Sulfur Smell From Septic System

nunn

From time to time, we get a rotten-egg sulfur smell coming from the drains, most apparent in the utility room. Any ideas for making it go away?

Forkliftking

Quit eating boiled eggs.

savage170

check you roof vents to make certain they're not clogged

Gotteskrieger

I get a smell too soemtimes. I pour bleach,or pinesol in the drain. Try taking the trap apart,it might be filled with gunk. Are you on a septic tank?

tomahawk

flush a box of rid=x then pour a box of bakin soda into a pitcher of water stir it up and pour an equal amount down each drain so it will sit in the trap for awhile

MFinn

Me too, usually in the down stairs bath room, it is not used that much, I just tunr on the water and let it run for a while.

reloader44mag

quote:Originally posted by MFinn
Me too, usually in the down stairs bath room, it is not used that much, I just tunr on the water and let it run for a while.
Thats all you need to do.

kumate

It is H2S and can be lethal.Try some ironite sponge.If none is available then try a quart of vinegar down each drain

cpermd

quote:Originally posted by Gotteskrieger
I get a smell too soemtimes. I pour bleach,or pinesol in the drain. Try taking the trap apart,it might be filled with gunk. Are you on a septic tank?


Do NOT do that if ,like me, you have a septic tank.

CP

HandLoad

Nunn - oftentimes, when a drain/tub/sink is unused for a long time, the liquid evaporates, allowing gases from the septic system to come back up. all you need to do to stop that is run some water.

If your system uses a pump to lift the effluent to a drainfield that is ABOVE your tank, then sometimes the pump is clogged, or off-line, and all you need to do is get it back on-line. If it is clogged, then you may have to dig it up. Locating and digging it up can get spendy.

We had a problem with our septic tank overflowing, and after digging up the lids, opening and pumping out the system, we found that our Dog's hair had made a near-impenetrable "Felt" filter that prevented the effluent getting to the pump suction. A little pressure washing and reflushing and repumping out, and we were back in business.

A J Christ

Mostly good advice but I would not add any chemicals to a septic system except an enzyme to help the spectic tank do its thing.

First look closely at the rood vents to be sure none are clogged, be sure that all the traps have water in them.

Might get a professional plumber to take a look and be sure that the vents are correctly installed and working.

Worst things for a septic tank are cigarette butts, coffe grinds, a garbage disposal and the use of most of the chemicals sold to clean or speed up drains.

allen griggs

Do you routinely use an enzyme like Ridx?
This stuff really works great. Available at the local grocery store.
I flush a box of Rid-X down the drain every three months.

fishkiller41

Keep the P-Traps full..

dan kelly

flush a couple of cups of lime down your toilet...the stuff you put on a garden to balance the ph..until i moved to where i am now i`ve always lived where we had septic tanks...every year i flushed a cup of lime down the pipes...no smell.

look at it this way..it won`t cost you much to try it....it`s always worked for me.

jimdeere

Enzymes are good for septic systems.
Enzyte is for a different kind of plumbing. I just want to be "straight" about that.
[8D]
A guy I grew up with we called "Sink Trap". When he took a whiz, he held it by the end and the back part hung down like a sink trap.
Do you know the difference between a plumber and a pipe fitter? Put them both in a barrel of chit. Swing a two by four at their heads and the one that ducks is a plumber.[8D]

nunn

Sometimes I forget what happened last time. There is a floor drain in the utility room that never gets used. Have to remember to pour water down it from time to time to keep the trap full. Sorry to bother ya'll, but thanks for the good answers.

jimdeere

It's hell gettin' old, ain't it?[8D]

nunn

Yup, and it darn sure ain't for sissies!

FrancF

I have wondered "how" you guys dig your leach field / drain field there in TX? I mean in the case of floods or tons of standing water etc so It still drains?

nunn

All new systems are aerobics, far as I know. At least I heard those are all you can get a permit for. Mine is an old, gravity-flow, open system. I wasn't here to see it put in, but everything from the bathrooms goes into the first 550 gallon tank, then to the second 550 gallon tank, then to a lateral line that runs across the back yard and ends up near my pole barn.

This black clay soil doesn't percolate well, and the field wasn't back-filled with anything but gravel and native soil, so at the end of the lateral line, there is what we refer to as a "wet spot." The previous owner didn't like the wet spot being close to the door of the barn, so he dug a trench, draining the water past the barn. All he did was move the wet spot. I dug a hole at the end of the trench, using the dirt from the hole to make a dam, and made a small reservoir instead of a swampy wet spot. In the middle of that hole, I planted a bald Cypress tree. The tree has gotten really big in the last 10 years or so.

FrancF

Now that makes sense to me.[:)] Same here, a basic Gravity ladder if you will.

dongill

Hydrogen sulfide or sewer gas. That is what the water trap is for!

stetson

The cheapest thing the septic guy told me to do is put a package
of bakers yeast mixed with hot water down the drain. This is the cheapest preventative maintenance going.Also the most damaging
to your septic tank is the gray water coming from the washer,dishwasher.The soap used kills the bacteria in the tank.

TangoSierra

I have a cousin that lives in east Texas. Has a grey water holding tank just past the septic tank that has a pump in it. Pump is connected to a sprinkler system in the pasture. Don't get caught in the pasture when the system kicks on [:D][:D]