Smells

[Jones Liu]

Dear Plumber, Please help!!! No one can seem to fix our problem! We live in a house that is only a year and a half old. Our washing machine started to leak, so my husband replaced the pump. This did not fix the leak and the washing machine also began to smell. We just assumed the smell was something about the new pump since it was an old washer. We went ahead and got a new washer. After it was installed and we started it up, we got the same smell. It is a gassy burning sort of odor. We were thinking the problem had to be something that both washers had—the plumbing. The first plumber came out and said there was nothing wrong to call the Maytag man about a five day old washer. Knowing this was not the case, we did it anyway. The Maytag man came out (and probably thought we were insane) and said nothing was wrong with the new washer but he replaced the belts anyway. This didnt help. Today, we had another plumber who came out. He checked the vent which was clear and also replaced our trap. To our dismay, we are still getting the smell. We are on city water and sewage. The hoses have been replaced on the washer………….have you ever heard of this?? Like I said, both the old and new washer did this and the smell mostly seems to come when the washer starts to spin. Also, we experimented with the washer by taking the drain hose out and letting the washer drain into a barrel. We did not get the smell then. Any advice would be appreciated. This has been going on for over a week now.

[L. AndersonParticipant]

WELL YOUR NOT CRAZY I HAD THIS HAPPEN BEFORE.. IT IS SIMPLE. THE PIPE THAT THE DRAIN HOSE FROM THE WASHER GOES INTO NEEDS TO BE SEALED. IAM NOT SURE WHAT CAUSE THIS PROBLEM BUT I KNOW THAT IF YOU GET A GOOD SEAL ARROUND THE PIPE THE SMELL WILL GO AWAY.. THERE ARE A FEW PRODUCTS OUT THERE FOR THIS PROBLEM, THEY ARE TO KEEP THE DRAIN FROM OVER FLOWING BUT WORK GREAT FOR THIS TYPE OF PROBLEM… I BELIEVE THAT THE ARM ON THE P-TRAP IS TO SHORT AND IT MAY SOUND FUNNY BUT IT PUSHES THE WATER SO FAST IT LEAVES ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF WATER LEFT TO SEAL THE SEWER GAS.. SO I ADDED A FOOT TO THE PIPE AND SEALED IT .. NO MORE SMELL.. GOOD LUCK YOUR FRIEND THE PIPEXPERT.. P.S. LET ME KNOW HOW IT GOES.

[L. AndersonParticipant]

WELL YOUR NOT CRAZY I HAD THIS HAPPEN BEFORE.. IT IS SIMPLE. THE PIPE THAT THE DRAIN HOSE FROM THE WASHER GOES INTO NEEDS TO BE SEALED. IAM NOT SURE WHAT CAUSE THIS PROBLEM BUT I KNOW THAT IF YOU GET A GOOD SEAL ARROUND THE PIPE THE SMELL WILL GO AWAY.. THERE ARE A FEW PRODUCTS OUT THERE FOR THIS PROBLEM, THEY ARE TO KEEP THE DRAIN FROM OVER FLOWING BUT WORK GREAT FOR THIS TYPE OF PROBLEM… I BELIEVE THAT THE ARM ON THE P-TRAP IS TO SHORT AND IT MAY SOUND FUNNY BUT IT PUSHES THE WATER SO FAST IT LEAVES ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF WATER LEFT TO SEAL THE SEWER GAS.. SO I ADDED A FOOT TO THE PIPE AND SEALED IT .. NO MORE SMELL.. GOOD LUCK YOUR FRIEND THE PIPEXPERT.. P.S. LET ME KNOW HOW IT GOES.

[L. AndersonParticipant]

Dear Pipe Expert,We were unable to obtain an extension for the drain hose today but did seal off the drain and still got the smell. My husband also tried the test again with the barrel—letting the washer drain into it while a rag was stuffed in the drain. To our surprise, we got the smell with the drain hose out and going into the barrel. Do you have anymore suggestions for us?? Thank you for your advice.

[L. AndersonParticipant]

Dear Pipe Expert,We were unable to obtain an extension for the drain hose today but did seal off the drain and still got the smell. My husband also tried the test again with the barrel—letting the washer drain into it while a rag was stuffed in the drain. To our surprise, we got the smell with the drain hose out and going into the barrel. Do you have anymore suggestions for us?? Thank you for your advice.

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