Drain & sewer line leak & odor diagnosis & repair:
How to prevent or cure sewer gas odors from septic systems, building plumbing, & other causes. Sewer gas smell diagnosis - plumbing checklist. Septic gas smell diagnosis - septic system checklist
This article describes how to diagnose, find, and cure odors in buildings including septic or sewage or sewer gas smells or "gas odors" in buildings.
InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.
- Daniel Friedman, Publisher/Editor/Author - See WHO ARE WE?
Our sewer gas odor diagnosis discussed here focuses on homes with a private onsite septic tank but including tips for owners whose home is connected to a sewer system as well. What makes the smell in sewer gas? Sewer gases are more than an obnoxious odor.
Readers should be sure to also
see SEWER GAS ODORS.
Watch Out: Because sewer gas contains methane gas (CH4) there is a risk of an explosion hazard or even fatal asphyxiation.
Sewer gases also probably contain hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) In addition some writers opine that there are possible health hazards from sewer gas exposure, such as a bacterial infection of the sinuses (which can occur due to any sinus irritation).
Depending on the sewer gas source and other factors such as humidity and building and weather conditions, mold spores may also be present in sewer gases.
Sewer gas odors that can occur when a drain or septic system are partly blocked or sluggish.
Inspect the septic system for evidence of failure: our photo shows green septic dye in the yard during a septic loading and dye test.
If the sewer or gas odor or smell is strongest outside, and if you rule out an unusual site shape or wind blowing odors down from your plumbing vent system,
your septic system may be failing.
Sewage odors may be noticed from a failing drainfield even if at the moment you don't see a wet or soggy area which shows actual sewage effluent on the yard surface.
If this is the case you may want to request a septic system inspection as well as a tank pumpout and inspection afterwards.
Also see SEWER GAS ODORS in COLD / WET WEATHER for additional odor tracing and cure advice for odors occurring during wet or cold weather.
This Australian septic system advice was paraphrased/near-quoted from advice given by Adelaide Hills Council, Australia.
In some areas such as South Australia, aerobic wastewater treatment is used to treat effluent to a sufficient level of sanitation that it can be used for irrigation within the property - in other words it is dispersed on the soil for the purpose of both disposal and for irrigation.
...
Continue reading at SEWAGE BACKUP, WHAT TO DO or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.
Or see SEWER LINE LEAKS & ODORS FAQs - questions & answers posted originally at the end of this page.
Or see these
SEWER LINE LEAKS & ODORS at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.
Or see this
Or use the SEARCH BOX found below to Ask a Question or Search InspectApedia
Try the search box just below, or if you prefer, post a question or comment in the Comments box below and we will respond promptly.
Search the InspectApedia website
Note: appearance of your Comment below may be delayed: if your comment contains an image, photograph, web link, or text that looks to the software as if it might be a web link, your posting will appear after it has been approved by a moderator. Apologies for the delay.
Only one image can be added per comment but you can post as many comments, and therefore images, as you like.
You will not receive a notification when a response to your question has been posted.
Please bookmark this page to make it easy for you to check back for our response.
Our Comment Box is provided by Countable Web Productions countable.ca
In addition to any citations in the article above, a full list is available on request.