we recently purchased an 09 bighorn, we had no problems or the first couple of weeks but the other day I got a sewer odor in the middle of the night, we do not do solids as we are next door to facilities, only liquid,no paper. we flushed and closed all tanks, added chemicals, still have odor, any idea where it could be coming from, not present in bathroom proper, more so in "hall" by bathroom/bedroom. more pronounced in heat of the day, (Florida in July) no odor in basement, or outside, I read the batteries could be over charged and "boiling" checked them too, not there. at the end of my rope, please help
sewer smell- need help
- Thread starter snyders
- Start date
JohnDar
Prolifically Gabby Member
Make sure there are no dead, decaying rodents hidden in the rig. The other source of rotten egg smell is a propane leak.
Check under the sinks for the Studor valves to ensure one is not stuck open, allowing tank gas into the trailer. Unscrew them from the pipe, rinse them and make sure they are functional.
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Check under the sinks for the Studor valves to ensure one is not stuck open, allowing tank gas into the trailer. Unscrew them from the pipe, rinse them and make sure they are functional.
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pjones1969
Well-known member
Grey water stinks as well, have the same issue in the TX heat, I pour some Camco Grey Water Odor Control down the sink and shower drains
https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Lemon-Control-Drains-Treats/dp/B007JG1W1E
https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Lemon-Control-Drains-Treats/dp/B007JG1W1E
danemayer
Well-known member
Picture of a Studor Air Admittance Valve is attached. If the valve fails, air from the tank can enter the living area. If the valve is suspect, temporarily place a baggie over it and tape in place. If the odor diminishes, replace the valve. You can find them at Lowes or Home Depot.
Attachments
thank you for the photo, I would have had no clue that was a valve, lol. they seem fine, no odor from grey tanks, and they have been treated too. the only thing that is different from before smell and after is we closed the kitchen ac vent so more air would come thru the small ceiling vents trying to dispurse more cool air throught the rv. I have opened the single large vent again to see if that was somehow causing the issue, since closing the valve from the connected sewer hose to the city sewer, the smell has been a bit less each day. more in the heat of the day, but still less than the first day. no dead animals, we know decomp when we smell it. no propane leak that we can smell. will keep looking, thank you for all the great advice, ya'll ROCK!
Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn
Well-known member
Are you running your Fantastic Fan ? We get that a lot when running the fan, It actually seems to pull the smells in from the vents. More then likely it is your GRAY water not your black.
Jerrod
Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn
Well-known member
Change to a better Stutor valve under the bathroom sick. Some have covered thires with a baggie and rubber band to see if the smell goes away.
I found mine on Amazon. But i think Home Depot or lowes will have them.
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I found mine on Amazon. But i think Home Depot or lowes will have them.
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Power247
Well-known member
Once again this forum saves the day! I think the vent under the kitchen sink has failed in our rig (kitchen area smells like sewer after dumping the tanks) but wasn't sure what it was called. Ordering from Amazon today!
Greg
2012 | RAM 2500 | CCSB | Custom tuned by Double R Diesel
2016 | Heartland Pioneer | DS310
Greg
2012 | RAM 2500 | CCSB | Custom tuned by Double R Diesel
2016 | Heartland Pioneer | DS310
Lynn1130
Well-known member
The fact that you are getting that smell says that either the gray tanks or the black or both need some work. There are several bio treatments on the market that use good bacteria to clean the tanks. You can try that or/and use the geo method to clean all of the tanks. I think it was mentioned that the gray tanks can smell as bad or worse that the black and need to be attended to as much as the black. Think about all of the food particles that go through those tanks and can degenerate over time.
Once the studor valves have been replace I suggest finding a treatment that cleans the tanks to help lessen the smell issues.
One tactic that I use often is to fill the tank (s) with about 15 gals of water, add a good amount of Dawn and drive to my next camping location. Once there I dump the tanks. You would be surprised what comes out.
Once the studor valves have been replace I suggest finding a treatment that cleans the tanks to help lessen the smell issues.
One tactic that I use often is to fill the tank (s) with about 15 gals of water, add a good amount of Dawn and drive to my next camping location. Once there I dump the tanks. You would be surprised what comes out.
thank you all for all the advice and suggestions, I see it helped one member already. after dumping and closing off from city sewer, it took about 3 -4 days for all the gas to dissapate, we are as of yesterday no longer getting the smell. we feel it was residual build up from when valve was open. looks like this issue is solved. we will keep all these tips and tricks in our heads for future issues. thanks again.
wdk450
Well-known member
I'm glad you think you found the problem. For future reference be aware that some RVers smell sewer gas when in fact the cause is leaking propane. That happened in my rig, and even though I had a dealer's service "professional" out to my rig, he misdiagnosed the smell as sewer gas. I finally proved it with a propane leak-down test. It was a well hidden leak, and took other RV service professionals hours to find the cause.
Most people say that you smell propane long before the electronic alarm ever rings off.
Most people say that you smell propane long before the electronic alarm ever rings off.
JohnDar
Prolifically Gabby Member
You can buy an inexpensive handheld gas detector to check your lines and fittings with. Helped me find a slightly loose (almost 1/2 a turn) fitting on the furnace after it had been serviced. Things can come loose in travel, hoses can be kinked and breached, or service technicians don't eat their Wheaties before coming to work.
olcoon
Well-known member
Glad you found your issue! One thing to think about is a product called UNIQUE (LINK), it's a "green" product and does a great job. We've been using it for several years & now when I dump the black tank all that comes out is colored water-no solids. We've even started using the same TP we use in our sticks & bricks with no issues. You can also use it in the grey tanks.
Sometimes you can find it in an RV store, but we usually get it from Amazon, it's cheaper there than going through Unique's website.
Sometimes you can find it in an RV store, but we usually get it from Amazon, it's cheaper there than going through Unique's website.
wdk450
Well-known member
I had a "deluge" of sewer flies this summer with over a month straight of temperatures above 100 degrees, 3 months near or above 100 degrees. The hanging sticky strips fly traps worked best for me. Yes, they are unsightly, but more unsightly were the sticky three sided baited cards I got at the 99 cent s only store - They had all 3 sides full of tiny flies in less than a day, and the flies were very visible on the bright yellow attractant background. The long tan sticky strips work well too, are cheaper, although it is harder to see the "catch".
I think that the flies were mainly growing in the sink/shower tank, as I saw a black mass flush through when I dumped that tank. Supposedly the water in a plumbing P trap is no obstacle for the sewer flies, as they swim through the water. The toilet piping doesn't have a P trap, but the rubber seal and standing column of water in the bowl seems to keep the flies in the tank there. I think that I will put a flat rubber sink stopper over the shower drain when it is not in use, put duct tape over the bathroom sink overflow hole temporarily, and keep the sink drain valve closed while not in use until the fly problem is no longer noticeable.
I think that the flies were mainly growing in the sink/shower tank, as I saw a black mass flush through when I dumped that tank. Supposedly the water in a plumbing P trap is no obstacle for the sewer flies, as they swim through the water. The toilet piping doesn't have a P trap, but the rubber seal and standing column of water in the bowl seems to keep the flies in the tank there. I think that I will put a flat rubber sink stopper over the shower drain when it is not in use, put duct tape over the bathroom sink overflow hole temporarily, and keep the sink drain valve closed while not in use until the fly problem is no longer noticeable.
THANK YOU so much!!! I thought something was wrong when I saw all these tiny dead bugs in the shower but didn't think anything about it. We go away every other weekend. This was a longer trip and OMG I was so grossed out at these dang flies. Do you have any issues with the smell that seemly starts in the bathroom closet. I know the sewer line runs up the side of the closet. My hubby went on the roof and check the valve and it was okay. I am beginning to wonder if it wasn't the dang flies. Oh I am still grossed out lol. Thank you again.
You will also get a rotten egg smell from the hot water flow if you have left water in the hot water tank for a few weeks or longer. We always empty the hot water tank after each trip to eliminate it. The DW won't drink the water otherwise. This could also have contributed to the odors.
