[ChicagoBaths]

I recently finished remodeling a bathroom for a client and he has noticed a pungent odor. The bathroom has a walk-in shower, no tub. Floor and walls are tiled in honed limestone. The bathroom has been used daily (including showers) so all drains are primed and it also sits over an unfinished basement so I know there are no leaks. I have also run a camera thru the vanity drain to make sure I didn't leave a cap off a vent or something and everything appears to be perfect. I have never smelled anything in this bathroom and I am confident it is not sewer gas. Any clues?

 

[spdtrx]

I recently finished remodeling a bathroom for a client and he has noticed a pungent odor. The bathroom has a walk-in shower, no tub. Floor and walls are tiled in honed limestone. The bathroom has been used daily (including showers) so all drains are primed and it also sits over an unfinished basement so I know there are no leaks. I have also run a camera thru the vanity drain to make sure I didn't leave a cap off a vent or something and everything appears to be perfect. I have never smelled anything in this bathroom and I am confident it is not sewer gas. Any clues?

When I use my bathroom sometimes It has a pungent order :blush:

 

[OGStilts]

When exactly did you do the bath? Did you install new drywall? Do you know where your drywall came from?

 

[ChicagoBaths]

New greenboard on walls only. cement board in shower surround. drywall was purchased at homedepot (sheetrock)

 

[OGStilts]

drywall was purchased at homedepot (sheetrock)

Tip: Don't say that around here, you are likely to get bashed for shopping at the big box stores.


My point is that, is it possible that it is defective Chinese drywall? I personally haven't dealt with it yet but they say that it has a strong sulfur odor. If your customers are describing a rotten egg type smell you may want to do some more research on whether Home Depot got mixed up with any of the defective drywall problems. I don't know the answer to that but maybe someone else here knows.

 

[ChicagoBaths]

it is also possible that my client is just inventing issues. he was very picky and has refused to make final payment until smell issue is resolved. convenient for him but I cannot fix an issue that may or may not exist.

 

[OGStilts]

Of course that's possible. I am just trying to help you by providing you with alternatives.

 

[spdtrx]

How old is the house ?
Sometimes old houses can produce a sulfur odor from the water.
Well water is like that where I live.
I still have galvanized pipes in some parts of my house and I get
a little sulfur odor once in awhile. Just a thought.
I still don't really know if it's just my well water.

 

[ChicagoBaths]

house is relatively new, less than 20 years. all piping is copper or pvc. we only switched out about 2 sheets of drywall. anyone ever hear of limestone retaining odors? doesnt make sense to me but if there is no water leakage there shouldnt be any mildew or mildew smell. this job is bumming me out. i am going to try pouring bleach down the drains and placing a few charcoal bags in the joists below

 

[Ebbo]

How old is the house ?
Sometimes old houses can produce a sulfur odor from the water.
Well water is like that where I live.
I still have galvanized pipes in some parts of my house and I get
a little sulfur odor once in awhile. Just a thought.
I still don't really know if it's just my well water.

This is exactly what I was thinking.

 

[angus242]

it is also possible that my client is just inventing issues. he was very picky and has refused to make final payment until smell issue is resolved. convenient for him but I cannot fix an issue that may or may not exist.

Did you smell it? Does he know you cannot smell it? Maybe a 3rd party sniffer is in order?

 

[ChicagoBaths]

i agree. i finished the punchlist about 3 weeks ago and just needed a break from this guy. i did not smell the odor. sending a 3rd party over there is a good idea to break the tension on both sides. could be just the placebo effect i need.

 

[ChrWright]

I had a similar issue this year on an old house remodel. Some things to consider:

I know you said you were confident it wasn't sewer gas... but could there be a vent stack fitting that didn't get glued up?
Biofilm? http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/19617/odors_from_floor_drains_tackle_them.html

http://www.contractortalk.com/f9/sewer-gas-smell-recent-remodel-52681/

 

[wizendwizard]

Did we insure there are no dead animals behind walls, in vents?

 

[Dave R]

I know this is going to sound strange, but a few years ago we started noticing a very pungent smell which appeared to be coming from our shower drain. Called a plumber who snaked the drain and checked everything including vents. Everything looked good but we still had the smell.

Long story short, it ended up being a foaming bath wash that my wife had been using ( think it was Oil Of Olay). Evidently the foam would stay in the trap after rinsing and would start smelling after staying there overnight. It was very pungent, like sewer gas or somthing. We discovered it when she ran out of the foam. Tried it again to prove it was the cause and it was.

Just something to check.

 

[ChicagoBaths]

not yet. the smell the client describes is more of a basement musty odor. he says that he can smell it more strongly towards the entry to the door (aways from the shower drain but close to the vanity) and that the smell comes and goes throughout the day. i have asked for how this smell relates to usage, after a shower or use of the faucet but havent heard from him.

 

[Sam60]

Had one, one time, could not find the source.
Ended up being the vanity sink overflow. Alot of crap can grow in there and it never gets washed out unless you overflow sink.
Sprayed in a bunch of foaming bathroom cleaner in the overflow hole. Problem was solved.

 

[buildenterprise]

Here ya go, problem solved.

 

[lopreste]

tell them too flush?

 

[TNGHomes]

Pitch them the finished basement fix. "Well sir after carefull consideration the only way to get rid of that smell is to finish the basement". But then again he will probably not want to pay your final on that either. Good luck with that one..........he sounds like a PITA