[moreheadcity]

I have a 40 year old ranch on a basement with a septic tank. I have a laundry room, bathroom, floor drain under the carpet, and a water shut off in one of the closets---all in the basement. I keep getting bad smells MAINLY coming from the laundry room, the water shut off closet, and the main room where the drain resides under the carpet. Rain and mega water usuage throughout the house seems to make it worse. I tried the bleach/boiling water trick in the washer drain and things got BETTER for a while... but it seems like every time my husband flushes the toilet (sorry, tmi) I can smell everything in the basement... If it's the floor drain, how could I check the trap without destroying my carpet? The smells COME and GO... maddening.:mad:

[moreheadcity]

Desperate bump

[ballengerb1]

Floor drains with traps dry out under carpet, this allows sewer gas to seep past the trap. You need to get some water back into that trap. Make a very small hole and use a turkey baster if you can't get anything finer to puncture the carpet. This will happen again if the water in the trap evaporates and it will.

[moreheadcity]

I suggested the same thing you said to my husband after reading and reading on this site. I'm going to TRY to feel for the drain... there's a hump and a dip, I'll search it, slit it, and find a turkey baster... I'll let you know how it goes!! Thanks so much!

[ballengerb1]

You can probably get the baster to fit through a large nail hole so don't slite that rug yet. The floor drain should be centered in a slight depression on the floor, feel around for the dip.

[moreheadcity]

K, good idea thanks..

[moreheadcity]

I cannot 100% figure out where the drain is because of all the carpet.. There is a hump and a couple dips, but I don't know what to do without pulling my carpet up ahhhhhhhhhh!

[ballengerb1]

Try poking through the carpet with a large needle of thin finishing nail. If they covered over the floor drain they likely did not seal it but who knows for sure. Is the carpet held by tackless stripes around the edges? You know where I'm going don't you.

[moreheadcity]

Hey,
Yeah, I just HATE to pull up the carpet. There are so many dips, could there be more than one drain?

[ballengerb1]

My basement is about 22 x 48 and there are three in my floor. I my town our codes resquires floor drains to go to a sump pump and not the sewer so I just sealed my drains. That's what yopu can do too once you find them.

[moreheadcity]

SO, GET THIS:

I called the previous owner who lives 4 miles up the road from us... The man who remodeled the entire house. He said THERE ARE NO DRAINS IN THE BASEMENT. SO, what now?? Surely he would know since he put down new carpet.

[ballengerb1]

OK I guess we will forget the dried up drain idea. My next thought is how the washing machine is drained. Does it go into a stand pipe or a laundry tub. The stand pipe may not have a trap.

[moreheadcity]

I'm not too sure. The hose goes into a big square that leads outside. It seems the worst of the smell is in the closet in the living area that has the two water shut offs... when NOTHING else has odor, it always does. I'm running a dehumidifier and my humidity is under b/t 40 and 50%. I initially thought it was a moldy smell, but after the septic guy pumpled the tank, I KNEW for sure that was what I was smelling... but where is it coming from ugn.