septic stink in basement - help!

[hazmat]

We are getting a septic smell in the basement. Smell is more noticeable after a shower. No leaks can be found. On advice of my plumber, I had the septic tank pumped.

I imagine if it were a plugged vent, that I'd be having draining problems in the rest of the house.

Thoughts?

 

[jinman]

Every major drain in my house has its own vent. You could have one vent plugged to the shower and that could be causing it to produce the pressure leading to gas in the basement. Do you have any idea where the gas is escaping in the basement? Do you have a sink or commode that is bubbling back through the trap?

If none of the traps in the basement are dry (including air conditioning condensate drains), then you might have a stress fracture in the sewer drain that is letting gas escape. Not knowing the age of your house nor the type of system reduces me to just guessing though.

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't understand how sludge in a septic tank could cause backpressure or leaks if your normal vents work and the drains work normally. I guess I'm saying that old sewage doesn't smell any worse or produce anymore gas than new sewage in my estimation. I'm not sure how an empty tank would solve your problem, and I'll be surprised if it does.

 

[hazmat]

House is 15 years old. Waste plumbing is PVC. There is only one trap in the basement (laundry). We average 3 loads a week, so I'm pretty sure it is not dry.

Septic sytem is basic - waste from house leads to 1,500 gallon tank & then out to leach field.

How does one find a stress crack in PVC?

The smell is there all the time & is exacerbated by additional flow (from any thing - shower, laundry, toilet). My trained nose says it smells of "septic gas" - not as ripe as the "new additions" down the drain. I'm not calibrate well enough to determine between old septic & new septic

 

[dbdartman]

Sounds like a vent problem to me. First thing I'd suggest is get up on the roof & run a snake down through ALL the vent pipes. If the right vent pipe is clogged/stopped up, it may cause a vacuum on the main line & could be pulling the water from the trap at the laundry.

 

[Tig]

Some septic guys around here reccomend a vent at the tank. That won't fix your problem, but it may help. I wonder if septic pros have methane sniffers. That would help track it down.
Fill your laundry tub with water, flush. If the smell appears it's not the laundry trap.
How long has this smell been around?

 

[ToadHill]

Check the inlet to the tank. I had gas problems several years ago and found the entry point mostly blocked with soap scum. This caused the liquid to drain slowly into the tank and leave waste in the pipe to the tank. This then caused the smell, as soon as I cleaned the soap scum the problem went away.

 

[WayneB]

Wonder how long has it been since you had the tank pumped? If it has been a long time have it pumped and ask them to check the inlet pipe. around here they will do it for you as part of the pumping charge.

 

[MikePA]

Wonder how long has it been since you had the tank pumped?

On advice of my plumber, I had the septic tank pumped.

.....

 

[Richard]

When we moved in our house, we had similar problem. Later, discovered that there was a vent pipe that was never completed . It was actually venting into the laundry room

I don't know how anyone missed it but they did (including me).

I have since then routed some pipes to at least, dump it back into the same system. Smell is gone and washer drains fine (as does the mega shower that I just installed with 3/4" pipes AND mixer valve...meaning it's 3/4" throughput)

 

[PA hayseed]

I would agree with most that it is a venting problem. Other possible sources I would check are for a floor drain that might be covered or sealed up, and if you have a sump pit or a floating basement I would check those areas as well. Don't automatically rule out all possibilities.

Good luck.

 

[MikeD74T]

.....

I took WanyeB's comment to mean that if the tank had not been pumped for a long interval that line blockage might have occurred. The recent pumping might not have cleared that blockage.
You apparently took it to mean he can't read and you can!!! MikeD74t

 

[MikePA]

You apparently took it to mean he can't read and you can!!! MikeD74t

I made no assumptions about anyone's ability to read. It's not unusual for people to make posts in threads without reading all the previous posts. So, I posted what hazmat said.

 

[WayneB]

I made no assumptions about anyone's ability to read. It's not unusual for people to make posts in threads without reading all the previous posts. So, I posted what hazmat said.

Mike and Mike (and not in the morning) don't worry about me.............darn I am just getting olde! But, sure hope he finds the problem! there is a Mike and Mike in the morning show on ESPN!

Wayne

 

[hazmat]

Smell showed up this fall. When the honey wagon was here I told him of the odor problem. He had me flush the toilet & listened for the flow to the tank. Said it sounded OK (ie not blocked). We did not snake the line from the house to the tank. From the inside, waste sounds like it is exiting the house at a good rate (ie not backing up towards the house) - but who really knows???

The only plumbing of interest (with a waste line) in the basement is the washing machine. No sump pumps etc.

I'll directly inspect the laundry trap to see if it is being vacuumed.

Thanks for the advice. Might have to call the plumber back to work on the vent lines (getting to the roof requires a 40foot ladder which is a 2 man operation, not a me & my 5'2 110# wife operation). Maybe he has a methane sniffer?

 

[davitk]

This likely has nothing to do do with your problem, but is worth noting. Replaced a sump pump with a larger unit (bigger is better, right? ). Washing machine drains into pit, sump pump turns on, pumps to overhead drain line. Rate of flow from new pump is so high it vacuums the traps from kitchen sink.

Stinky kitchen.

 

[shaley]

Hey Haz, Just a guess, but if cloth lint is caught in a trap it can wick the water out in a matter of hours. Worth a try. Also, you might run a test on the washer drain by removing the hose and duct tape the top closed and see if odor goes away.

 

[kenmac]

can you locate the smell ?? Ie, bathroom etc, Pvc drains from sinks will get a build up of soap, dish washing det. etc, & you will get this odor. I 've had to take apart the plumbing under sinks & clean this stuff out. It is worse where a dishwasher emptys into the sink drain. You can also pour bleach down the dranis & let it sit for a while . This should help . If you decide to take the plumbing apart under the sinks. Hold your nose as this stuff stinks bad ! I have even replaced the drain parts ( pvc) with the brass ( chrome plated) pipe to cure the problem

 

[hazmat]

Thanks for the last couple replies - it makes me feel better that I'm not he only one experienceing a stinky house.

 

[crbr]

Check your shallow P trap on the drain line of the central AC unit (if you have that particular mechanical service).

 

[MossRoad]

Welcome to the wonderful world of sewerage!

If you smell "that smell" in your house, it is most likely a venting problem. You said the septic guy heard and saw the water come into the septic tank when you flushed, so that would mean the line from that stool to your septic is clear. And you have experienced no drainage problems. So my guess is one of your vents is plugged and the gas is coming back out through one of the traps in your sink, bathtub, toilet, etc....

When you flush any of your toilets or drain any of your sinks or tubs, have you ever heard a bubbling or gurgling glub glub sound coming out of another sink, drain or tub? If so, that means there is a venting problem on that circuit, as it should never pull air down another trap, but rather through the vents.

Best of luck.