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I Think I Smell Sewer Gas – Home or Office – Who Can Help?

If you need sewer gas assistance as discussed in this article, call us at 973-366-4660 or email us at info@atlenv.com for details and a free estimate.

Written By: Robert E. Sheriff, MS, CIH, CSP, President

February 4, 2020

Is It Sewer Gas?

The first thing to do is make sure the smell is sewer gas—usually a rotten egg smell—and not a natural gas smell, which usually smells like a skunk.

If you think it’s a natural gas smell (skunk!), call you’re natural gas company immediately. If they can’t be reached, call the local fire department. If it’s anything but a very faint smell, evacuate the building and wait for the gas company to give you an all-clear. A natural gas leak can lead to a violent explosion. (Natural gas is odorless; the skunk odor is actually a chemical called a mercaptan that is added to the natural gas to warn us of the danger).

If you indeed notice a rotten egg odor, it may be sewer gas. Sewer gas is mostly methane, which is odorless, but it’s almost always mixed with other gases, the most common of which is hydrogen sulfide (for you chemists—H2S) which creates the rotten egg smell. The hydrogen sulfide comes from decomposing organic matter, either animal or vegetable.

A sewer gas odor can come from a household septic system, or the sanitary sewer system. Many suburban and rural households have septic systems but most urban and commercial/business buildings are tied into a sanitary sewer system. The most common source of sewer gas odors whether residential or commercial is a “dry trap”. A dry trap occurs when a sink, floor drain, or toilet is not used for some time, the water trap in the drain line dries out and the sewer gas then backs up into the room. Another common source of sewer gas is a broken drain line or vent pipe that allows sewer gas into a crawl space, basement or mechanical area or occupied space, which then seeps into the office, factory, warehouse, apartment, etc. Plugged or backed up drains can also push sewer odors back into the air. Often food stores and restaurants have grease traps in their drainage system which can plug up if not degreased and maintained regularly, resulting in some powerful odors.

In an office or commercial building, the “dry trap” or leaking drain line leaves the strongest odor on Monday morning when the building is shut down for the weekend. This is due to the lack of air movement that allows the odor to intensify without disturbance. Daytime occupancy settings on the HVAC System, doors opening and closing, people traffic, etc. keep the odors diluted

Another common time for the odor to increase is during or after a hard rain. The drain system gets overloaded and pushes the sewer gas back into the building especially when the vent system is plugged or broken, a sewer pipe is broken or sewage from outside is pushed into the building.

Is Sewer Gas Hazardous?

Besides the offensive odor, sewer gas can be hazardous especially over any extended period of time. Methane gas can displace oxygen, especially in a confined space, and be deadly. Hydrogen sulfide is also toxic. Fortunately for us, we can generally smell Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) at very low levels and far below what could be toxic. However, as the H2S gets stronger, we lose our ability to smell it. Scientifically, it’s called Olfactory Fatigue! Thus, you don’t know if the H2S is gone or it has overwhelmed your sense of smell and can be life-threatening!

If you smell the rotten egg odor of sewer gas, check first for dry traps. Just add water to fill the trap. This will block the path for the gas to escape. If that doesn’t work, it could be a broken line, a vent that is plugged or not vented to the outdoors, a dead animal somewhere, or even worse, some other source of hydrogen sulfide than a sewer system. It’s time to get help from someone who can inspect for possible sources—a plumber or contractor. Some plumbers have the equipment to pump smoke into the drain system and see if the escaping smoke identifies the leak.

Get Help

Another option is to contact an environmental consultant, such as Atlantic Environmental, Inc., who has the equipment to test for methane, hydrogen sulfide or other gases, and identify the source and the concentration, and give you specific guidance on correcting the problem. We can respond quickly to your request. Call us at 973-366-4660, email to info@atlenv.com or use our contact form for more information.

Our primary service areas are NJNYNYCPACTDE(Boston) MARIWash DCWIMDMI(Chicago) ILVAIN(Atlanta) GAALNCSCTN(Dallas, Ft Worth) TXOKDCAR. We can service most other areas of the U.S. but with some added travel charges.

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