Water in toilet bowl smell

[socalgirl]

We moved into a 1970s rental home in San Diego a month ago and I am baffled by this issue:

The first floor toilet and the upstairs master bath toilet both have musty smelling water in the bowl. The upstairs hall bath toilet water does not smell (I believe it is directly above the first floor bathroom).

A plumber came out and re-set all 3 toilets, new wax rings. He checked all the drains/traps inside the house and found no issues. The toilets are fairly new, maybe 5 years old. I have sniffed all over and the musty odor is only inside the toilet bowls. I do not smell it in the tanks. It does not smell like sewer or urine but like a strong unclean musty smell.

I drained the tanks, filled with vinegar overnight, cleaned with disinfectant the following day, bleached, etc and nothing is helping at all. I poured bleach into the bowls itself, left overnight, cleaned, no difference.

I've lived in 15 different houses in my life and never had this issue! Any suggestions?

 

[Reach4]

I poured bleach into the bowls itself, left overnight, cleaned, no difference.

If you are on a sewer, try pouring a bleach solution into the overflow tube in the tank. Pour fairly slowly. You want it to come out rim holes.

One more thing to consider: the smell could be coming from under the toilet. Try covering the top rim of the toilet with Saran Wrap. Wait. (keep unsuspecting customers away). Do you still smell the mustiness? Lift the wrap. Did the smell concentrate under the wrap?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[socalgirl]

If you are on a sewer, try pouring a bleach solution into the overflow tube in the tank. Pour fairly slowly. You want it to come out rim holes.

One more thing to consider: the smell could be coming from under the toilet. Try covering the top rim of the toilet with Saran Wrap. Wait. (keep unsuspecting customers away). Do you still smell the mustiness? Lift the wrap. Did the smell concentrate under the wrap?

Unbelievable. I put the Saran Wrap on and came back to no smell at all in the toilet bowls. Sniffed around and the awful musty smell is the cheap composite wood seats. We always keep our seats down so every time we opened the lid, a big waft of that horrible off-gassing seat would emerge. They are now in a trash bag and I'm on my way to Home Depot. Well, at least my toilets are sparkling clean!!!!!

THANK YOU

 

[Terry]

One more reason I don't like wood seats.

 

[socalgirl]

One more reason I don't like wood seats.

I've got 2 new nice smelling plastic seats now! I cannot believe that horrible odor was the seats. Smelled like a high concentration of mold.

 

[lee peebles]

We moved into a 1970s rental home in San Diego a month ago and I am baffled by this issue:

The first floor toilet and the upstairs master bath toilet both have musty smelling water in the bowl. The upstairs hall bath toilet water does not smell (I believe it is directly above the first floor bathroom).

A plumber came out and re-set all 3 toilets, new wax rings. He checked all the drains/traps inside the house and found no issues. The toilets are fairly new, maybe 5 years old. I have sniffed all over and the musty odor is only inside the toilet bowls. I do not smell it in the tanks. It does not smell like sewer or urine but like a strong unclean musty smell.

I drained the tanks, filled with vinegar overnight, cleaned with disinfectant the following day, bleached, etc and nothing is helping at all. I poured bleach into the bowls itself, left overnight, cleaned, no difference.

I've lived in 15 different houses in my life and never had this issue! Any suggestions?

You probably have mold in the transfertubes

 

[SteveW]

Did you get slow-close seats?
If not, scrap the ones you just bought and go out and get some. Don't wait. You'll thank me later.