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Plumbing Design Dilemma

Sewer gas smell from bathroom sink

3 years ago

last modified: 3 years ago

I need help with getting rid of a sewer gas smell that lingers in our bathroom sink. When I pour baking soda down the drain, it takes the smell away for a day, sometimes 2 days but the smell comes back. I have had the line snaked, two plumbers to check it out, but no one can give me a solution. I need to fix this problem because I would like to sell my condo. The building is an old apartment building that was later converted into a condo community.

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Patricia Colwell Consulting

3 years ago

I wouls start by putting drain cleaner down the drain often the smell is just youck caugt in the pipes and often this could be it in a old buliding and also the vent pipes could be plugged with leaves or even snow. I would also make sure the P trap has wated in it all the time this creates abarrier to keep sewr smells where they belong. I would start with the drain cleaner and you might want to check to see if your neighbors are having the same issue.

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Comments (9)

chiflipper
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
Bring your problem to the Board's attention. "Within the walls" plumbing issues are theirs to fix. Be sure to present copies of all your work receipts to show due diligence on your part.
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All kinds of good info right here. Thanks so much. We will def. get sewer protection although I don't think it's a factor at play here (we have no problem flushing i.e.). We will probably look at replacing the gaskets on the toilet (specially the downstairs one where it smells more). The vents in the attic/roof were checked by (a good) inspector - and they were fine. I'd be surprised if they suddenly got clogged (I'll check in the attic just to be sure, of course). But the riser pipes disconnect behind the walls somewhere is intriguing and probably the best bet right now. If I'm understanding this right - a bad sewer riser pipe would manifest itself as we observe it - a smell ONLY in the bathrooms (strongest in the downstairs' bathroom). Does that make sense? Short of breaking the wall any other way to convince ourselves that that is a likely cause? Thanks so much for this great advice!
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I had the same problem in a house I lived in 18 years ago. I finally called a plumber. He went into the crawl space under the house and said it had a lot of standing water with sewage in it. We had to have the toilet removed and the line augered to fix a drain previously, and the line may have damaged by the augering process, causing it to subsequently leak into the crawl space every time it was flushed. We had also had a freeze the winter before, and the drain pipe may have frozen and then leaked. He couldn't tell which, just that it was split and leaking. The second part of the problem was the screening over the entrance to the crawl space. "Critters" had gone there and there was a lot of critter poop under there. That, combined with the leak, created our own sewage treatment pond, without the treatment part. He pumped out the crawl space, scattered lots of lime under the house, fixed the pipe, and rescreened the crawl space entrance. Problem solved!
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Comments (2)
Is the smell coming out of the sink drain? If so, it sounds like perhaps you don't have a p-trap under it, or it is either installed improperly, or the vent pipe is clogged. The water trapped in the bottom curve of the p-trap should block any sewer smell from coming up. If the smell is coming from somewhere else, it could be a leak in the vent pipe behind the wall. A leak will let sewer gas out directly, but a clog could cause a siphon situation that sucks all the water out of the p-trap, leaving no slug behind to block the gas. Another possibility is that the water coming out of the faucet is the culprit, meaning that the pipe to it is contaminated with something, but that is not likely. Check the p-trap and the vent line. You can run a snake down the vent from the roof to see if it is clogged.
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Comments (46)
Thank you David! When having this house renovated post purchase, much of the bathroom was gutted and the sink I had installed is one I bought new some years before and was waiting to use (American Standard Standard Collection Console sink with oval glass shelf.) Because the works underneath are totally exposed I bought the best chrome P-trap and fittings a local plumbing supply house had. In a month or so I'll have my plumber back to install a pump for my utility sink, and he will need to add another vent stack I believe, so I'll have him see if the sink is connected to the bath vent, and if the vent has any blockage. I'll ask him about the air admittance valve - thank you so much for that information!
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HU-178658043
3 years ago
It may be a blocked vent which frequently entails snaking from the roof.
HU-44340955 thanked HU-178658043
PRO
BeverlyFLADeziner
3 years ago
I also think it is the vent pipe
woodbutcher_ca
3 years ago
Hi, You tried a few things. This may not work but it's cheap and easy. Get a bottle of dish soap that you can squeeze soap from the top. Squeeze some soap into the overflow and let it set for about a half hour. Then run the water in the sink up to the overflow and flush it out. Then sit back and smell what happens,

Good Luck Woodbutcher
ohgoodness
3 years ago
I agree with woodbutcher, we had this situation with a sink, had a plumber out with no luck. My husband filled sink added bleach and let it drain through overflow. It worked for us!
tozmo1
3 years ago
Unused drains can dry out and create sewer smells. It happened to me when I had a lowest level bathroom I never used and over time created a smell. Now I use it occasionally to keep water in the drain. Take an look at 1 -3 on this list and see if any resonate. https://www.familyhandyman.com/article/how-to-eliminate-basement-odor-and-sewer-smells/
Meghan Terry
3 years ago
You might want to try the Green Gobbler line of products, which address biofilm issues, if the above solutions don't work out.
shelleysmith999
3 years ago
We had this same problem. Per plumber...Engage sink stopper, fill sink with 64 ounces straight ammonia. Turn on hot water at slow pace to allow water to enter overflow.

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