A sink or toilet that smells like sewage is not always because the drain is blocked. If you’re wondering why there’s a strange smell coming from your bathroom, here are five possible causes:
1) You may have water in the pipes (or roof). This can make the pipe underneath your house susceptible to freezing and bursting. Try emptying out some of the dirty dishes from under your sink and then try running hot water into it for 30 minutes
2) The sewer line could be broken near your home as has been seen before by other homeowners across Canada. There was even an incident with a Toronto-based construction worker being electrocuted while he tried to fix a clogged manhole
The “rotten egg smell after flushing toilet” is a common problem. It can be caused by the following: 1) The water pressure in your home is too low, 2) The water heater is not working properly, 3) Your toilet has an old wax seal that needs to be replaced, 4) There’s a clog in the sewer line, 5) You have a faulty flush valve.
If your bathroom smells like a sewer after flushing the toilet, it’s a sign that something needs to be fixed. A stinky toilet might be caused by a number of things, so it’s important to look through the list of possibilities to figure out what’s generating the odor. Fortunately, once you’ve identified the issue, it’s typically simple to resolve.
When you flush your toilet, it may smell like sewage because of a broken wax sealing ring, blocked bathroom vents, or a fractured toilet bowl. Replace the wax ring or clear the clogged vents to remedy it. However, you may need to purchase a new toilet to repair the damaged toilet bowl.
If you have to squirm every time you flush the toilet, something is wrong with your toilet system. It may also need rapid intervention; else, it may escalate into a much more serious issue. In this post, you’ll learn more about why your toilet smells after flushing and how to remedy it, as well as practical advice on how to get rid of the odor and prevent it from happening again.
1. A Wax Sealing Ring That Has Broken
A wax ring is included in every toilet base to help keep water and smells out. When you flush the toilet, however, a loose or cracked seal permits sewage smells from inside the toilet and drain pipe to be forced out. Worse worse, water may start to leak from the toilet, creating water damage.
If the toilet moves as you sit on it, you know the wax seal is broken. The seal may potentially be damaged by the hydraulic pressure of a plunger. Replace the wax ring to repair the damaged seal.
2. A Toilet Bowl That Is Cracked
Toilet cracks usually form under the toilet bowl and are thus not apparent. Water might leak out of a gap in your toilet bowl, causing sewer gases to flow into your bathroom. Unfortunately, a fractured bowl may be difficult to repair, necessitating the replacement of the complete toilet. Engage the services of a professional to do this task for you.
3. A clogged drain pipe or toilet trap
This may happen when there is a buildup of waste in the toilet trap or drainpipe, or when things are flushed down the toilet. When you flush the toilet, the scents from these clogged objects might sometimes be detected. To clear the obstruction, use a plunger or a combination of baking soda and vinegar.
If this doesn’t work, have a professional plumber to examine your pipes and clear any obstructions to avoid reoccurring clogs or a toilet overflow.
4. A Blocked Exhaust
A blocked vent is another probable reason of the sewer-like odor after flushing your toilet. Because the drain vents are clogged, the air has nowhere else to go except the bathroom. Frost may stop the vent pipe going through the roof, which is a typical issue during the winter. Clearing the bathroom vents enables air to flow freely through the vents, allowing sewage gas to escape.
A faulty vent, once again, might cause your toilet to vent via the tub rather than outdoors. When this occurs, when you flush the toilet, you will hear a gurgling sound in your tub.
5. A Toilet That Isn’t Used Often
If you have a basement toilet, you may detect an unpleasant odor when you finally flush it after a lengthy period of inactivity. In normal conditions, the P-trap holds some water after flushing, acting as a barrier to keep sewage odors out of your bathroom.
However, if a toilet isn’t used often enough, the water in the P-trap may evaporate, allowing smells from the drainpipe to escape. Pour some water down the drain to get rid of the foul odor. Alternatively, you might flush the toilet, which will fill the P-Trap.
Flush your toilet on a regular basis to prevent future issues. This will keep the water in the P-trap from leaking out and flooding your bathroom with noxious fumes.
Any of the following factors might cause your toilet to smell like sewage:
- A vent pipe that has been placed wrongly, has been chopped, or has broken. Engage the services of a skilled plumber to detect and resolve the issue.
- If the seal between the toilet and the wall is loose, sewage and water may leak. This may collect in cracks surrounding your toilet, attracting bacteria that cause a foul stench as they multiply. To remedy the problem, caulk the toilet seal.
- Bad germs from the sewage system might find their way into your toilet bowl and grow in hot, humid circumstances. Pour white vinegar or chlorine bleach into the flush valve or overflow pipe to destroy the germs and remove them from the system.
Is Using a Smelly Toilet Harmful to Your Health?
Sewer gas is not only unpleasant, but it may also be dangerous to one’s health. One of the ingredients, methane, is very flammable if it accumulates in significant quantities. Methane gas may also cause nausea, dizziness, headaches, vomiting, loss of consciousness, and even asphyxia if it escapes into the rest of the home.
If the stinking toilet smells like rotten eggs, hydrogen sulfide gas is most likely to blame. This foul gas is produced by sewer bacteria, and disinfecting the pipes is necessary to eradicate it.
Also bear in mind that if the barrier that seals out waste gases fails, airborne diseases and sewer bacteria may enter your bathroom. As a result, you should put on a painter’s mask before checking your toilet to prevent inhaling hazardous chemicals.
Final Thoughts
There’s more to a stinky toilet than your unusual food choices – particularly if you can’t get rid of the stench by cleaning, flushing, or applying air freshener. It’s possible that the toilet needs to be repaired or that your drains need to be cleaned. It’s possible that you won’t be able to pinpoint the root of the problem.
Regardless of the origin, fix the problem as soon as possible to avoid it deteriorating and having expensive repairs. If you can’t figure it out on your own, get a professional.
The “toilet smells of urine despite cleaning” is a common problem that occurs when the toilet gets clogged. There are 5 possible causes for this issue, and they are as follows: 1) not enough water in the tank 2) overflowing tank 3) plugged drain 4) blocked sewer line 5) broken flush valve.
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