If your home has a sewer smell or other bad odors associated with your plumbing, you may have difficulty figuring out the problem. You may need to call a residential plumbing contractor since you don't want your home to smell bad.
Here are possible reasons your home has foul plumbing odors and what a plumbing contractor might do.
1. The P-Trap Is Leaking
The P-trap under your sink is supposed to hold water to block sewer gasses from wafting out of the pipe. If the trap has a small leak, you'll smell sewer odors once the water leaks out.
Collecting the water in a bucket keeps the floor or cabinet dry, but it isn't a solution for stopping the sewer odor. You'll need a plumber to replace the P-trap with a new one.
2. There Are Bacteria In The Water Heater
If you've noticed a bad odor when you turn on the water, the issue could be bacteria in the water heater. See if the odor is only in the hot water and not the cold. If so, you may want to call a plumber to fix the situation. If you know how, you might try flushing the water heater out yourself or applying a disinfectant, otherwise wait for the plumber.
You can talk to the plumber about whether adding a disinfectant is a good idea and if it will help. You can also ask if it's worth flushing the heater out to see if that will fix the issue. If your water heater is old anyway, the plumber might recommend replacing it rather than spending money on trying to eliminate a bad odor when it may not be possible to do so.
3. The Sewer Is Clogged
Whether you have a septic system or you're on the city's sewer line, a clog can cause sewer odors to back up in your home and yard. Actual sewage can even back up in your home. The way to fix this problem is to clean out the sewer drain or pump out the septic tank.
Your plumber might use a hydro jet to flush out the clog and wash the drain to get rid of the odors. If you have a septic tank, you'll need to call a septic contractor to come and pump it out.
Your water can take on odors for different reasons. Sewer odors, biofilm, and bacteria are the main causes. You may not be able to track the odor down, so if you're having problems with bad odors in your home that smell like sewer gas or sulfur, call a residential plumbing contractor for help.
To learn more about the odors in your plumbing system, contact a company like Superior Plumbing & HVAC Services.
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