Very bad smell in powder room, sort of smells like rotting garbage. Our powder room is on first floor of old 1930's colonial. Have thouroughly cleaned EVERYTHING...checked under sink for leak, mold, mildew...nothing. Replaced wax ring.... Everything is working fine, no leaks, no slow flush, etc.
HELP... Animal dead in wall????
Who do we call, what do we do next? Exterminator, plumber,???
Less onions and beans for the better half???
Sorry, couldn't resist!
What's underneath?? Crawl space, unfinished basement, coal cellar? You've ruled out all of the obvious, so your theory about "something dying in there" sounds as good as any, but I would try "from below" first. JMHO.
Hi Brenda,
Do you have a floor drain, shower, sink, or some other place where a P-trap could have gone dry?
KB
In article , snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com says... :) HELP... :) Animal dead in wall???? :) :) Who do we call, what do we do next? :) Exterminator, plumber,??? :) Usually the cycle is a day or two of "what's that smell" which you look for the obvious trash, followed by oh boy, that's something dead, which usually lasts several more days then fades away....as mentioned before if you have access under the house, a look there may let you recover the carcass, stopping the smell. An exterminator may help you out, but will be much cheaper doing yourself, if it can be retrieved for the twenty minutes of removal.
I detected a "bad smell" in the off-kitchen pantry where my computer lives. When I tidied up the 'fridge, discarding veg that had somehow turned into puddles, the smell disappeared. The 'fridge *didn't* smell in and of itself. I would have guessed cooler air somehow flowing (10') from one space to another conducted this icky odor. Point being, the smell may not be coming from the immediate area. Smells seem to migrate in odd ways.
It is a TINY powder room, only a toilet and a sink. Both are used everyday so no chance of dry trap. It is over a crawl space. We checked under crawl space and cannot seem to find anything. It has been about a week and it is getting WORST. Thanks for suggestions, we'll try chalking and see what happens.
If this is true, why would you have her caulk (and spoil the looks) of everything in the bathroom?! lol
Have a nice week...
Trent
Follow Joan Rivers' example --- get pre-embalmed!
When's the last time anybody saw grandma? lol
Make sure your sink trap and bathtub or shower trap is holding water. As others noted, check for any possibility of the smell coming from below or above.
Get a friends small dog...and then a cat (not on the same day! lol) and let them into the room. Watch them IMMEDIATELY. They may take you to the affected area...if you have a problem in the wall. But they won't linger long. So pay attention for their clues.
Another thing you might try...
Light a candle...preferrably one that'll smoke a little, or a cigarette...and watch the air current. The smell is brought to your nose by air...unless you stick your nose right on top of the problem (which is still brought to you by air, of course). You might be able to get an idea of the source if you can see how the air current is traveling.
Good luck.
P.S. I wouldn't caulk all the baseboards if I were you! lol
Have a nice week...
Trent
Follow Joan Rivers' example --- get pre-embalmed!
Look for a crack or bad joint in the sewer line
How do you know if there is a crack or a 'bad joint'? Follow the line down to basement and examine outside of pipe????
Im sure its cast iron, examine it and where the pipes join. This time of year rodents look for a warm home, If it is a dead animal in a week or 3 it should smell less, then go away. I just poisoned a bunch of chipmunks, maybe 20. I hear them dying in the walls. Im not looking forward to the next month. But it will pass, or ill take a vacation. Sewer gas smells well like crap . dead animals are real foul, you say its getting worse, and like garbage, sounds like an animal, but it will dry up then go away. put out some traps, you have more, if you have one. They are a bundle of fun.
On the back side of the sink there is an overflow hole. Put your nose right on it and take a good sniff. After your done gagging, pour some bleach down this hole.
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