Bad smell coming from bathroom possibly from toilet

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JoeyDYI80

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Recently we noticed a bad smell coming from our downstairs bathroom. When we investigated it further it seem that there was some leakage from base of the toilet. So had a plumber come out, took out the toilet, and informed us that the wax ring had failed. So he replaced new wax ring and reinstalled the toilet. The smell never went away and it actually got very bad. The smell gets especially bad when the temperature outside gets very hot. The smell is like a sewer like smell and its very bad. The whole bathroom smells bad and we can pinpoint it coming from base of toilet since we are unable to smell it from sink or bathtub. This bathroom does not have a fan, just a HVAC vent and window. What could the issue be here? Is it some sort of blocked pipe? blocked vent?
 

Reach4

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Do you use a plunger?

How long ago did the plumber replace your wax?

The whole bathroom smells bad, but you can pinpoint the smell.

 

JoeyDYI80

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Do you use a plunger?

How long ago did the plumber replace your wax?

The whole bathroom smells bad, but you can pinpoint the smell.

No plunger.

Plumber replaced wax ring about a month ago.

It is on the 1st floor on ceramic tile on concrete foundation. We brought in a few water restoration damage companies to check out the area (leak only affected a few ceramic tiles by the toilet..no drywall damage behind toilet, etc.) and they pretty much recommended there is not much to do since it is so small and localized and underneath is concrete. It was caught soon and did not spread far from toilet base.

So when the plumber that installed the new wax ring and toilet again did not caulk the base of the toilet all the way. He left a small region in the back of the base uncaulked. After a few days the smell was present day and night as you walked passed the bathroom. So the last few days we tested something and put tape over the small region that was left uncaulked to see if that would make a difference. So right now it is 1pm here on west coast and no smell is present outside or inside the bathroom (and it is already at 100 degrees outside).

Yesterday there was no smell too, until late in the afternoon when it was present again. One other thing that I can think about is so far today that toilet has not been used or flushed yet. Yesterday there was no smell until the toilet was used and flushed. So I don't know if that makes a difference or not.
 

Reach4

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Watch the level of the water in the toilet bowl, and see if it is lower when you get the smell.

If there is any doubt about where the smell comes from, cover the toilet with a cheap plastic drop cloth. Sniff under the plastic, and the smell should be more intense there if the smell is from the toilet.

husky-drop-cloth.jpg
 
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Dj2

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You may want to recheck your bowl of wax - you may need to double it to get a better seal.
 

JoeyDYI80

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Watch the level of the water in the toilet bowl, and see if it is lower when you get the smell.

If there is any doubt about where the smell comes from, cover the toilet with a cheap plastic drop cloth. Sniff under the plastic, and the smell should be more intense there if the smell is from the toilet.

You may want to recheck your bowl of wax - you may need to double it to get a better seal.

Another thing that we experimented today was that all day today we did not use the downstairs toilet or sink. The weather got pretty hot too around 104 degrees and there was no bad odor up to 9pm when we got back home. The bathroom window as open as normal. Then around 1030pm we used the kitchen sink to wash dishes and used the garbage disposal. Then about 30 minutes after we were done I went to the bathroom to check and I could smell the bad odor again before even entering the bathroom. And when I opened the door sure enough the odor was back. So I don't know what is going on now. Just trying to isolate the issue to one source if I can.
 

Reach4

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He actually doubled it and put a riser on it to make it level with the tile.
Risers above the closet flange can leak gasses.

If there is any rocking of the toilet, that can also cause a gas leak. Shims should be placed before dropping the toilet onto wax.
 

JoeyDYI80

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Risers above the closet flange can leak gasses.

If there is any rocking of the toilet, that can also cause a gas leak. Shims should be placed before dropping the toilet onto wax.

So we tested another theory the last few days. So we sealed the small opening at the base of the toilet with tape for now. The first few days we did not use that bathroom at all and there was no smell. The next day we used it a few times and the sink too and still no smell. So yesterday there was no smell at all day (toilet was flushed few times) until late night. My wife washed the dishes in the kitchen with hot water running for a good while. After she was done she went by the bathroom and noticed the smell was present (even outside the bathroom). When she opened the door sure enough the smell as back. What could this suggest to us on where the smell is coming from? Both the window and HVAC vent were open.

One other thing I might add is that the bath/shower combo in this bathroom has not been used in quite some time (possibly a few years or more). Maybe the water was run a few times in that time frame, but no one has actually used it for a full shower/bath. Could the smell be emitting from this drain by any chance due to lack of use?
 
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