No plumbers required...?

[Stephen D. Gazo]

Good morning,

The pic is my main floor bathroom. My wife is complaining of sewer smell when the water runs. Its important to note that no plumber was used during the building of this house. I am still fighting Tarion and well thats another story.

So, is this trap big enough to do its job. I read that I need a 2" trap?

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[Stephen D. Gazo]

I am not sure why I cant see the pic. Is there something I missed, a little help,,,

thank you

Steve

[Terence McCann]

I am not sure why I cant see the pic. Is there something I missed, a little help,,,

thank you

Steve

Hi Steve:

Make sure the file name doesn't have any characters like *-, etc. Best to keep it simple like drain.jpg

[Brandon Whitmore]

Steve,

Try re- naming them so there aren't any spaces, weird characters, etc. Something like Bath1, Bath2, Bath3 should work.

[Stephen D. Gazo]

okay, lets see if this works

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[Stephen D. Gazo]

while I was trying to load this I went around the house to all the drains, they are all the same.

If it is not the trap, which I am now thinking its a vent issue. In the back of the photo, thats the vent pipe going into the wall. They installed the vents after we were in the house a month, and after my wife got out of the hospital, yeah those gases will make you sick.

My contractor was removed from service and I had him removed as my builder from Tarion Warranty.

I called several plumbers, they want nothing to do with my house, as they know who built it. Small town logic....any ideas on how to confirm if those vents go farther than my wall????

aaarghhh

[Tom Raymond]

I'll bet they don't. Here's a little experiment; go to the sink drain that emits the strongest odor and cut off (and cap) that vent mess and install an AAV. If the stink goes away you know the problem is with the vents. If it were mine I'd then put AAVs at all the offending drains. It'd be wrong, but less wrong than what you've got and a hell of alot cheaper and easier than the alternative of opening up all of those walls to run proper vent stacks.

Tom

[Phillip]

while I was trying to load this I went around the house to all the drains, they are all the same.

If it is not the trap, which I am now thinking its a vent issue. In the back of the photo, thats the vent pipe going into the wall. They installed the vents after we were in the house a month, and after my wife got out of the hospital, yeah those gases will make you sick.

My contractor was removed from service and I had him removed as my builder from Tarion Warranty.

I called several plumbers, they want nothing to do with my house, as they know who built it. Small town logic....any ideas on how to confirm if those vents go farther than my wall????

aaarghhh

Can you see any of the vents in the attic going out the roof?

[Stephen D. Gazo]

Thanx guys,

Okay, I wasnt here when the "stacks' were installed. Yes I see three of them on the roof. they were not there when the house closed, because the idiot at town office only mentioned it to them afterwards. The town insp apparently saw that they were going to use AAV's, which as mentioned is not allowed around here.

How long would it take to install a vent were no vent existed? They ripped out some walls and claimed to push the stack up inside the wall, okay, but how did they get passed the top plate and into the attic and outside. I will try dropping in an ice cube and listen.

[Jim Katen]

Thanx guys,

Okay, I wasnt here when the "stacks' were installed. Yes I see three of them on the roof. they were not there when the house closed, because the idiot at town office only mentioned it to them afterwards. The town insp apparently saw that they were going to use AAV's, which as mentioned is not allowed around here.

How long would it take to install a vent were no vent existed? They ripped out some walls and claimed to push the stack up inside the wall, okay, but how did they get passed the top plate and into the attic and outside. I will try dropping in an ice cube and listen.

Go to the drugstore and buy some peppermint oil or eucalyptus oil. Pour some down one trap at a time. Then go up on the roof & smell the vent pipes.

Or, if you're not that dainty, just go up on the roof & smell the vent pipes. If they smell like poop, then they're connected.

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[Stephen D. Gazo]

lol thanks, not dainty in the least, will take a breath of the smelly stack. Its better than my idea.

doing course homework today (plumbing) so will get back to you with my find.

Steve

[plummen]

See if you can find someplace that rents a smoke machine and direct it up each vent while somebody watches the roof vents.

My guess would be they installed autovents/trailer vents inside the wall and theyre not working

[Stephen D. Gazo]

Happy Victoria Day Weekend.

Okay, I went up on the roof and checked the smelly stacks, to verify if the house is vented. Yep its vented and it doesnt smell at all!

I sat beside the stack in question and had my wife first flush the toilet. I heard the flush and listened to it drain. She then turned on the sink and I heard it drain, but I also heard glubs. I checked the other stack and it was okay, no glubs (also no toilet on that one)

Do the glubs mean that its burping somehow and each glub is a nice sewar rose coming up the sink...It still smells at that sink, but at least I know it isnt vented to the wall.

Any ideas

Steve

[emalernee]

Could it be a loose or unglued joint in the vent from the sink to the main stack?

Ezra Malernee

Canton, Ohio

[Stephen D. Gazo]

Man I hope not....any other ideas that dont involve ripping it apart. I am not that naive to think that this will be a cheap and easy fix. After all I have been through with this house nothing surprises me anymore.

I have already repaired lots of this house and plumming is my next area under the microscope.

Since I heard a gurgle or a blub, is there a one way check valve that may be swinging somewhere?

Looking back at the pic, does its geometry work. Someone wrote about the leg being shorter than the arm after the trap...??

thanx for helping

Steve

Could it be a loose or unglued joint in the vent from the sink to the main stack?

Ezra Malernee

Canton, Ohio

[Stephen D. Gazo]

Bump

[Jim Katen]

Man I hope not....any other ideas that dont involve ripping it apart.

Ok, this one's a little involved, but it's the easiest way I know to determine if there's a loose connection in a wall.

Get the eucalyptus oil or peppermint oil I mentioned in the other post. Also get an old cloth diaper or just a dishtowel, the smallest shop vac you can find, and a roll of duct tape. Go up to your roof and use the duct tape to tape shut all of the vents but one.

Drag the shop vac up on the roof and tie it up next to the one untaped vent. Put the diaper in the shop vac, pour the smelly oil on the diaper, and put the shop vac back together. Now put the shop vac hose on the *outlet* side of the vacuum and turn it on. You will have constructed a smell blowing machine. Point the hose toward the open vent. Don't stick it all the way over the vent or all the way in the vent, that will creat too much pressure and you'll be burping eucalyptus or peppermint through every trap in the house. Just point it at the vent.

Now have a helper walk through the house to smell for eucalyptus or peppermint. If there's an opening in any of the vent pipes in the walls, the smell from the shop vac will come screaming through it.

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[Stephen D. Gazo]

Hi Jim, Thank you for the trick.

I am all over the province with school and some idiot hired me, bloody advertising,,, I will most definetly try that. Especially since I am not a fan of eucaylptus so I will no doubt smell it, and find it.lol

I am doing my plumbing course now and have yet to see how to pressure test the system. I would imagine that it only tells you that it holds pressure, or doesn't. And use your tip to locate the leak.

Will send you a PM when I have this sorted.....

Thank you very much for your time and assistance.

Steve