House smells like sewer when doing laundry. You may experience a foul smell while doing the laundry. Do you know what that means?
There might be an issue with the plumbing system associated with the machine drainage system.
Dealing with the smell can be harmful to health. Sometimes you may get rid of the smell by running some water or adding cleaning agents to the drain. If this trick does not work, then It will acquire a professional intervention.
Let’s investigate the reasons for these foul sewer smells.
Once the underlying cause of the smell is localized, apply various methods to fix the problem.
House smells like sewer when doing laundry
However, if the source of the smell cannot be located, one must search their washer — the cause is likely to be hiding somewhere in your laundry room.
The most common causes of a washing machine smelling like sewage are improperly installed P-traps or drain clogs or even vent pipes that have become clogged.
1. Dried Water Traps
Your home may smell like a sewer because of dry traps.
Location of dry traps
- Below your floor drain.
- under your washbasin
- Laundry tub.
The function of the water trap
It prevents sewer gases and foul smells from opening up the drain. If these traps get dried, the water traps get defected, allowing the foul odor to reach your laundry room.
Reason for dried water traps
The water traps contain a network of nets that are full of water.
When you do not do your laundry for too long, the water in the net starts to evaporate.
The nets are kept non-refilled. That’s why the traps get dried. Once they are dried, they lose their functionality to prevent foul smells.
Fixing the issue
It’s simple! All you need is a bucket full of water.
Take the bucket and pour water into the trap.
Remember to check for leakage, the drying of the trap may be because of a leak.
After activating the water traps, the foul smell will diminish.
2. Drain Clogs
When doing your laundry, a clog may interfere in the drain because of hair or soap from clothes.
Reason of smell
These clogs build up bacteria that create a foul odor.
Fixing the issue
Try to remove the clog to prevent a pungent odor.
3. Defected P-Trap
The foul smell coming from the drain is due to dryness in the P-Trap
Function of P-trap
The water in a P-trap prevents sewer gases from entering through the drain into your home. When the trap dries up, it loses the functionality to trap the gases.
4. Washer Issues
- If the problem lies in the washer, you will experience rotten eggs smell from your laundry room.
- The reason behind this smell is the accumulation of bacteria, dirt, mildew, fungi, mold, and lint in the machine washer.
- Clean the washer to avoid foul smells.
5. Broken Sewer Lines in House
- You may deal with the most significant problem that causes the sewage odor in your laundry room. Any guesses?
Yes! It is a broken sewer line.
- It will be a forceful task to fix.
- It can result in an enormous mess is avoided.
- You may consider this problem if other problems are not the cause of the foul smell.
- For this problem, call a professional to fix the issue of a broken sewage line.
- Remember to avoid fixing yourself. You may end up with more severe issues.
Health issues due to sewage smell
- Sickness
- Difficulty in breathing
- Organ damage
- Eyes, nose, and throat irritation
- Exhaustion
- Headache
- Vomiting or nausea
- Dizziness
- Poor memory and coordination
- Contains methane, flammable.
- Hydrogen sulfide in the sewage gas is responsible for the foul smell and side effects.
- Even death
Conclusion
House smells like sewer when doing laundry. If you experience a foul smell, quickly identify the cause. Once the cause is known, try fixing the issue. Remember to take proper safety measures before fixing the issue.
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