[JBarracks]

I have a strong Sulphur smell coming from one hot water tap in the bathroom. It lasts for a few moments only but it is a strong smell. Any ideas from water/plumber experts?

[Investment Painting Contractors]

Have you recently went on vacation and turned your hot water off?

[JBarracks]

No, we have been here since March.

[Investment Painting Contractors]

Originally Posted by JBarracks

No, we have been here since March.

I sent you a PM Len

[Nova Filtration]

Sounds like buildup of sulfides in the tank.

Give us a call, 352.566.2649

[KayakerNC]

Anode needs replacing.

[Stdole]

Look under your sink that is smells like sewer gas (which it is) the builder has used what is called a
study (sp?) valve instead of running the vent pipe out through roof. This little device is a short cut
for about $6.00 to $20.00 depending on the quality. They use the $6.00 model. Now as your first
draw of water usually in the morning creates a small area/space at the gooseneck of the drain and
instead of going out the correct long vent to the roof, it simply goes to the short 1 ft. study vent/valve
under your sink... they work very poorly at best and just put there to barely pass the plumbing code.

I know this to be true as I have had that smell in two homes here and have checked with master
plumbers here and elsewhere and this is definitely the cause... the builder will not fix your problem
as it passed code so they say... Just check with the plumbers that come into Lowes where these
valves/vents are sold and you can actually see how these vents work... I have tried to make the
goose neck under the sink deeper without much success.. The difference in the price of the vents
(studdy vents) is the quality of the rubber diaphragm inside... its actually a one way vent device.

Save your time on asking the builder to come by with their plumbers and smell... they will turn
the water on quickly filling the goose neck quickly with water and the smell disappears... until
a period of hours pass or next morning there it is again... it has nothing to do with water heaters
etc. Just look under your sink and compare with the other sinks, washing machines etc. I have
taken pictures during construction and brought it to their attention before the dry wall went up..
Reply from the builder "it passes code" we know what you are speaking of but we will not
correct it for you at any cost... Hope this helps

[alncon2]

I had the same problem regarding sulphur gas smell in one of our bathroom sinks. One area to look at is the overflow opening in your sink. This is the little hole at the top of you sink. This overflow opening directs water to 2 small holes located in the primary drain. Often times even though you pour some brand of drain cleaner into you sink these holes are not flushed out resulting in an accumulation of hair and other debris catching in these small drainage holes which in my case caused this sulphur smell. I took a cup of bleach and poured it into the hole at the top of my sink flushing hair and debris out and the smell was gone. It is a simple fix that my address your problem. Good luck!

[PennBF]

Yesterday the water pipe in the bathroom, (shut off valve) blew completely out of the wall with a force that knocked a picture off the wall. Water came out like a fire hose. With luck we were home and shut off water to the house and called our plumber. He replaced the unit in the wall and said he had no idea why it happened and had never seen it before? Does anyone have an idea as to why this happened? It appears that pressure had been building up?

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Stdole

Look under your sink that is smells like sewer gas (which it is) the builder has used what is called a
study (sp?) valve instead of running the vent pipe out through roof. This little device is a short cut
for about $6.00 to $20.00 depending on the quality. They use the $6.00 model. Now as your first
draw of water usually in the morning creates a small area/space at the gooseneck of the drain and
instead of going out the correct long vent to the roof, it simply goes to the short 1 ft. study vent/valve
under your sink... they work very poorly at best and just put there to barely pass the plumbing code.

I know this to be true as I have had that smell in two homes here and have checked with master
plumbers here and elsewhere and this is definitely the cause... the builder will not fix your problem
as it passed code so they say... Just check with the plumbers that come into Lowes where these
valves/vents are sold and you can actually see how these vents work... I have tried to make the
goose neck under the sink deeper without much success.. The difference in the price of the vents
(studdy vents) is the quality of the rubber diaphragm inside... its actually a one way vent device.

Save your time on asking the builder to come by with their plumbers and smell... they will turn
the water on quickly filling the goose neck quickly with water and the smell disappears... until
a period of hours pass or next morning there it is again... it has nothing to do with water heaters
etc. Just look under your sink and compare with the other sinks, washing machines etc. I have
taken pictures during construction and brought it to their attention before the dry wall went up..
Reply from the builder "it passes code" we know what you are speaking of but we will not
correct it for you at any cost... Hope this helps

The homes are built to code here. It may be different than the one up north in your previous state, but they are built to code here.

One of the basic differences between where we came from and here in Florida is the humidity level and the constant warmth that encourages growth of microorganisms.



Treating Common Odor Problems In Your Water

[Chatbrat]

Talking about the anode-it is impossible to remove one with water heater that is in a closet in the garage--not enough clearance in the overhead to install a new one.

[blueash]

Studor valve, or more generic, air admittance valves. Save time and $$$ in home building and are allowed by code. They are mechanical with moving parts and a rubber seal which can fail. If they fail, you will get a sewer gas odor. Google search will give you some sense of the controversy but they are widely used. Apparently if all goes well they should last 20 to 30 years. I have no idea if this is your problem but the description fits.

Here are DIY instructions on replacement if you are up to it
How to Fix a Sewer Gas Smell

If it is really just the hot water, not a smell coming from beneath the sink, then anode buildup in the hot water tank is possible, but it should create the smell at every hot water faucet, not just one sink. Here is a discussion of that and solutions for one sink vs all sinks:

Solving rotten-egg odor in water heaters

Good luck, let us know the outcome