We live in the country and use well water, it is softened but all the sink drains have a smell coming from them. I have tried drain cleaners but nothing seems to help.
Try this.
get some course salt - ( it will look like the salt you put on the walkway for slippage) - some baking soda and vinegar.
I put some course salt, a bit of baking soda then about a 1/2 cup of vinegar in to the drain and watch it work. The corse salt acts as an abrasive to clean the pipes and the baking soda/vinegar reaction causes it to scrub.
I do this a couple of times a year but you may want to do it more often to keep the pipes fresh.
if the problem isn't solve, i advice you try check through those pipes inside, there might be some rotten leftovers stuck inside. clean them up and it should be fine.
Hi Janice
I'm a country dweller also, & I'm used to the smells. Is it a smell of copper or eggs? 1 means iron in the water, the other is sulpher-sometimes softeners don't get everything. If you have low water pressure it may be things are slow to drain, causing build-up in the traps. There should be a union trap under every sink- one you can take out if need be, or there should be a clean-out on the bottom of the trap- I find it better to remove the whole trap and see whats in there- you'd be surprised. This should work for you- if not, you may want to think about an Ultraviolet water system. Hope this helps a little- good luck.
I took the pipe under my kitchen sink apart once because it was smelling and cleaned out all the gunk that had accumulated inside it with a metal coathanger. I'd tried the vinegar combination and drain cleaners too before that but it didn't help.
It was foul but worth doing. That's what happens when you have kids that just throw plates in the sink, scraps and all! Don't try it yourself though unless you're 100% sure you can put it back together properly. Best to call a professional if you're not sure.
It sounds to me that none of the pipes are vented. if you have a crawl space them there is a vent that can be installed called a cheater. If it is not a crawl space then run the water slow and if the smell disappears then you might need to vent all pipes. Is a bungalow then it is not that hard if it is a two level or three you might need to have all the pipes redone.
sometimes the "pee trap" doesn't keep enough water in it and sewer gasses get through. option... get a plumber in to see if he can fix it, your water may be draining to fast.
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