Last night my wife noticed an odor coming from the laundry room and also from the adjacent bathroom. I know better than to question her sense of smell so I went along with her, but not admitting or committing myself.

Well this morning it was still there, even I could not deny it. I ran some drain cleaner down the bathtub drain, and the odor subsided for most of the day in the bathroom, but not in the laundry room. Tonight it is even worse, and it is back in the bathroom also.

Poured more drain cleaner in the bathtub, ran the washing machine through a wash cycle with vinegar. Again, the bathtub is better, but not the laundry room.

It has been hot for about 6 days or more, 100 degrees plus, and some humidity enough to keep you dripping.

My wife says it smells like a cross between sauerkraut and a week's worth of old diapers (if that gives you an idea of what I'm dealing with here).

Anybody have any ideas?

Nick

Since the drain cleaner did not clear it up, I used a plunger in the tub, and it definitely cleared up about 85% of the odor in the bathroom. But it did not help the laundry room. I'm going to use the plunger again tomorrow.

Another oddity about this situation is that when doing laundry and the washer is draining and spinning, the water in the toilet bubbles and gurgles. Also on occasion, the sink faucet makes a groaning sound when it is turned on.

So when you mentioned that there maybe no traps, it sounds like that may be the reason for these problems.

Is there also supposed to be a vent?

Thanks for you help. In the next few days I'll make a trip under the house and check for the traps.

Nick

The faucet groaning is a completly different issue