Hello,

I live in an apartment complex, and I have called my apartment complex 3 times previously regarding this issue, and they have not been able to diagnose the problem yet. For weeks, I have been trying to determine where a bad sewer smell has been coming from in my bathroom that stinks up literally my entire apartment, especially when doing laundry in the bathroom.

After a lot of trial and error, numerous sink drain cleanings, and numerous washing machine cleanings, it seems to me that the smell is happening whenever I run the dryer. But the strange thing is that the bad smell doesn't exactly come from the dryer itself. It comes from the bathroom sink, when the dryer is running and long afterward. After the dryer has been running for a short while, the smell starts emerging from underneath the sink. After two loads have been placed in the dryer, the smell is unbearable, and it lingers for days before finally going away.

Pouring a gallon of water down the bathroom drain and using drain cleaners only provide temporary improvement (an hour or so) before the smell comes back again. After I've used the dryer, the smell can keep flaring up for 3-5 days before finally going away for good... until the dryer is turned back on again, and the cycle starts all over again.

I'm not a plumber, and the people in my complex only seem to want to pour things down the drain. My question is, does any of this make any sense, and what could possibly be the issue here? Is it possible to have the dryer vents linked to the same plumbing as my bathroom sink?

Is there a trap under the sink? That is the purpose of the trap to keep sewer gas from coming back into the structure. Do you have a window in the bathroom? If yes, open the window and then run the dryer and see if you still have the smell. You either are missing a trap have a trap that is losing its water seal or there is a hole somewhere in a drain or vent pipe. Toilet wax rings can also cause this problem if they are not sealing properly.

Thank you Steve for the answer! Yes, the bathroom sink does have a p-trap. No leak that I can see, but the smell under the sink is awful when the dryer runs. I will share this with the person from my complex that will arrive tomorrow. They don't seem to ever want to talk, but I'm getting frustrated because now I'm having to air dry all my laundry inside my apartment. I have lived in this apartment for a year, and this was never a problem until a month ago.

Another thought is an odor coming from an animal(dead or feces accumulation). If the wall/floor openings that the plumbing pipes protrude from are not sealed, the dryer is sucking the stinky air through those openings.

? failed AAV ?

==============================================

"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

Good point. AAV's aren't common here, so they're usually not something I think about.

Could be a failed AAV.

I would also try disconnecting the dryer exhaust from wherever it's connected to and run it out the window for a trial cycle, you never know someone could have connected the dryer exhaust directly to a vent pipe creating positive pressure whenever the dryer runs.

try running a drying cycle with the window open a little.
the dryer may be sucking all the air out of the room and pulling the water out of the sink trap.

you will NEVER, EVER, pull a 2" water column with a dryer exhaust


else:


doors would be sucked off their hinges



30" x 76" x 2" = 4560 cu " = 462 gallons = 28,800+ pounds of total force




==============================================

"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638