JeanGoulet
New Member
How can I add a p-trap to finally resolve an occasional but bad stink in the laundry room?
It has been stinking badly on certain occasions, all the way into the kitchen sometimes, yech.
I investigated fully yesterday and found the problem: there is no p-trap at all for the washing machine. When air pressure is low in the laundry room, sewer gasses are extracted from the drain and come in the house. Shower fan + dryer exhaust fan + closed door = low pressure in that room, causing air suction at the washer drain.
I removed the wall in the basement and saw that the 3" piping just goes across and down into the concrete floor. No p-trap!
I suppose all I need to do is saw at two places and insert a 3" diameter p-trap (which I hope exists?). However since this is a washing machine, it can drain a lot of water real fast, so I have concerns about:
- how close/far away from the washer can I put the p-trap (4 feet down + 4 feet across = 8 feet, is that ok?)
- do I have to check/add venting for a p-trap?
- do I have to think about drain water backing up due to my p-trap?
Whoever did the original plumbing also added a drain pipe (going to the garage for a sink but that sink never got installed) right next to the washer drain pipe. So that garage sink drain pipe is open and connected to nothing. Should I block it or will that cause new problems? Currently it stinks up the garage but the p-trap should prevent this in the future.
Thanks so much for your knowledgeable advice!
It has been stinking badly on certain occasions, all the way into the kitchen sometimes, yech.
I investigated fully yesterday and found the problem: there is no p-trap at all for the washing machine. When air pressure is low in the laundry room, sewer gasses are extracted from the drain and come in the house. Shower fan + dryer exhaust fan + closed door = low pressure in that room, causing air suction at the washer drain.
I removed the wall in the basement and saw that the 3" piping just goes across and down into the concrete floor. No p-trap!
I suppose all I need to do is saw at two places and insert a 3" diameter p-trap (which I hope exists?). However since this is a washing machine, it can drain a lot of water real fast, so I have concerns about:
- how close/far away from the washer can I put the p-trap (4 feet down + 4 feet across = 8 feet, is that ok?)
- do I have to check/add venting for a p-trap?
- do I have to think about drain water backing up due to my p-trap?
Whoever did the original plumbing also added a drain pipe (going to the garage for a sink but that sink never got installed) right next to the washer drain pipe. So that garage sink drain pipe is open and connected to nothing. Should I block it or will that cause new problems? Currently it stinks up the garage but the p-trap should prevent this in the future.
Thanks so much for your knowledgeable advice!