plumbing question

[Ken Werner]

Well, sort of plumbing. We live in the country and have a septic system. The toilets have vent pipes through the roof. Depending on how the wind blows we can get quite a whiff of ....

I understand there is some kind of cap valve that goes on the vent pipe and reduces odors.

Can someone tell me what it is and what it's called? Any advice as to use? Or any other solutions to the problem?

Thanks,
Ken

[Jim Becker]

Something sounds amiss to me, Ken...you really shouldn't be smelling anything from your vents no matter how hard the wind blows. I've never seen them with anything different than "straight to the sky", either, although that doesn't mean there aren't other accommodations. How recently has your system been maintained? And did you ask them about the odor issue?

[Ken Werner]

The system is pretty new - I don't think it's a maintenance prob, but I guess it could be. A friend of mine had the same problem and told me about the cap, but he can't remember the name of it.

[Gary Keedwell]

Well, sort of plumbing. We live in the country and have a septic system. The toilets have vent pipes through the roof. Depending on how the wind blows we can get quite a whiff of ....

I understand there is some kind of cap valve that goes on the vent pipe and reduces odors.

Can someone tell me what it is and what it's called? Any advice as to use? Or any other solutions to the problem?

Thanks,
Ken
You have vent pipe going to your roof but I doubt that the smell is coming from there. If you find where your septic field is in the ground....I bet that is where the smell is. :eek:
Gary

[David G Baker]

I have a similar problem with my septic system and do not know how to solve it. The odor does generally show up on very windy days. The way they try to solve the problem in California is to put a "P" trap in the sewer drain line between the house and the street but this applies to sewer systems not septic systems. A "P" trap in the septic line may help but the odor should not be able to enter the house because of the existing traps but it does.
The traps in the toilets and sinks should prevent this odor from coming into the house.
There is a vacuum breaker system that is used on sinks that do not have a vent stack but do not know is this would help in our situation. There may be something like a vacuum breaker for vent stacks as well but I have not heard of one.

[Chris Zenda]

Maybey a Studor vent?

[David G Baker]

Maybey a Studor vent?
Thank you very much Chris. The Studor Vent sounds like what I need for my washing machine that has a venting problem due to poor planning by the previous owner of my home. The Studor Vent could also solve the odor problem by preventing back pressure.

[Ken Werner]

Chris, I think that's what I'm looking for. I thank you and my nose thanks you.

Ken

[Chris Zenda]

Ken,

I have an old home and had a similar problem with an insufficient or ill placed sewer stack pipe (air vent) resulting in water being sucked out of an S trap in that line. When I'd flush the toilet the suction would pull the water out.

[John Hemenway]

Ken, I don't believe Studor vents are designed for capping a thru the roof vent. They are for sinks that have no wall to run a vent in like kitchen islands. Their use is code thing, so check with local inspectors.

[Ken Werner]

John, My pal told me that also - it was not designed for this purpose, but it did the trick. He also had bad smells downdrafting off the roof too.

Frank - so you think making the stack taller might solve the problem? That would be alot cheaper [and cheap is my middle name] than buying the Studors at $25 each. We have 3 pipes poking through the roof. I might try temporarily attaching some PVC pipe to the stacks.

thanks to all

Ken

[Chris Damm]

If you have sewer gas coming from a roof vent you are missing (or have a empty) p-trap. Do you have any drains that don't get used? If so run water in them once in a while or add a little mineral oil to keep the water from evaporating.

[Von Bickley]

If you have sewer gas coming from a roof vent you are missing (or have a empty) p-trap. Do you have any drains that don't get used? If so run water in them once in a while or add a little mineral oil to keep the water from evaporating.


I agree with Chris.......

[Ken Werner]

Chris -
just so I understand - a dried out p trap can lead to sewer gas coming out the stack on the roof? We have no problem with smells inside the house.

We do have a bathroom that is rarely used, and could be dry.

Thanks,
Ken