Ugh..the Smell...

Updated on August 22, 2007
T.K. asks from Plainfield, IL
10 answers

We have a laundry room in our apartment and there is a drain that the water from the central air unit goes into on the floor, well every time we open the door, the room smells like sewage, it is disgusting, can anyone recommend something we could possible pour down the drain to elieviate the smell? I know that it is something we will have to do periodically.

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K.C.

answers from Chicago on

T.,
Did you try vinegar and hot water? that usually does the trick but you do have to do it often which is a pain but try that and see if it works.

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C.U.

answers from Chicago on

alternate bleach and hot water

M.H.

answers from Chicago on

Vinegar is great for getting rid of smells. You can also take the peels off of any citrus fruit, but especially lemon, and pour finely chopped pieces into the drain. Or you can get a citrus essential oil (don't use directly on your skin--they must be diluted properly for the skin) and put a few drops down the drain and around the edge of the drain hole (essential oils are extremely volatile and flammable, so don't do this if it would be exposed to any sparks, intense heat, or flames).

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K.C.

answers from Chicago on

T.:

This happens to my drain as well. I pour a cup or two of bleach and flush it with water and that usually takes care of the smell. Good luck!

K.

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L.F.

answers from Chicago on

We have the same problem at work with the bathroom drains. They drain our roof. We simply pour a full pitcher of water down it. If that does not work try equal parts of baking soda, salt and white vinegar. Example one cup of each. Mix the dry ingredients first then add the vinegar. Pour it in the drain. It will fiz up and give a better smell. This works on sinks also.

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L.W.

answers from Chicago on

Hi T. we had this same problem with a drain in the office where I work. All you have to do is pour water down it--the smell occurs when the drain dries out, thus allowing vapors from the sewer to come up. If you fill it with water (we usually filled a coffee pot full of water and that amount did the trick), it provides a "cork" of sorts to keep the stinky air down there where it belongs.

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L.G.

answers from Chicago on

Hi T.,

Try pouring water down the drain. Usually floor drains start to smell like sewage when they are dried out and the vapors start rising up.

L.

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R.H.

answers from Chicago on

Hello,
Bleach Bleach Bleach
buy a small bottle of cheap bleach and pour the entire container into the drain and let it do its job.
Or you could try the baking soda and vinergar trick

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M.M.

answers from Chicago on

We had the same problem in our house. (We don't have a basement) We actually thought that it was the diapers (I cloth diaper). Anyways, I talked to my dad and he said to pour some water down the drain. I know it sounds silly, but totally worked. The way that the drain works is there is something the keeps a layer of water above the smell that works as a filter for the smell. Because it's water as time goes on it evaporates. So periodically pouring fresh water down the drain puts the seal back. Hope it works. We also put some odor rid containers in the room just in case and it has worked very well. (And we still put our dirty cloth diapers in the laundry room.)

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A.A.

answers from Chicago on

We get drain flies in ours and also have the smell. It smells right now because we haven't had the air conditioner on in a while. I usually dump some bleach down it and then flush the bleach out with a bucket of water. You will have to do it probably every 3 months or so.

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