Powder Room SMELLS!

I recently remodeled our powder room. Marble tile on backer board, wainescotting walls, crown molding - nice vanity and a kohler toilet (nice one).

In the past couple of weeks, I have been noticing a ... stale urine smell or at least a musty odor. I don't know how to describe it. I also want to say it smells like cultured marble (if you know what that smells like).

The orginal closet flange was rusted so I had to reinforce it with one of those spider like plates.

Anyway - the floor was about 1/2" higher than the closet flange finished. So I used a plastic spacer with marine grade silicone, stuck it on top of the close flange, then used a 35B reinforced wax ring and stuck it on the toilet. Put the toilet down, sat on it for a bit above the ring area.

I'm wondering if I did something when I bolted it in.

ALSO I didn't use any plumbers putty on the footprint like some say to do because I didnt want it up higher. I used silicon on the footprint of the toilet, put it in place, then placed a latex white caulk around the floor and toilet to finish it off nice.

Well now the caulk in certain areas is yellow. A sign possibly that I have a leak and the silicon is keeping it in enough so that it doesnt leak out but the stink is obvious? or?

The ceiling below is finished to a point, then there is the actual drain where it isnt finished for some reason. I don't see anything but there is a refrigerator and bench blocking the pipe. Using a flashlight I see absolutely nothing, nor do I smell anything in that room....however, keep in mind that the marble tile and cement board are built entirely up to the and around the closet flange, so maybe it leaking will not show below because it won't penetrate the closet cement board and marble tile.


EDIT: Yes I do have a sink connected to the toilet drain. It is connected in teh same fashion as prior to remodeling and there is no smell when you wiff near the sink drain before or after running the sink water or flushing the toilet.
heeeeeeeeeeeeellp

Thanks

Do the flange properly. It sounds like you really cobbled up the floor and flange.......

Not sure what you mean. I read on here what to do in the beginning. The spider reinforcing ring was suggested by a local plumber who uses them often, and was also suggested on here by someone else. The issue was the difference in height, in which I did both one two different suggestions by other plumbers. One, use a spacer and two use a extended reinforced wax ring (35b).

They make flange extenders. Search this forum and you'll learn all about them.

Yea sorry, I posted them as 'spacers' in my post,...

Ok they are called extenders.

At any rate...used them.

Any ideas?

To state the obvious, it seems like you're not getting a water-tight seal. I've actually had some success using two wax rings when the flange was slightly lower than the floor, and not using any extender. I'm sure the licensed plumbers on this website would cringe, though if they heard that.

Trying to figure out what your trying to say and by an extension are you meaning you used a wax ring with a horn, then as someone said use another setting seal on the bottom of the seal with a horn.

Sorry, but this is the way I see it.
God forbid doing it the correct way, or finding a good plumber. Maybe you have been getting poor advise from shoemakers.

Smells like this can have various sources. The discoloration of the caulk implies that your seal with the toilet may be bad. If the toilet rocks at all, it will compromise the seal. If when you set it in place, it wasn't seated properly, you can have problems. Sounds like you need to pull the toilet and look to see if there is a problem there.

A cat or dog may have decided to mark that location, too, and that can be nasty. Little boys, and old men are known to miss as well.

Wax seals are good, cheap, and can last a long time. That being said, I've used Fluidmaster's waxless seals on the two toilets in my house. I did it because I needed to pull the toilets occasionally during remodeling, and didn't want to scrape off wax and redo things. Fernco also makes one. This has an advantage in that it has a built-in horn, and can take some jiggling while setting the toilet in place without causing the seal to fail. In that manner, it is a little easier for the non-pro, but wax is fine. A doubled up wax ring is more prone to blowout with a plunger, but that is rare, too.

Pull the thing, check the floor to see if it is wet, clean it up with an enzymatic cleaner and maybe some bleach if it is wet, let it dry out, then reset the toilet.