Smell Under Kitchen Sink

mamaerin · 10-06-2008, 12:25 PM

Last week we fixed our clogged kitchen sink. While we were under the sink checking the p trap and such we noticed a hole in a rusted pipe leading into the wall. We left the sink drain pipes "unassembled" overnight and there was a really weird smell that might be from the sewer pipe having a hole in it. We replaced the pipe the next day and our sink is no longer clogged and is not leaking, but the smell is just as bad as it was when the repair was in progress.

It doesn't smell like raw sewage and it doesn't smell like mold, but it smells very unpleasant and it radiates through the whole kitchen and living area (even with the cabinet doors closed). It is obvious that the smell is coming from the cabinet under the kitchen sink, but we are stumped. I know that I can't live in a house that smells this way much longer! It smells like an old church building with a dirty bathroom or something (but not like poop)!

Could it be sewer gas? I have no idea what sewer gas would smell like and nothing I have read about it has really enlightened me. What else might it be? How do we figure out exactly where the smell is coming from? I don't want to keep covering up the smell...I want to get rid of it! He did use a snake to clear a clog deeper down in the pipes. Could that have made a hole in the pipe further down?

Thanks for your help.

MNMomof4 · 09-20-2009, 11:41 PM

Hi, did you ever figure out what the problem was? Family with 4 little ones and 4 daycare kids have the same problem

and I don't want to have to (nor can I afford to) call the plumber out to fix it.

Lisa

mamaerin · 09-21-2009, 12:51 AM

No, we never figured it out. Through the late spring and summer the smell was gone. After a week of rain and cooler weather recently, the smell is back. I'm still not sure what it is or what to do about it. It is absolutely coming from under the sink. It's not as strong as it was before, but it is really annoying.

weberus3 · 09-23-2009, 11:45 AM

Reading the post here did you guys check the vent pipe? Its possible there is a rotting leaves there or fowl water in the vent pipe that came in from the vent end on the roof. I'll be watching for your fix. It always seems to be the simple things we over look sometimes.

Scuba_Dave · 09-23-2009, 12:01 PM

If you had a hole in a waste pipe that leads into a wall you need to open up that wall
Something could have crawled in & died (mouse) or it may have rotted enough to let water in from outside
Or you coiuld have another leak inside the wall

Either way I would not let it go
A damp wet area will quickly rot out studs, joists etc

10-06-2008, 12:25 PM	#1
mamaerin Newbie Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 3	Smell Under Kitchen Sink Last week we fixed our clogged kitchen sink. While we were under the sink checking the p trap and such we noticed a hole in a rusted pipe leading into the wall. We left the sink drain pipes "unassembled" overnight and there was a really weird smell that might be from the sewer pipe having a hole in it. We replaced the pipe the next day and our sink is no longer clogged and is not leaking, but the smell is just as bad as it was when the repair was in progress. It doesn't smell like raw sewage and it doesn't smell like mold, but it smells very unpleasant and it radiates through the whole kitchen and living area (even with the cabinet doors closed). It is obvious that the smell is coming from the cabinet under the kitchen sink, but we are stumped. I know that I can't live in a house that smells this way much longer! It smells like an old church building with a dirty bathroom or something (but not like poop)! Could it be sewer gas? I have no idea what sewer gas would smell like and nothing I have read about it has really enlightened me. What else might it be? How do we figure out exactly where the smell is coming from? I don't want to keep covering up the smell...I want to get rid of it! He did use a snake to clear a clog deeper down in the pipes. Could that have made a hole in the pipe further down? Thanks for your help. Last edited by mamaerin; 09-21-2009 at 12:49 AM.

09-20-2009, 11:41 PM	#2
MNMomof4 Newbie Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 1	Smell Under Kitchen Sink Hi, did you ever figure out what the problem was? Family with 4 little ones and 4 daycare kids have the same problem and I don't want to have to (nor can I afford to) call the plumber out to fix it. Lisa

09-21-2009, 12:51 AM	#3
mamaerin Newbie Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 3	Smell Under Kitchen Sink No, we never figured it out. Through the late spring and summer the smell was gone. After a week of rain and cooler weather recently, the smell is back. I'm still not sure what it is or what to do about it. It is absolutely coming from under the sink. It's not as strong as it was before, but it is really annoying.

09-23-2009, 11:45 AM	#4
weberus3 wood hobbyist Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Tennessee Posts: 39	Smell Under Kitchen Sink Reading the post here did you guys check the vent pipe? Its possible there is a rotting leaves there or fowl water in the vent pipe that came in from the vent end on the roof. I'll be watching for your fix. It always seems to be the simple things we over look sometimes.

09-23-2009, 12:01 PM	#5
Scuba_Dave Xtreme DIY'r Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: South of Boston, MA Posts: 17,248	Smell Under Kitchen Sink If you had a hole in a waste pipe that leads into a wall you need to open up that wall Something could have crawled in & died (mouse) or it may have rotted enough to let water in from outside Or you coiuld have another leak inside the wall Either way I would not let it go A damp wet area will quickly rot out studs, joists etc

Smell Under Kitchen Sink