Hi All, I previously had a post up about a strange chemical like smell throughout my house (can't seem to find the original post). Still haven't got to the bottom of the issue. I noticed that there are 3 areas of the concrete / solum under the floor boards which have been dug out by the previous owner for new pipework and there's a really earthy smelling clay exposed - could this be the smell that is sticking to our clothes? We also had a CCTV inspection done on the drains to the cess pit / septic tank which had a slight blockage but nothing major. What they did say is that the soakaway is knackered hence the reason for my garden being so wet - could this be a reason for the smell coming into my house? We are really struggling to pin point this smell and so are the many contractors we've had in. As mentioned in the previous thread, its like a musty smell but now and again its like there's a chemical smell in amongst it. The contractors have also said they can smell it but can't think what it is. It's clinging to our clothes which is the most annoying thing. Appreciate any feedback/help/guidance. Regards, Shaun
Shower pull switches stink of fish when they have a loose wires and get hot. Washing machine can stink and so can a dish washer. Also the plug holes can smell.l. Water under house from cracks around outside drain. This is common. Dead frog under sofa or unit. I could go on
Thanks for that. I'll check the washing machine and dishwasher this weekend. What is also strange is that if we have been to the shop and take one of the plastic bags, put it in the kitchen cupboard, take it later in the week for my lunch the bag will stink of this smell.
hi if your soakaway has failed, it needs to be sorted, do you have any rain water getting into the septic tank, ? sometimes the gutter downpipes are discharged into the foul water gullies do you have a stream nearby? do you have space to re-site the soakaway? do you often need to have your tank emptied? the problem is probably the drainage system, but can be sorted regards peter
Hi Peter, Thanks for your comments. Yes rainwater will be getting into the cess pit. I believe there may be a spring running under the house and yes there is a stream circa 150m away from the house. Yeah the house sits on roughly 2 acres so we can re-site the soakaway. I've lived in the house for 2 years and emptied the septic tank twice. The ground round about has a lot of clay underneath. Thanks, Shaun
hi i recently installed a small sewage treatment plant for a customer, this allows the discharge to be in a water way. its not as expensive as you may think, it will do away with the drainage field. you must arrange to rain water discharge to be separate from the foul water. its not too difficult to sort out, if you are a bit handy? the rule is, advise the environmental people, if your away from ssi, type of area, its ok and keep a log of the maintenance checks. if you allow rain water into the plant, it washes away the bacterial stuff and stops it from doing its bit! if you google it and read the regs, reg H i think, it explains the dos and don'ts i included the local building control to oversee the work, and issue a certificate, this is for the liability and if you sell up at some point. hope this is some help. it may not be the cause of the smell, but its best to remove the obvious problem with the soakaway regards peter
Mould dose smell but normally just where it is.. There is a hole at bottom of fridge, at the back that water from inside drips in on to a tray. It then evaporates. That can get food in and stink. Also fridges can vent gas if faulty and smell but I guess you would notice it's stronger in kitchen. If the whole house then not sure.. I run out of ideas
hi is sounds like a drainage problem, don't forget, if the rain is getting in, it maybe, you some connections that don't have a water seal? but for sure, the failed drainage field can cause problems, and the combine rain and foul water system you have..
hi to echo a previous post and link in the clay land. From bitter experience, a soakaway is useless with clay. don't waste your money or time trying it. clay when full of water will not soak more in what you need is to discharge water into the nearest ditch or stream. this means getting rainwater directly into it and then use a sewage treatment plant to discharge into it as well. This is in my view the only reliable way of getting water off your site, pipe it into a ditch or stream. I had similar issues when I moved in ( 1960's brick pit septic tank) and got all sorts of quotes, people wanted to put in land drains, French drains and all sorts of stuff. Largely because they could give me a large quote and fit something I didn't need. the best advice I got was the simplest. Get the water off your site into a water course - it will then flow. and I would also echo that a self contained sewage treatment plant is not that expensive. I fitted my own ( not for the feint hearted- but then living on a farm I've got kit to handle that kind of stuff)
Thanks Jonathon - this makes sense and is a good idea to get the lying water away from my garden. Will this help the smell in my house you think?
hi it will sure help, i have found that problems with septic tanks can cause smell issues quite a lot. it is important the get the sewage treatment installed correctly, there are very large fines for polluting a water course... so do it right!
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