Septic odor in house

[troyh]

Our house gets an odor from our septic tank every so often. It seems to be more noticeable when there is a heavy rain or in the morning or both. Aside from the weather or time of day, it is also caused by us using water, causing water to enter the tank. I've checked all the drains, sinks, toilets, showers and the odor does not come from there. I believe there might be a problem with the vent. Possibly somewhere underground right near the base of the house. The vent pipe is very tall as it goes above our two story home. There should be no issues with "draft". The other factor is our hand dug well which is under our house and near the main septic line going to the septic tank and also near the septic vent. The odor comes from the trap door to our well which is close to the septic line and vent. I've had the well water tested and it is fine. I also had the septic tank pumped and inspected and nothing was wrong with it. Just wondering if anyone has had a similar experience or problem.

[Dorothea]

we had that happen, it was time to get the septic pumped ,our filter were getting plug

[PurpleToad]

When we had that problem it was due to the loop seal in the tub that doesn't get used much. I saw you mentioned that you've already checked all the drains, but if one of those loop seals dry out, you will smell it.

[jwal10]

Might want to run water down the vent pipe to make sure it is not plugged with leaves, a bird or such. Do you have an exposed cleanout to check if the water is running to the tank when doing this? Also check under the house for any damp place, a line could be cracked or joint come loose, only leaking when the water runs slow because of high water table or heavy use. Do you notice any drain running slow?

....James

[Cookie2]

We had the problem. We bought a 6-yr old house and we were the third owners. We quickly figured out why. We had a sewer gas smell in the laundry room. The laundry room doesn't have a floor drain. The smell could only come from the washer drain. It would happen after heavy rains or a couple of days after we used the washer.

It turns out when one of the toilets was flushed, the pressure in the line would empty the j-trap in the laundry room. A plumber that specialized in sewer gas smells (who knew there were plumbing specialist!) came out and made the j-trap much larger and re-aligned a lot of the wonky plumbing in the laundry.

That mostly fixed it. I occasionally smell it - or maybe it is my imagination. It is a smell you never forget once you've experienced it.

[myheaven]

We had an issue similar. For us it was the sump pump in the basement had dried out. I first thought the septic was having an issue. If you have no floor drains. I would call the septic people out.

[JoePa]

If your vent pipe sticking out of the roof is clogged then when you flush a toilet the negative pressure can suck out the water in the trap under a sink or other appliance - if your vent is not clogged then it is possible that the smell is coming out of the vent on the roof and sinking down around the house and if you have a window open you can smell it - also if you don't use a particular sink or shower the water in the trap can dry up and you have not way of preventing the smell from coming into the house - also make sure that all your sinks and laundry tubs have a trap - and finally - if you have a sump pump make sure that the ordor is not coming from there - sometimes stale water can get a smell - put some chlorox in the sump pump hole to kill the smell - other than that I can't think of anything else - good luck -

[Harry Chickpea]

"The odor comes from the trap door to our well which is close to the septic line and vent. I've had the well water tested and it is fine."

If there was an overflow or leak from the septic line at some point, the ground near your well may be soured. Even with tests, I wouldn't trust that well.

[michael ark]

I second checking all your traps.If they dry up your drains become vents. Make sure to check the one on your A/C if it's piped in.

[troyh]

Originally Posted by jwal10

Might want to run water down the vent pipe to make sure it is not plugged with leaves, a bird or such. Do you have an exposed cleanout to check if the water is running to the tank when doing this? Also check under the house for any damp place, a line could be cracked or joint come loose, only leaking when the water runs slow because of high water table or heavy use. Do you notice any drain running slow?

....James

James, all of the drains work fine. None of them are slow. I think I'm going to look into a possible clog in the vent. Trouble is I will have to get on second story roof or cut vent pipe. Thank you and everyone else for your suggestions and help.

[agmantoo]

Are you on a well?

[jwal10]

[QUOTE=troyh;7085603] The other factor is our hand dug well which is under our house and near the main septic line going to the septic tank and also near the septic vent. The odor comes from the trap door to our well which is close to the septic line and vent. I've had the well water tested and it is fine. [/QUOTE\]

See above....James

[Shrek]

When I first bought this place I was getting some septic odor in my house after heavy rains although my septic tank had recently been pumped, my maintenance man noticed that one of the commodes looked to be slightly out of line with the floor imprint as if it had been removed and replaced by the previous owner.

When he removed the commode he saw the wax seal had been pinched when the commode had been reinstalled.

He replaced the damaged seal ring, mounted the commode properly and the sewer gas smell has not been a problem for 20 years now.

[agmantoo]

thanks jwal10, I did scan through the post too hurriedly.

Often the odor from iron bacteria is confused with that of a septic system. Sulfur smells from a hot water heater also stink. A concentrated attempt to isolate the smell source needs to be made. Boosting the temp of the hot water to 140 degrees will often take care of a foul smell, particularly if the odor is present when washing clothes.

[ronbre]

sometimes it happens in a house with a bathroom or sink that is seldom used..and water dries up in the trap..make sure your traps have water drained into them regularly..my son lives alone in a 2 bathroom house and it happens in his guest bath