Smelly Toilet...heeeelp

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katy
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Smelly Toilet...heeeelp

Postby katy » Wed Dec 20, 2006 6:21 pm

One of the toilets has a bad drain smell, :shock: started yesterday. Noticed today that the water in the bowl fills up ok but then goes away after a while. There are 4 toilets and this one is the end of the "network" (highest). I put bleach down yesterday and agua fuerte today. In this bathroom there is bath, sink and a seperate shower everything ok. Plumbing only about 2 or 3 years old.

Have guests in the house but this is not unusual, probably more traffic in summer. Any advice or suggestions welcome, don't want a plumber to start dismantling the bathroom just now.

Campo Kenny

Postby Campo Kenny » Wed Dec 20, 2006 6:56 pm

Someone on the other thread did suggest a plunger for a Christmas present :oops: and all you women scoffed at it :wink:

Kenny

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hillybilly
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Re: Smelly Toilet...heeeelp

Postby hillybilly » Wed Dec 20, 2006 7:17 pm

katy wrote:Noticed today that the water in the bowl fills up ok but then goes away after a while.
Do you mean that the water that normally sits in the toilet bowl now drains away leaving the toilet bowl empty? (It's this water that acts as a barrier in the siphon to prevent the bad smells coming up from the sewer pipe.)

katy
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Postby katy » Wed Dec 20, 2006 10:55 pm

Yes, thats right. It fills up on flushing then gradually goes down. How can it do this with an S bend :?

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hillybilly
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Postby hillybilly » Thu Dec 21, 2006 1:27 am

1. The trap could be partially blocked with....stuff.
2. There could be a broken pipe seal.
3. The toilet itself or outlet pipe could be broken/cracked.

Are any of your guests on the large side?! Sometimes a heavy person can tilt the toilet and break pipe seals etc!

Is this a ground floor loo or one on an upper floor? Is there any sign of water on the floor/under the toilet/coming through the ceiling...?

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hillybilly
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Postby hillybilly » Thu Dec 21, 2006 1:31 am

p.s. You do realise that if you don't sort this now then the problem will reach crisis point on Xmas Eve/Xmas Day!!!!
It's called Murphy's Law (MacGillicuddy's Corollary).

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Postby Alpujarra » Thu Dec 21, 2006 11:23 am

I have come across this problem before.

They don't generally vent the drains here (no stack pipe) so when you flush one of the other toilets it is possible that a vacum is being created within the pipework, which is sucking the water from the trap of the toilet you are having the problem with.

I got over the problem by fitting an air admittance valve, (a one way valve that only lets the air in) which to my knowlege are not available in Spain. You can get them from the UK for about £10. It is usually a fairly straightforward job for a plumber to fit one.

katy
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Postby katy » Thu Dec 21, 2006 12:37 pm

It seems to be OK now. 7 year old Grandson is using that bathroom so who knows he may have stuffed something down :x

Hillybilly, Its the highest bathroom. Know what you mean about Murphy's law. Hope I don't have to add to this post :(

Alpujarra, spoken to the plumber by phone and he suggested it could be this and to leave the manhole cover open overnight. Will get one of those things when in the UK.

Thanks to both of you and have a happy Christmas :D

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toddcl
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Postby toddcl » Thu Dec 21, 2006 1:06 pm

Katy

Sounds like you have a partial blockage in the system that is acting like a vacuum pump. Do you know a man with a set of rods?

I would give the drain a good roding. Cooking fat, cotton buds and women's things may have got snagged in the soil pipe and while at present it is still taking it away, eventually it blocks and you could end up with a really nasty job.

Don't just say it's OK now! If it comes to the crunch in the summer it doesn't bear thinking about.
Resistance is futile, you will be assimilated into the collective

spanish hopes

Postby spanish hopes » Thu Dec 21, 2006 1:52 pm

If the grandson has dropped a rag or similar down the loo in the helpful manner of all children, it is possible that it got stuck part way over the bend.
If the longer length was on the drain side of the bend it in theory could have acted as a syphon, drawing the water out of the bowl.
It could actually have flushed away now which will have cured that problem.
What you need to expect from Constable Murphy on XMAS EVE is when the rag gets stuck in the main drain and all 4 toilets back up and flood into the house. :lol:

katy
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Postby katy » Thu Dec 21, 2006 3:52 pm

I have had the task of alternately flushing the loos whilst hubby checked they were running freely. He says everything is "fine" and escaped to the golf course. I should have shown him the husbands present thread and he might have bought me a set of rods. :)

spanish hopes

Postby spanish hopes » Thu Dec 21, 2006 5:45 pm

Don't spoil it for him Katy, he already has a set on order for your wedding anniversary present as that time is much more special than Christmas. :lol:


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