We moved into an older house three months ago. We noticed a nasty smell from the dishwasher. It would come and go. The previous tenants had many cats so we thought it was lingering smell from that or even a dead mouse or something. For awhile the smell went away but the other day it was back and very strong. We realized then that it was sewer gas. We used a lot of water last night and last night the smell was the strongest we've ever had. The strongest smell is from the dishwasher. It's a small house and the bathroom is on the backside of the kitchen. The dishwasher and the shower share a wall. Sometimes the smell is in the bathroom too. We planned on remodeling the kitchen at some point but we can't take the smell--and it can't be healthy--so we need to do something now.
We checked the vent pipe on the roof. It wasn't clogged although there was water at the bottom of it. Is that normal? If I pull the dishwasher out, what do I look for? It looks like it is hooked up correctly but I don't see a loop in the drain line to keep backwash from entering the dishwasher. I can't imagine backwash smelling this bad though. The drain hose for the dishwasher is hooked up to the sink drain and it is above the trap. The house was empty for about three months before we moved in. I don't know if that gives anyone any clues. All of the waste water drains under a second bathroom in the house before going outside. I've never noticed a bad smell in that bathroom but we don't use that bathroom.
I'd like to at least try to pinpoint the problem so we know what we are dealing with. Thanks for any help you can give me!
We checked the vent pipe on the roof. It wasn't clogged although there was water at the bottom of it. Is that normal? If I pull the dishwasher out, what do I look for? It looks like it is hooked up correctly but I don't see a loop in the drain line to keep backwash from entering the dishwasher. I can't imagine backwash smelling this bad though. The drain hose for the dishwasher is hooked up to the sink drain and it is above the trap. The house was empty for about three months before we moved in. I don't know if that gives anyone any clues. All of the waste water drains under a second bathroom in the house before going outside. I've never noticed a bad smell in that bathroom but we don't use that bathroom.
I'd like to at least try to pinpoint the problem so we know what we are dealing with. Thanks for any help you can give me!