Hello,

I have a cottage that has a septic system that is 8 years old. The cottage is used once every three weeks or so, all year round. A couple of months ago I noticed a sewer-type smell coming from the shower, only after running the water. The smell was not there at all before I turned on the water.

There is no backup in the shower, sink or toilet, or anywhere in the kitchen. Everything flows very well. At first I thought maybe the stack (is that the right word?) on the roof was covered by snow (we had a TON of snow) but I looked at it and it is clear.

Do you happen to know where this smell is coming from and how I can get rid of it? The more I use the shower, the more it smells.

Thanks for your help.
Amy

Most bad oders in bathroom drains come from rotting hair mixed with grease from the soap. Try this. Remove the two screws holding the strainer. (TIP; put the screws in the soap dish before they get lost down the drain.) Shine a light down there and with a bent coathanger fish out any hair that may be hiding down there. Then pour a 1/2 gal. of bleach down into the trap and let it set over night. Next morning flush the mess down with 2 latge pans of boiling water, (this is important). The bleach will desolve the hair and make it slippery and the boiling water will melt the grease and get the mess out of your drain. Smell better now? If it doesn't you may have a partial blockage downstream that's sending small bubbles of sewer gas back as the water drains. Let me know if I helped. Cheers TOM

I agree with Tom. Most tub/shower smells are rotting hair, body oil and grease. Bleach works great but I like mom's old concoction of mixing 1/2 cup baking soda with 1/2 cup table salt. Dump into the drain and then add a cup of white vinegar. Flush tomorrow with a bucket of very hot water.