My kitchen sink keeps backing up and outside of my house there is a foul smell , I found the source of the smell and dug up a big cement lid it had water around it so I know that is where the clog is but I don't know if I should open it to see what might be clogging it

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Originally Posted by ricardo j 69

my kitchen sink keeps backing up and outside of my house there is a foul smell , i found the source of the smell and dug up a big cement lid it had water around it so i know that is where the clog is but i dont know if i should open it to see what might be clogging it

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That's a septic tank... call a septic tank company from the phone book to come pump it out.

I have a different take on this. If you have a septic system then what you've dug up is the grease trap. (see image) Grease traps are there to prevent grease and food particles from reaching the drainfield and clogging it. The solution would be to pop the lid and clean out the trap. This is a dirty, smelly job but it has to be done. Good luck, Tom

Ricardo, how close to the home did you find this lid and where are you located?

Hey Bob,
If it was on the kitchen drain line then it's for sure it's a grease trap. As far back as the 50s grease traps were mandatory. If not for grease traps the drainfield guys would all be driving Jaguars and vacationing in their beach house in Aruba. Cheers, Tom

Right,but if only the kitchen sink backs up it would have to have its own drain line running outside the home. Started wondering if this was a real rural area or maybe foreign country where they sometimes use cisterns. Maybe Ricardo could come back and give us more info.