Smell coming from kitchen sink

[wire2fiber2]

HI:

Having returmned from vacation, we found a foul smell coming fro the kitchen sink . Smells like rotting plants. I have tried draino foaming liquid, draino crystals but the smell is still there. I was wondering what could be the cause and how to resolve it.

[thezster]

Depending on how long you were gone... the trap may have dried out, letting sewer gases come out of the drain...

Is it draining properly? If it is, and it were me - I'd pour a good slug of bleach into the drain and let it sit for an hour or so before washing the concoction down thoroughly.

Also, is the garbage disposal on that drain too? You might have some crap stuck in the teeth.... I throw a couple of handfuls of ice into the unit once in a while and crush it with the disposal followed by a good flush of hot water - it seems to clean things up pretty well.

If it's not draining properly, you've obviously got something stuck.

Either way, you should be able to disconnect the p-trap under the sink and clean it out thoroughly with a flexible bottle brush or similar tool.....

[wire2fiber2]

Depending on how long you were gone... the trap may have dried out, letting sewer gases come out of the drain...

Is it draining properly? If it is, and it were me - I'd pour a good slug of bleach into the drain and let it sit for an hour or so before washing the concoction down thoroughly.

Also, is the garbage disposal on that drain too? You might have some crap stuck in the teeth.... I throw a couple of handfuls of ice into the unit once in a while and crush it with the disposal followed by a good flush of hot water - it seems to clean things up pretty well.

If it's not draining properly, you've obviously got something stuck.

Either way, you should be able to disconnect the p-trap under the sink andclean it out thoroughly with a flexible bottle brush or similar tool.....

Forgive my ignorance but what is a p-trap

[thezster]

That would be the "loop" - U shaped - under your sink. It should be held together on both ends by compression fittings, which are easily unscrewed (by hand pressure alone)... disassembled, cleaned, and put back together...

It holds a small amount of water constantly to keep sewer gasses from coming up through your drain. It can dry out if left unused for an expended period of time.... It also catches heavy sediment and traps it there...

[wire2fiber2]

That would be the "loop" - U shaped - under your sink. It should be held together on both ends by compression fittings, which are easily unscrewed (by hand pressure alone)... disassembled, cleaned, and put back together...

It holds a small amount of water constantly to keep sewer gasses from coming up through your drain. It can dry out if left unused for an expended period of time.... It also catches heavy sediment and traps it there...

Thnx for the info, I wil try to clean this out as suggested.

[Kristi]

I stongly dislike using all those chemicals to try and unclog your drains or to "freshen" them up. They're highly corrosive and do no favours to your system. I probably get a little more excited about them, because where I live, we seem to think it's alright for the city to dump our waste straight into the ocean with only one stage of treatment (basically having a catch/pit for collecting the biggest and heaviest of solids). Go with thezter's recommendations and pull that puppy apart on your own - the P trap that is. I bet what you'll find is that it's quite clean and required a good flushing. And nothing... almost nothing... can compare to rancid bits of food stuck in your garburator for a couple of weeks. If you have one, I bet that's your culprit. Feel free to toss a lemon 1/4 piece at a time along with that ice treatment...

sorry about the soapbox moment guys

[plumber1]

I agree with kristi............lemon

[toolaholic]

bleach wouldn,t be his best friend?

[thezster]

"Treehuggers"....

Actually, you guys are right on..... and I don't know why I didn't think of it.... water with a slice of lime is our drink of choice in our house.... and lots of limes get sent down the disposal..... and it never smells....

[wire2fiber2]

No, I'm on the city water/waste system. I don't have a garbage disposal but I feel that it probably is food stuck in the p-trap as mentioned in an earlier post.
I will try to clean out the p-trap or replace if necessary and see if this recitifies the problem.

[thezster]

With all the ecologically "sound" advice.... going around..... let us know how it turns out....

[hwebb78]

With all the ecologically "sound" advice.... going around..... let us know how it turns out....

Time to crack open an old post LOL

I'm having the same issue here, the plant smell...doesn't smell like sewage, smells like a head of lettuce is stuck in my kitchen sink drain. I have double sinks, and the smell is coming from the left sink, I don't have a disposal either. I ran bleach down the drain, and still nothing...did anyone find a solution to this?

[jimbo]

http://www.vinegartips.com/Scripts/