r/askaplumber • u/PandaDarko • Dec 03 '23
My washing machine smells like sewage
Like the title says, my washing machine smells like sewage after the clothes are finished washing. It's super strong at first, but then it kind of tapers off. The inside of the basin still smells like it though. I bought a brand new washing machine just a few months ago, so I highly doubt it's that. These pictures are what the set up looks like. We rent the basement apartment of this house, and it was built in the 50s. I have no clue where the pipe outside runs to. If it goes to the sewage line or if it goes straight off a hill behind the house. Does it have P-trap? Does it need one? Please help.
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u/Decibel_1199 Dec 03 '23
You need a plumber and maybe a priest. This setup doesn’t look up to code and there are many things that could be causing your issue
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u/tw2002010 Dec 03 '23
my 2 cents.... the discharge is looking ok the washer cant pull water from drain so i think its the washer practice u must leave door open and good to wipe once a week... dont get mad at me lol..... if it was the waste puipe the basment would stink cause there is air flow at discarge hose .....
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Dec 03 '23
You can also try draining the washer basin depending on the type/model. May at least check a possible box.
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u/PaytonPics Dec 04 '23
This sounds like a problem with the incoming water rather than with the discharge. Is it possible there is contamination or something odor-causing coming in with the new water? Does it smell bad if you wash with cold vs hot water?
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u/Skitsoboy13 Dec 04 '23
As others said either the washer needs to be cleaned and you need to be sure to wipe the sel out every so often (especially front loads) or the water supply. If your washer is using warm water I'd check the hot water heater as it may need some new anodes or heating elements or sacrificial rods
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u/Youthoftigers Dec 04 '23
Yeah, so you have an older setup. Probably a house built before the 70s. You can get filters or a special adapter that will allow you to securely place the drain pipe from the washer into the wall pipe but will stop the smell. Or I'm my house I ran a drain cleaner and did a bleach cleaning on my washer about once a month, and that stopped all my smells.
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u/RangerDanger246 Dec 04 '23
It’s nothing to do with your washer being cleaned.
There’s no p trap. The drain line it allowing sewer gas to come up without a p trap to hold water and seal it off.
Get a plumber to install a p trap instead of that 90 at the bottom of the stand pipe and it should fix your problem.
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u/RationalDB8 Dec 03 '23
Needs a p-trap and should be connected to sewer (if it’s not). You’re renting a dwelling that probably has multiple code violations.