Mobylola

I have a situation where a customer has a strong intermittent odor in his home, mostly in the upstairs bathroom.

In my investigation, I see that the downstairs bathrooms are correctly vented out through the lower level roof, but there seems to be no vent pipe for the upstairs bathroom. I suspect this is the source of the problem whereby the missing vent pipe results in pressure forcing air/odor out through the p-trap in the upstair bathroom.

Since the toliet is alongside the outside wall, I am planning to pull the siding so we can add a vent pipe from the waste pipe through the roof. However, the sinks are on the inside wall and I don't know if I can easily connect drain vent pipes from there to the waste pipe vent.

My two questions are (1) does my conclusion seem right as to the source of the problem and (2) if I only vent the waste pipe and not the sink drains, is the problem likely to remain?

Thanks,
Peter

Double-A

No real way to tell without a smoke test or just busting into some walls to see why there are no vents.

The stubs for them might be there, but were not taken up through the roof for some reason.

__________________
"My clients’ wishes are the center of my attention." -- David Guido, a contractor in Woodstock, N.Y.
New York Times, July 20, 2006

BULLHART

makes sense to me. Time and material.

mickeyco

I'd check the wax ring first, then plug the sink and bath/shower and any overflows and then flush the toilet, then you'll know if there's no vent. You can also plug the stuff above and fill other sinks and tubs in the house, drain them and flush the other toilets at the same time, if there's no vent you'll see it siphoning from the toilet in the bathroom in question. If the bathrooms not used often, I mean for months at a time the water in the sink or bathtub/shower trap can evaporate and let out sewer gas. Check the attic if there is one, I have seen vents terminated in the attic. If it's not vented and you have to install a vent and are going to pull a permit you'll have to do it to code.

robertc65

I know that when my wifes hair begins to accumulate in the shower drain It smells pretty bad. I have to clean it out about once a year. I can't figure out however why I'm the one going bald.

Rob

plumber jay

Rob t
he hair probably isn't what smells bad. The hair is causing capillary action. This is the water in the trap travels up the hair into the waste line causing trap seal loss(hence the smell of sewer gas)