Hi everyone,

I have seen similar questions but am not sure if answer applies in my case. We recently built a house and began noticing a sewage gas smell coming up from our master bath tub. Shower is separate from tub. I also notice a gurgling sound in the master tub when we flush the master toilet, don't know if this is related or not. We have only been in the house 1 1/2 months, and the plumber suggested we fill the tub with water and let it drain, thinking that the p trap was empty, allowing gas from our septic system to come back up. We tried that and it worked for about 2 days and then the smell was back. Often I notice the smell most strongly when someone takes a shower, but also at other times. I saw on several posts that the roof vent could be the culprit, could we have a clog in the roof vent so soon after building? Any other suggestions? I should maybe mention that we have a 2 story house, and the master bedroom is on the second floor.

Thanks,

Stacey

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Originally Posted by StaceyH

Hi everyone,

I have seen similar questions but am not sure if answer applies in my case. We recently built a house and began noticing a sewage gas smell coming up from our master bath tub. Shower is separate from tub. I also notice a gurgling sound in the master tub when we flush the master toilet, don't know if this is related or not. We have only been in the house 1 1/2 months, and the plumber suggested we fill the tub with water and let it drain, thinking that the p trap was empty, allowing gas from our septic system to come back up. We tried that and it worked for about 2 days and then the smell was back. Often I notice the smell most strongly when someone takes a shower, but also at other times. I saw on several posts that the roof vent could be the culprit, could we have a clog in the roof vent so soon after building? Any other suggestions? I should maybe mention that we have a 2 story house, and the master bedroom is on the second floor.

Thanks,

Stacey

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Hi Stacey,

I'm amazed that your plumber didn't explain about about "gurgles" and "bubbles". Let me correct that. "Bubbles" and "Gurgles". They are both indicters that something's going on in your drainage system.
A "bubble" indicates a clogged line while a "gurgle" indicates a blocked vent. Let me explain. When you flush the discharge drains down the pipe until it hits a partial clog. Then it rebounds back sending a "bubble" of air ahead of it. When you flush a toilet or drain a bathtub a suction is created by the water rushing down the pipe. This suction is relieved by a open pipe that runs to the outside called a vent. When a vent's stopped up the suction has to relieve itself somewhere, in this case your tub. The noise you hear is the air being pulled through the water in the trap by suction, (gurgle). The water seal in the tub trap would be lowered by the vacuum allowing sewer gas to escape. Sewer gas is harmful to your families health and the methane content in sewer gas is explosive.
Your bathroom ls vented by the lavatory vent. It could be a critter that died in there or construction debris that was left but a snake should be dropped down the vent to be sure it's clear. The only other answer would be faulty plumbing design.
Have this taken care of at once. Good luck and let me know what you find. Tom

Hi Tom,

Thanks for your reply, and I'm going to call my plumber as soon as I get done here. I didn't realize how dangerous this could be. So, what you are saying is that the gurgle I hear is indicative of some clog, which is why the p-trap is not staying full and preventing the gasses from coming back up. A blockage in the venting above is causing the seal in the tub to not work properly, thus letting the gasses come back up from the septic tank? It sounds like somehow when I flush the toilet it is causing so much suction that it's pulling the water out of the p trap? Is this right?

Thanks for your help and concern.

Stacey

Quote:

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Originally Posted by StaceyH

Hi Tom,

Thanks for your reply, and I'm going to call my plumber as soon as I get done here. I didn't realize how dangerous this could be. So, what you are saying is that the gurgle I hear is indicative of some clog, which is why the p-trap is not staying full and preventing the gasses from coming back up. A blockage in the venting above is causing the seal in the tub to not work properly, thus letting the gasses come back up from the septic tank? It sounds like somehow when I flush the toilet it is causing so much suction that it's pulling the water out of the p trap? Is this right?

Thanks for your help and concern.

Stacey

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That's about what I'm saying Stacey!