Hi - I live in a Town House that is 1 year old. There is a sewage smell -- not a soap or mildew smell -- when we use the laundry room washer after a few days of non use. It is bad for the few minutes of the water coming into the washer tub - I guess the incoming water pushes the smell higher in our top loading washer tub - it then disipates and does not smell for subsiquent uses that day. It will smell a few days later when used again. I have checked the drain pipe through the wall at the back of laundry room - there is a trap down about 3 feet - it is the smallest trap I have ever seen - the line then connects to a pipe that goes up as a vent and down to a large drain pipe 12 feet away in the crawl space. Our builder says he has never heard of this before. I am going to write a letter to the Warranty Program but would like to hear if it's likely 1) too small of a trap or 2) a partially plugged vent above the drain connection or 3) some other thing. 4) is a drain lint trap a fix or advisable?

Thanks for your time.

Rodger

Hi rodger, I may have a partial explanation for you based on my own experience, even with a new washing machine and dryer. I used to have this problem, a bad odor, if I accumulated laundry in my washer for a day or two until I got enough of a load to wash. In there, of course, would be dish towels, etc. from cleaning the counter, they get smelly because of bacteria accumulation, and then put in the washer as well. Hence, a bad odor, especially on very warm days. Bacteria still accumulates in the washing machine because there are items in there still wet. I know it isn't my drains, I never considered that possibility. I just don't accumulate washing any longer for any more then a day in the hot weather because of that bacterial odor problem. Very unhealthy when you think about it. Plus your clothes after in the dryer come out smelling not so good as well.

Tick

Hi Tick - Thanks for the thought but we don't leave any laundry in the washer so that can't be it.
Thx.
Rodger