Smelling water drains reasons
If you are experiencing foul smelling water or drains, follow a process of elimination to determine what is behind your problem. It’s important to try to diagnose where the smell is coming from because that will help you determine exactly how you can get rid of it effectively.
Some repair and maintenance are simple DIY fixes, and others require help from your plumber. Read on to learn more.
P-Trap Run Dry?
The P-trap takes different forms depending on the piping that it is attached to, but it is generally shaped like a “P”.
It exists to act as a barrier between the drain or plumbing fixture (and ultimately your home) and the smelly sewer gases that occur naturally.
It does so by trapping some of the drain water to act as a plug. If you haven’t used the sink, shower, etc. in some time, it is possible that the trap has dried out.
As an easy fix, try running the water and see if that alleviates the smell.
Sewer Line Problem
There are a number of signs of a sewer line break or blockage: a bad odor, wet spots on your foundation, mold, sunken patches in your lawn and more.
It is hard for you to determine on your own if you are dealing with a break or a blockage, which is why you need to enlist professional help.
It’s possible that there is a breach in your sewer line system, which means that you are vulnerable to flooding.
Water Heater & Anode Rods
If there is a distinctive rotten egg smell in your water heater or coming from your water, there is a likelihood that it is being caused by your magnesium-based anode rod in your water heater.
Depending on the chemical composition of your water, whether it is hard or soft and how much bacterium is present, sometimes the rod will react and create sulfuric gases which smell bad.
The anode rod is there to protect your water heater from rusting. Simply replace the magnesium rod with an aluminum one.
Ventilation
If the drain isn’t properly vented or blocked (which happens commonly with animal nests, plant and tree matter), then a vacuum of sorts is created.
Instead of ventilating away from your home, smelly sewer will be sucked into your home.
Get your drains cleaned of any debris.
