Seriously smelly drains

[Marijn]

Does anyone know how I can remedy smelly drains. I've had every man hole cover up, and looked at all the drains that guttering and down-pipes are running in to, and there are no blockages. The water is running freely and the water is clear, but there's still a horrible smell and it permeates through the house. Any ideas what I can do, it's been like it for weeks, and I don't want to just mask the smell. I also put powerful plug hole unblocker down the bath plug hole, but none of the plug holes are blocked anyway. Any good ideas gratefully received, thanks.

[HowardKennitby]

Are you on ground floor? If yes do you have a space under the floor?

[Marijn]

I live in a house with an upstairs and downstairs. I'm not aware of a space under my house. Why, what do you think it could be?

[HowardKennitby]

If your downstairs floor is wooden there will be a space under it. I was just wondering in something had got in and died there.

[tonyav]

Neat Jays fluid is pretty good.

[Brinjal]

Agree with Jeyes fluid if you don't like that smell a strong drain cleaner not necessarily an unblocked.

[Marijn]

The downstairs floors are all concrete. It smells a little like something has died. But everything is running freely and clear water. It doesn't make sense. Thank you both for answering.
Would the neat fluid cure the problem, or mask the smell temporarily. Where can I buy it?

[tonyav]

Thanks for that Brinjal, I thought that I had miss spelt it.

[tonyav]

Hardware shop, Wilkos etc.

[Marijn]

I will try the Jeyes fluid, thanks. But will it cure it? If the water is running clear from the drains, how can I tell where the smell is coming from? Thanks again.

[tonyav]

I'ts a bit difficult to pin point it its not the drains.

[Marijn]

It is very difficult to diagnose. The down pipe's drain hole near my front door is a particularly bad one, but the gulley from that is only a foot away from a manhole cover, and when I pour a bucket of water down that I can immediately see the water running away down the gulley under the man hole and it's clear with no obstructions. It also stinks in the garage where there is a down-pipe drain but that is fairly near another man hole cover too, so I can see that's fine too. Thanks for all your help.

[tonyav]

Yep, sounds strange.

[EvianBaby]

Are you sure something hasn't died down there. Just something that's small enough to not block the drains?

[firewatch]

Have you got any fat traps or blocked u bend thing under the sink? Our house stunk like something had died when we got home from holiday. After alimanating drains etc I deconstructed the sink and that was the cause!

[sandyRoe]

How long have you been in the house? Maybe the last occupier buried their ex under the patio.

[Marijn]

I have flushed everything out and if there was a mouse or somesuch it would've been flushed out.
I've lived in the house for years and this smell has been going on for a couple of months. The smell isn't coming from the kitchen sink, I've just had a good sniff around there, and no problems. I am appreciating every answer cos it's giving me some new ideas, and hopefully I'll crack it in the end. Thank you.

[kat1]

Do you have a dishwasher? I clean house & find the ones that have dishwashers have smelly sinks/drains. If so the cause of it is stagnent water in the drainage pipe.

[The Builder]

Notters ............. I've had this before, and it was an "air admittance valve" that had stuck open. It's hard to describe what to look for.
Are there any soil pipes boxed in anywhere. Usually they're in a corner, about 6" x 6", and hollow if you tap them.

[marden40]

how old is your house?..........assuming you are on mains drainage and not tanked.....in the old days surface water (rain) and foul water ( toilets ) both used the same drain......but for many years now this is not the case....every house has two separate drain runs and it is against the law for one to run into the other......when the drains cause a smell its usually because of water leaking from a broken pipe or fitting and the water is running into the ground and rotting......toilets, sinks etc have traps on them that hold water and prevents the smell entering the house.......on soil pipes if the soil stack is inside the house and not outside..there can be a valve fitted on the top with a rubber diaphragm in that can stick open after time.....this would be on the toilet drain and can be in the loft of your house on in a boxing somewhere ..... I would suggest getting a good independent surveyor to have a look round, don't be duped by rouge trades creating expensive solutions to your problem and achieving nothing.

[jomifl]

Does it only happen when the wind blows from a particular direction. Sometimes water traps in drain pipes from sinks, baths and shower dry out because of lack of use. When this happens the wind when blowing from certain directions can suck air from the drains up into the house through the dry trap. This usually has a stale urine smell. You could try running a cupful of water down all the waste pipes or close all the doors and check each room after an hour or so for the smell, the wastepipe in the smelliest room is probably the culprit.