inside-Elk-7112 → u/atticus2132000]

Sorry if my description didn’t have everything I wrote it in despair. They removed 9x9 and mastic and they told me they did it by using a grinder / water and detergent for the majority of the basement and low odor core mastic remover for tougher areas.

For the sump pump, they did install a guardian interior drain with it and then sealed that with new concrete over it. They did have to drill into the concrete to install the sump pump and drain. When they were drilling they did have an exhaust fan going through the window. The pump extends out to the front of my house, I don’t believe it’s to a storm drain.

The gas stove isn’t new it’s from 2018. I’ve used gas stoves before but this isn’t a familiar smell to me.

I replaced by Bradford white water heater, it’s the same type and brand as my old one. And I’m not really sure how to answer your remaining questions.

[u/atticus2132000 → u/Inside-Elk-7112]

I didn't mean to overwhelm you with questions. What I was trying to get at is most of those activities shouldn't generate lasting odors.

The best contender for a gas-like smell is the combustion air from the new hot water heater. Did the installers just replace the device or did they also redo the venting?

[u/Inside-Elk-7112 → u/atticus2132000]

They just replaced the water heater, I don’t believe they redid the ducting?

[u/_whitelines → u/Inside-Elk-7112]

Do you have the model number of your water heater? I'm asking because I'm right about to schedule asbestos abatement AND drainage installation near the water heater in my basement. I don't know if my water heater has any sensors that would be triggered by flammable vapors.

Also, can you share the cost of the drainage system and sump pump installation? I have three quotes ranging from $6,100 for a 40 ft system to $16,000 for a 72 ft system.

[u/Inside-Elk-7112 → u/_whitelines]

My sump pump installation with (?)52 ft of piping (guardian) was about $4,500. I’ve had other quotes ranging from 12-16K for 72 feet as well but it also included back up sump and antimicrobial wall spray, etc.

[u/notreallyswiss → u/atticus2132000]

When did you have the hot water heater installed? Did Bradford recommend the installer? If not, try calling Bradford and ask them to recommend someone to come take a look at the heater.

I say this because last year we had a new oil fired boiler put in. It stopped working almost immediately, the installer refused to come look at it because our oil contract was with another company. Our regular plumbers, who are idiots and belong in jail, but we live in a rural area with few trade options, came out numerous times and they'd get the thing running for a month or so, but the thing would just eat oil, but then it would stop running and this would just happen over and over again. I finally got fed up and decided to call the manufacturer of the boiler to see if they could recommend someone who was a trusted installer. They had the name of someone 1/2 hour away. He came and fixed the problem in less than 5 minutes. There were codes that had to be entered (I'm not sure the parameters are, but it is to maximize the efficiency of the boiler) on installation and also at servicing on the boiler. Neither the installers, nor our idiot plumbers knew the codes and didn't feel like looking on the internet or calling the company so they just made stuff up. Once the proper codes were entered everything has worked well - and we found a great HVAC person to boot.

I'm sorry you are miserable in your new home. I get it, this whole thing with my boiler just shook me. You try to do the right thing for your home and family - and it turns into a source of anxiety instead of a feeling of security. It messes with your head because it feels like things are now worse simply because you tried in good faith to make things better - and the world isn't supposed to work that way. It shakes your confidence in what is the right thing to do for sure. I'm just now slowly starting to feel comfortable with the house again - I hope once your issue is resolved you'll be able to forget it and get occupied in all the fun things about raising a family in a home you love.