We just bought a house but have one annoying unresolved problem.
There is a stale, unpleasant smell in a 10 ft x 10 ft area 
of the concrete driveway. It's not an unusual smell - we've encountered it
in other places (stairwells, gardens) and it's been described by
the home inspector as sewage like, though I feel it smells more like
mold or fungus. The home has been declared clear
of mold and fungus, as has the crawlspace under the house.
We did discover that a part of the driveway had been added later on
and wonder if there is a water leak under the new section (because
we saw evidence of a past sprinkler system) that is causing
fungus growth. Our termite inspect came up with this theory
but said breaking concrete and relaying the driveway is the
only option and it sounds expensive.

What's a good way to trace the origin of the smell and resolve
this problem? Do we need to call in a specialist? What sort
of specialist? Is the city or county (San Jose) likely
to tell us whether there's a sewage leak nearby.

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Request for Question Clarification by deepseep-ga on 21 Nov 2002 15:09 PST

Hello,

     I have an approach that may help, but I need to know if you still
have access to that alleged sprinkler system?  Is it operational?  If
not, can you find a way to hook up to it?  I'm in the area (Monterey)
and I'm familiar with others who have this issue.

cheers,
Pete