SERVING 
When you smell sewage, you know it. A sewage smell in your house is always a problem, not just because it’s gross but because it means there’s a problem with your home’s plumbing.
Sewage smells, of course, sometimes indicate the presence of sewage itself. And sewage in your home can be hazardous to your health, especially if there’s a sewage backup in one of your drains. The bottom line is that it’s never a good idea to ignore sewage smells and hope they go away. The longer you wait, the more likely it is that the problem gets worse.
And when it comes to sewage, nobody wants things to get worse.
“So,” you may be wondering, “Why do I smell sewage in my house?” Let’s consider some potential causes of a sewage smell in your house. We’ll start with the least complicated possible reasons–things you might be able to fix yourself–before considering some of the more challenging sewage problems you might encounter.
1. Dry P-trap
Do you have a sewage smell coming from a specific drain? If you do, you might have a dry P-trap.
A P-trap is the little curved bit of pipe under every sink and shower drain in your home. Water stays in the P-trap 24/7, preventing sewer gasses from escaping into your home. Needless to say, if the P-trap is dry, you will smell sewage in your house!
The easiest thing to do is just run some water into the sink to refill the P-trap. But that only works if there isn’t a leak in the P-trap! If the P-trap is dry, that means there probably is a leak in the P-trap.
That being the case, the best solution is to replace the leaky P-trap with a new one. If you’re super handy, you might be able to handle this one on your own. However, most people call a trusted plumber to handle this job.
2. Broken toilet seal
When a toilet seal breaks, sewer gasses can enter your living space. That’s not good! If you’re smelling sewage around your toilet but the toilet has been flushed, this could be your problem.
Most toilets have a wax seal between the floor and where the toilet drains. Over time, the wax can deteriorate. When it does, you might have water leaks and/or terrible smells around your toilet. The solution is to replace the wax seal with a new one or install a rubber seal.
The process involves removing the supply line from the toilet, removing the toilet from the floor, and cleaning up all the old wax left behind. The next step is to apply a new wax seal and reinstall the toilet. If that sounds too complicated to handle on your own, an experienced plumber can help.
3. Failed cleanout plug
Although you might not think about it much, you likely have an access point for servicing your home’s sewer line. We often call this access point the “cleanout,” and it’s typically found outside your house, in or near your yard.
Every cleanout has a plug that a plumber can remove to service the main sewer line. If the plug fails, gets damaged, or goes missing, you could end up with a sewage smell in your house. If the sewage smell in your house comes and goes, it could be a combination of a failed plug and shifting air pressure in your living space. When the home is under negative pressure, the faulty plug allows air to move through the sewer line into your home.
In most cases, you can buy a replacement plug from the hardware store. It might be a good idea to call a plumber if you don’t know the right size or aren’t sure how to install the plug.
4. Leaky pipe
Here’s where things start to get more complicated. A leaky sewer pipe inside your home can emit hydrogen sulfide, which is that nasty sewer smell you’d love to get rid of. A leak in a sewer pipe can occur, well, anywhere in your home where sewer pipes are found! You could have one in the wall, between floors, or in a basement–anywhere, really.
Finding a leaky pipe can be tricky, but an experienced plumber and sewer line expert will have the equipment and knowledge to address the problem. A common method is to perform a smoke test. Non-toxic smoke will seep through any pipe leaks, which is how you’ll know where the problem is.
After finding the leak, your plumber will likely replace the troublesome section of pipe.
5. Sewer line clog
A clog in the sewer line can cause sewage backup in your home. Sewage backup, in turn, can lead to that noxious sewage odor you would so like to be rid of!
Even worse, sewage backup can cause actual sewage to enter your home via floor or shower drains. It’s unsanitary and could even be dangerous to your health. Simply put, you want to solve this problem ASAP!
If your sewer line is clogged, it’s usually because some kind of unfavorable material was put inside of it. Common culprits are paper towels, wet wipes, and feminine hygiene products. Basically, if it’s not toilet paper, water, or human waste, it can clog your sewer line! In other cases, people pour cooking grease down the drain, which collects further down the line and hardens.
Regardless of what’s clogging the drain, you’re going to need to break it up.
A plumber with drain and sewer expertise will have the tools to locate the clog and either remove or destroy it. Hydrojetting is a common solution to this problem. It works by spraying an extremely high-pressure stream of water into the pipe to break up the clog. Afterward, everything will flow through your sewer pipe again, and you won’t have a sewage smell in your house.
6. Sewer line damage
Sometimes, nobody in your home did anything to clog the sewer line. The sewer line itself won’t be clogged at all; rather, it will be damaged by tree roots.
FACT: Tree roots can grow around or into underground sewer pipes. Believe it or not, this is one of the most common sewer line problems we encounter around Atlanta. Over time, roots, dirt, and other debris will block the entire pipe, leading to sewage backup and disgusting odors in your home.
A plumber can perform a camera inspection of your sewer line to find exactly where the damage has occurred. After that, the most common solution is to remove the section of damaged pipe and replace it with a new pipe.
Do you have a sewage smell in your house? Here’s what to do
If you live in Metro Atlanta and are dealing with a terrible sewage odor in your home, the professionals at PV Heating, Cooling, and Plumbing can help. Our sewer and drain experts will diagnose the problem, identify the best solution, and make the smell go away!
Just give us a call at (404) 282-2915 today or fill out the form on this page to schedule a consultation!
