Friends of mine have been in this house for about two years and it has a bad smell.She tells me the smell has been bad from day one. I was over doing some work for them and tried fixing this smell problem with no luck. First of all I checked the wax seals under the toilets... wow. What I found was one needed another wax seal put on top the one that was already in place. I don't think it was touching the toilet at all before. I think the guy that lived in the house before kept building the floor up and never thought once about increasing the flange height... the things you find. The second toilet in the same bathroom... dont ask, I have no idea why some would put two toilets in the same bathroom in a house. I take the second toilet out and cap it off. The smell is still in the house and bad as ever. She also tells me when she does the wash that the smell is even worse... and it is pulling water from the toilet. I think it is a venting problem but I am not sure where to start or what to do. Her boyfriend said he checked the vent pipe on the roof and it is clear. Could it be sucking the water out of the P traps and the smell is coming back? Do we need a plumber in and smoke bomb the pipes to see where the smoke comes out. I am all out of ideas and don't know what more I can do for them. Please help... smelling in Ontario... lol.

If you have checked all the traps and toilet seals and can't see any open pipes a smoke bomb will certainly tell you if there is any open joints.
Are you sure its coming from the sewer pipes?
Is it a constant smell or can you detect a pattern of when the smells occur.
i.e.. Hot weather, rainy weather.
I have found several different sources of "sewer smells" in houses.
The most common cause is a blocked mainline sewer. This doesn't seem to be the problem here.
Some of the other problems I have found include, rotten meat that someone forgot to put in the freezer, cat litter boxes, stagnant water in the floor drains, something in the heat vents, sump pumps that are operating sporadically, rotting vegetation around window wells.
Good luck tracking it down.

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She also tells me when she does the wash that the smell is even worse... and it is pulling water from the toilet. I think it is a venting problem but I am not sure where to start or what to do. Her boyfriend said he checked the vent pipe on the roof and it is clear. Could it be sucking the water out of the P traps and the smell is coming back?

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The boyfriend's wrong and you're correct. It's a vent problem. If all you have coming out of the roof is one pipe then you have a attic that has the other vents revented back to it and the boyfriend didn't check squat. Trace the washer vent back and snake it. It sounds like the suction from the washer is pulling the trap seal down to the point of allowing sewer gas to enter the home. Good luck, Tom

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Originally Posted by speedball1

The boyfriend's wrong and you're correct. It's a vent problem. If all you have coming out of the roof is one pipe then you have a attic that has the other vents revented back to it and the boyfriend didn't check squat. trace the washer vent back and snake it. It sounds like the suction from the washer is pulling the trap seal down to the point of allowing sewer gas to enter the home. Good luck, Tom

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Thanks Tom ,I think you are correct and I will start by checking the vent pipe myself and see what I can snake around... lol... thanks again. I will let you know what I find out.

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Originally Posted by Ken 297

If you have checked all the traps and toilet seals and can't see any open pipes a smoke bomb will certainly tell you if there is any open joints.
Are you sure its coming from the sewer pipes?
Is it a constant smell or can you detect a pattern of when the smells occur.
ie. hot weather, rainy weather.
I have found several different sources of "sewer smells" in houses.
The most common cause is a blocked mainline sewer. This doesn't seem to be the problem here.
Some of the other problems I have found include, rotten meat that someone forgot to put in the freezer, cat litter boxes, stagnant water in the floor drains, something in the heat vents, sump pumps that are operating sporadically, rotting vegetation around window wells.
Good luck tracking it down.

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Ken all I can say is when I pulled off the first toilet the smell that came out of that drain smelt just like the rest of the house. The smell seem to be the strongest in the main floor bathroom. She says the smell gets stronger when she does the wash. Yes the house smells like crap all the time... just get worse at different times. Thanks, Mike