Why is my toilet seat turning purple? The weirdest things people ask Google about their home

If you've ever asked the internet-search giant if it's safe to walk on your roof – or why your flat smells of onions – you're probably not alone.
1/9

Are you concerned that your flat is making you ill? Want to know why your house isn't selling? Or do your electrics smell of fish?

If you've Googled any of these questions recently, it turns out you're not alone, according to a new study of Google search trends.

Analysis of Google's predictive-search data has revealed some of the most common home maintenance-related questions people ask the search giant. There are some quirky results among common queries as "Why are my electrics tripping?" and "Is my boiler pressure too high?".

Studying Google's autocomplete suggestions — which are based on common or trending searches — across several web browsers and devices, property maintenance company Aspect discovered the issues people are most worried about in their homes.

Some of the most common structural queries people have include "Is my roof safe to walk on?" "Why are my walls wet?" and "Is my floor sinking?".

But they also have more worrying concerns.

"Is my ceiling supposed to wobble?", "Why are my walls sticky?" and "Is my floor going to collapse?" are also disconcertingly common.

The study also found that the type of questions people asked depended on the type of home they live in.

People living in houses more commonly search questions about home ownership, including “why is my house not selling?”, “is my house listed?” and “is my house in a conservation area?”

People in flats are more likely to wonder “why is my flat so cold?”, “is my flat making me ill?” and “why is my flat so dusty?”.

The most common searches relating to apartments were “my apartment smells like onions”, “why is my apartment so cold?” and “is my apartment making me sick?”.

And if a basic Google hasn't thrown up the answers you need, Aspect have answers to even the most quirky questions on their website.

Scroll through the gallery above to find out why your toilet seat might turn purple, if your shower is really making you sick and why your electrics might actually smell like fish.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in