Common Causes of Sewer Smells in Your Orange County Home

Notice a foul odor in and around your Orange County area home? The smell may very well be related to a sewage issue. While it is recommended that you immediately call an Orange County plumber for sewer cleaning so you and other home occupants can avoid illness, you should also understand the possible causes of the smell.

Causes of Sewer Smells

From our experience here at Barker & Sons Plumbing, sewer smells are typically caused by one of three things:

Backed up Organic Waste

A stinky sewer smell coming from your kitchen or bathroom sink is often caused by bacteria that are the byproduct of rotting organic material—such as food waste in the kitchen and hair and soap in the bathroom. Also, while it may seem tempting, do not just shove everything down your kitchen sink disposal! It simply doesn’t have the capacity to withstand gobs of pasta, grease, and fats (many of the garbage disposal repair calls we get are the result of simple misuse). Misuse of your garbage disposal may be the cause of the sewer smell you’ve recently noticed.

Improper Drain Cleaning

Don’t call just anyone for Orange County drain cleaning! In most cases, generic drain cleaners will only push the waste further down the pipe where it may appear to be temporarily cleaned, but in reality has only been relocated lower down the pipe. And once waste rests in a stationary spot like this, it collects more sediment while continuing to rust and corrode the surrounding pipe.

Call us or contact us online—you need a professional, expert plumber to come to your home with the proper equipment necessary to clean drains and eliminate the foul odor.

Cracked Waste Pipes and Broken Seals

Cracked waste pipes and broken seals can allow sewer gases to escape, creating a nasty odor. You can usually locate cracks in sewer pipes by looking for water around the pipes or dripping on the floor, but they may not be visible if the pipes are buried in the wall. If you suspect a rupture in a drain line but can’t pinpoint it, call us immediately. We can pressure-test the line for you.

Trust Barker & Sons Plumbing

Barker & Sons Plumbing is family owned and operated, and we’ve been serving Anaheim, Irvine, Fullerton, and the entire Orange County area for 28 years. If you’ve recently noticed foul sewer smells in and around your Orange County home, it could be part of a larger plumbing issue that needs to be addressed immediately.

Call us 24/7 at no obligation: (714) 630-8766.