terrible smell of sewer gas in bathroom

[mrcaptainbob]

I'm letting myself in for it now.....
My wife wanted a picture installed on the wall just above the downstairs toilet. I need to have everything on-center...dress-right-dress....Perfect measurement, I drillied the hole and set the picture. She was soooo happy! Then we noticed how the surrounding plaster is changing 'color. Plaster...as in unfinished...(long story)...Well, dang if that wall's not damp under that picture! So I got out a hole saw and went into the picture hanger hole and cut out a circle about 3" in diameter. Just deep enough to break through the plaster. HA!!!! So then I got out some plastic sealer and filled in the hole in the drainline from the upstairs toilet! Which, by the way, WAS PERFECTLY CENTERED...!

[LazyPup]

If you have a recessed medicine cabinet you might try pulling the cabinet and looking inside the wall.

If not, you stated in your post there is a mirror. Try taking the mirror down and cutting a hole in the wall behind the mirror. If you cut it out carefully with a sheetrock stab saw, you can retain the piece you cut out to patch it right back in, and the repair would be concealed behind the mirror.

Once you have an opening you can examine around any pipes with a flashlight and a hand mirror.

I have a small 2 x 5 inch ladies makeup mirror with a plastic handle that i carry in my toolbox just for such occassions.

[oldhome]

I also have an odor in my bathroom sink. The toilet has also started flushing slower. Can the two be related?

We have a bathroom we don't use much. It's located in the hallway, just across from the master. I know the pipes are somehow inter-connected b/c when the water is hot in one bathroom, it gets hot faster in the other.

sue's house needs fixing

[LazyPup]

If you have a bathroom that is not being used much the problem is most likely resulting from the water in the tub and sink traps evaporating out. The easy solution is to run some water in the tub and sink at least once a week to insure there is a sufficient level of water in the traps.

Dry traps is also a common problem in basement floor drains. To prevent the traps from drying out you can pour a few ounces of ordinary liquid cooking oil into the trap. The oil will float on top of the water and retard the rate of evaporation, but will not effect the function of the drain.

[oldhome]

quote:Originally posted by LazyPup

If you have a bathroom that is not being used much the problem is most likely resulting from the water in the tub and sink traps evaporating out. The easy solution is to run some water in the tub and sink at least once a week to insure there is a sufficient level of water in the traps.

Dry traps is also a common problem in basement floor drains. To prevent the traps from drying out you can pour a few ounces of ordinary liquid cooking oil into the trap. The oil will float on top of the water and retard the rate of evaporation, but will not effect the function of the drain.

sue's house needs fixing

[oldhome]

I didn't make myself clear -- the smell is in the master bathroom, which we use all the time. The bathroom we don't use much is across the hall. Would not using it cause a smell in the master bathroom? The slow-flushing commode is also in the master bathroom.

Thanks for your reply.

sue's house needs fixing

[LazyPup]

There are many factors that can result in a sluggish flush. To resolve the problem we must address it in stages.

Step one is to determine if the problem is in the toilet or the drain line.
Put about 2 gallon of water in a small bucket.
Quickly pour the water directly into the bowl. Did that flush correctly?
If yes, the problem is most likely a sluggish discharge of water from the tank to the bowl.
1.open the tank and check the water level. (there is a water level index line either printed or embossed into the tank wall. If the water level is low, adjust the tank fill valve. (water level is especially critical on water saver toilets.)
2. trip the flush handle and watch the action of the flush valve (Flapper ball) in the bottom center of the tank. The flapper should lift quickly when the flush handle is depressed. If not, you may need to either adjust the handle to flapper chain length or you may need to replace the flapper ball. (about a $2 part)
3. on the underside of the bowl lip there is a series of small holes where the water enters the bowl. Make sure all those holes are open and there is a good flow of water through them when the toilet is flushed.

IF THE FLUSH WAS SLUGGISH WHEN YOUR POURED THE WATER IN THE TOILET the problem is a partial obstruction in the toilet trap or the drain line.

A foreign object such as a tooth brush caught in the toilet trap can be the most elusive to find.
Begin by snaking the toilet with a "closet auger". ( A closet auger is a short hand operated snake that has a J shaped tubular frame to guide the snake into the toilet trap as the handle is rotated.) Rotate the control handle quickly as you feed the snake into the toilet bowl trap.
After snaking with the closet auger try flushing again to see if the problem is cleared.
If the problem still exists you will have to turn off the water to the toilet tank, flush the tank to drain the water out, then pull the toilet. Once you have the toilet lifted, examine the discharge port and trap from the underside to see if there is any foreign object caught in the trap. If so, remove the object and reset the toilet. (You will need a new wax ring to reset the toilet).

If this has not resolved the problem you will have to clean the waste line and the vent stack with a powered auger fitted with the appropriate cutter, either 3 or 4 inch depending on the size of the toilet waste arm line.

The smell of sewer gasses is often associated with a sluggish flush.

In a normal flush, the water enters the trap and drain line as a big slug, almost like a piston moving through the line. The air in the line is pushed ahead of the water slug and is relieved by going up the waste vent. As the slug of water moves forward in the line it leaves a void behind it, and air is drawn in through the bowl trap to fill the space behind the water. Air continues to enter through the trap until the trap primer on the tank fill valve has refilled the trap, thus the direction of flow is from room air into the toilet and waste system.

When a sluggish flush occurs, the waste arm is only partially filled with water. The water in the trap is pulled out by the momentum of the flowing water. As the water now flows downstream in the pipe sewer gases can flow upstream from the waste pipes across the top of the water flow and on into the room through the open trap until the trap is refilled.

[suzannehome]

OK, now I really, really need help. My smell got so bad that I bit the bullet and called a plumber. The plumber did find a very small hole in the sewage pipe which was made by a screw used to hang the bathroom mirror. The plumber fixed the hole but said that he really doubted that such a big smell could come from such a small hole. He checked the pipes throughout the house and said that everything else looked fine. For a couple of days, the smell seemed better but now it is back w/ a vengance and my toilet upstairs is now releasing a similar odor when I open the lid. Thoughts, anyone?

Suzanne Smolkin

[HayZee518]

What about standing water in the tank? Are you in an area that has water with a high sulphur content? This stuff "suphur" smells like rotten eggs. Won't hurt you but it stinks BAD!

[LazyPup]

There is a 3/8 inch gap between the underside of the toilet seat and the bowl, another 3/8 inch gap between the toilet seat and the lid. Those spacing are code minimums to insure ventilation of the bowl therefore raising or lowering the toilet seat should have little to no effect. However, if the toilet seat is covered with a thick pyle type toilet seat cover it tends to obscure the proper ventilation of the bowl, which would trap the odors until the lid is raised.

If your water has a high sulfur content as was previously mentioned, or if there happens to be any concealed waste under the rim of the bowl the problem would be enhanced by the effect of the seat cover.