Foul Odors in Your Kansas City Bathroom

August 23, 2023

You’ve scrubbed the toilet, bathtub, and sink, mopped the floors, cleaned the vanity – and you notice an odor of sewage, but can’t imagine where it’s coming from. Is it your imagination, or is there really a problem? As you bend over the sink and tub, you don’t really smell anything; you can’t pinpoint exactly where the odor’s coming from, so you clean the toilet one more time.

As trusted Kansas City plumbing professionals, we can tell you it’s probably not your imagination!

There are several reasons for sewage odors

While we can’t say for certain what’s causing the foul odor in your bathroom without diagnosing the problem in person, there are several possible culprits.

Of course the smell isn’t pleasant, and could even be embarrassing if you were to have guests over. Even more concerning is the fact that the methane in sewer gas is not healthy to breathe, and in large quantities can actually be flammable!

That said, the news isn’t all bad. Once you’ve determined where the smell is coming from (or had a professional plumber diagnose the problem for you), it’s usually a fairly easy and affordable fix.

Sewage odors usually indicate an issue in the plumbing system, which could be one of the following:

• Vent pipe that’s improperly installed, or a cracked vent pipe
• Blocked roof vent
• Broken seal on the toilet
• A leak in or around the P-trap
• Evaporation of water in the bathtub, walk-in bathtub, sink, or shower P-trap
• Clogged drain

Now you’re probably wondering, what is a P-trap exactly? Basically, a P-trap is a plumbing fixture that traps debris (hair, lotion, toothpaste, etc.) that has drained from the sink. This “trapping” prevents clogs from forming further down the line in your plumbing system, which could be a much more serious issue. P-traps are installed beneath sinks, and because of the shape retain a small amount of water. This water is what keeps sewer gas from coming back up into your home.

While the foul odor could be caused by something else, most likely it’s due to one of the above issues. If you’re smelling something “foul” in the bathroom despite all of your cleaning and scrubbing efforts, there’s likely a plumbing problem.

Whether you know what’s causing that nasty smell or need help diagnosing it, schedule your service online or give the Kansas City plumbers at Hamilton a call today! We’ll have your home smelling fresh as a daisy again in no time.