[samaasim]

Our house has inconsistent sewage smells. We recently had a plumber install an overhead sewer system. He also did train tile inside and around the basement walls with a sump pump. We have an ejector pump that has two vents. One vent carries the waste up from the pit and connects directly into the main sewer line. The other vent goes up from the pit and is connected to the left with a laundry/floor drain and then is connected on the right going to a pipe coming down from an upstairs bathroom and then connects with a main floor tub drain and finally into the main sewer line. From your posting you say that one vent carries the waste from the pit to the sewer line and the other vent is supposed to be by itself? Should it be vented alone to the roof? If it's to confusing I could try to attach photos.

Any thoughts? Thank you.

[speedball1]

The other vent goes up from the pit and is connected to the left with a laundry/floor drain

Ya don't hafta go any farther then that to tell me where your stinky comes from.
You have taken a pit vent that's supposed to be a dedicated vent out the roof and connected it back into your system. You can't do that!
A pit vent not only vents air in as it discharges but also blows air out
as the basement fixtures discharge into the pit. Your plumber should know that. Where do you think all that sewer gas goes when you force it back into your system under pressure? That's right sports fans! Right back in your home.
If your plumber did the work then call him back to vent the pit correctly. Good luck, Tom

[samaasim]

Hi Tom,

A couple of things to add. I live in Chicago and are the requirements different here? The funny thing is, this plumber says he does everything the correct way by obtaining a permit and having an inspector from the city check his work. Which the inspector came out twice. The first was to check the sewer line going out from the house to the city's. The second was to check the inside completion of the ejector pit and sump pump. The plumber "passed" both. How do I get this plumber to "correct" his work? Obviously, he has the city's approval on his side. One other thing to add, when I told the plumber we were having sewage smells he said it was possible the main vent was the problem. So he went up there and stuck a camera down the main vent line on the roof. He came down and told me the two new bathrooms are "wet vented" and that I should sue the previous owner. What do you make of all this? Am I being taken for a ride?

I really thought these inspectors are suppose to "protect the homeowner" since most of us don't know how to do our own plumbing.
If you could add anything I'd appreciate it. Sandra
Sandra

[Milo Dolezal]

Tom is right on...

Samaasim: you were not being taken for a ride. Inexperienced plumbers will easily overlook such details. As far as Inspectors go: they don't know everything either.

This is an obvious mistake and you should explain to your plumber what he did wrong. He should come back to correct his installation free of charge.

What State / City are you in ? Was your plumber licensed ?

Let us know how it went. Back to you. Milo

[not_an_expert]

Before you call a plumber or try anything dangerous (like checking out the roof vents), here's something easy and free to try:

We had sporadic episodes of a really awful sewage smell in our house over the past several years. We kept hoping it would just go away but it recently got worse so, after some online research during which we discovered that, apart from the unpleasantness of it all, sewage gas is also detrimental to your health (causing headaches, eye, nose and throat irritation, etc.), we took the plunge (forgive the pun!) and called the plumber, bracing ourselves for a whopping bill, not to mention all the unknowns (did we need to punch holes and rip out pipes?? ).

Very happy to report that the plumber seems to have solved the problem... with a jug of water! Our furnace and water heater are located in a small room under the stairs, which has a concrete floor with a drain-hole. The plumber (who has decades of experience) immediately suggested pouring a jug of water down the drain-hole, explaining that the u-pipe beneath the floor (which connects to the pipes from the three washrooms, and ultimately to the city sewer) can dry out and cause a buildup of gas. All that is needed is to pour a jug of water down every couple of months or so. So far, it's working... and it only cost $50 for the few minutes of the plumber's time :-)

This, of course, is probably not a solution for everyone but it might be worth a try!

[CliffARobinson]

NOTE: From Samaasim; added as a new question:

Responding to last question. I live in Chicago, IL. The plumber who did the overhead sewer with sewage ejector pit and sump pump is licensed. I actually got in touch with the city inspector who inspected the plumber's work and he said by Chicago code the vent for the sewage ejector pump does not have to vent on it's own to the roof. He also went on to say that the plumber did a great job. I did notice the other day that a floor drain was sucking in air, and started making this pumping sound, what's that about? I will try to post pictures of what the set-up is for the sewage ejector pump is, to maybe make it clearer. The sewage smell comes and go and I tried calling another plumber to take a look, but he never called back. I've been trying to track down the smells and in the basement the smell seems to be blowing down from between the inner and outer wall of the house. My basement is unfinished and there's no insulation in that area. In the upstairs master bathroom the smell is coming from underneath the floor of the jacuzzi tub. There's a removable access panel. One day when I removed it, I actually saw a big hole under the jacuzzi where there was a bid draft of sewage smell coming through. The smell seems to be traveling through open spaces. But all of the smells are only one side of the house where all three bathrooms are located. Another question I had, is what is "wet venting" and could a plumber tell if your bathrooms are wet vented by putting a camera down a main vent?

If anyone has any information to add, I would be very appreciative of your help.
Thanks