How to Test for & Trace Sewer Gas Smells and Septic Tank Odors in a Building InspectAPedia® -
How to use the TIF 8800 or similar combustible gas analyzers to test for and trace the source of sewer gas or septic gas or methane gas leaks in buildings
Sewer gas smell diagnosis - plumbing checklist
Septic gas smell diagnosis - septic system checklist
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This article describes how to How to Test for & Trace Sewer Gas Smells and Septic Tank Odors in a Building or how we might trace "gas odors" in buildings
with a focus on homes with a private onsite septic tank or for owners whose home is connected to a public sewer system as well. What makes the smell in sewer gas? Sewer gases are more than an obnoxious odor.
Because sewer gas contains
methane gas (CH4) there is a risk of an explosion hazard or even fatal asphyxiation.
Sewer gases also probably contain hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) In addition some writers opine that there are possible
health hazards from sewer gas exposure, such as a bacterial infection of the sinuses (which can occur due to any sinus irritation). Depending on the sewer gas source and other factors such as humidity and building
and weather conditions, mold spores may also be present in sewer gases.
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to the author. Technical review by industry experts has been performed and is ongoing - reviewers welcomed and are listed at References.
Tests for Indoor Sewer Gas & Septic Odors - Indoor Gas Leaks using the TIF 8800
Tests for sewer gas or septic odor gas leaks:
When looking for gas leaks and tracking gas smells, one method to get more precise is to use an instrument sensitive to a broad range of combustible organic gases.
We use a TIF 8800 combustible gas analyzer set at its most sensitive setting to sniff for gas leaks.
This instrument will respond to a very wide range
of volatile organics, including pipe dope on a plumbing joint, so be careful.
The TIF8800 will also respond a little to the gases found at almost any plumbing drain since the trap is often producing some organic gases.
But if you find that
there is one drain that responds unusually strongly, or if you find a leak in a fuel gas line, you've found a problem to correct before going further.
Many home inspectors have this tool and can be hired to apply it
carefully in your home, or it may be less costly (than hiring an inspector) to just buy the tool itself.
Here are some ways we use the TIF 8800 to screen for and trace sewer gases in a building
Turn on the instrument outside (not near a busy highway or running vehicle) and enter the building to screen for the detection of any combustible gas;
Enter each building area with the instrument freshly-set to outdoor ambient air conditions
Don't forget to try the sensor tip at different heights indoors - warm air rising can carry flue gases or other combustibles to unanticipated areas higher than the gas source
Adjust the instrument to its most sensitive setting, using its response sound to move towards stronger sources of any gas that has been detected.
Remember to check not only plumbing drains but gas fittings
Remember that the presence of organic solvents in some pipe joint compounds may make the instrument respond even though no leak may be present
Confirm that the instrument is responding to gases by testing it such as in or near a (not too hot) heating flue, gas source, or preferably, using the sensing tip calibrating vial provided by the manufacturer.
Also see SEPTIC METHANE GAS for more sewer gas test advice and reference material.
Also see Using the TIF 8800 Gas Detector for a detailed procedure of how this instrument is employed and for a list of gases to which it will respond.
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Thanks to Slade Franklin
for the reminder that a leaky wax ring at a toilet can lead to septic odors in bathrooms. 11/2007
Thanks to J.V. (privacy protected) for the reminder to make a detailed inspection of the plumbing vent system when sewer gas odors are present. 07/2008
Thanks to Roger Hankey & Cheryll Brown, www.hankeyandbrown.com, ASHI home inspectors in Minnesota, for the deteriorated transite pipe gas flue vent photograph and comments. Mr. Hankey is a past chairman of the ASHI Technical Committee, serves as co-chairman of ASHI legislative committee, and has served in other ASHI professional and leadership roles. 7/2007.
Septic Tank Capacity vs Usage in Daily Gallons of Wastewater Flow, calculating required septic tank size, calculating septic tank volume from size measurements
What is a Septic System An Engineer's View - Types of treatment tanks, adsorption systems, pumps, and other special equipment are discussed in some further detail in this text Components of a Septic System- the Basic Parts of a Conventional Septic Tank and Leachfield, a chapter in the Home Buyers Guide to Septic Systems A Toxic Gas Testing Sampling Plan for Residential Indoor Air Investigations
Pennsylvania State Fact Sheets relating to domestic wastewater treatment systems include
Pennsylvania State Wastewater Treatment Fact Sheet SW-161, Septic System Failure: Diagnosis and Treatment
Pennsylvania State Wastewater Treatment Fact Sheet SW-162, The Soil Media and the Percolation Test
Pennsylvania State Wastewater Treatment Fact Sheet SW-l64, Mound Systems for Wastewater Treatment
Pennsylvania State Wastewater Treatment Fact Sheet SW-165, Septic Tank-Soil Absorption Systems
Document Sources used for this web page include but are not limited to: Agricultural Fact Sheet #SW-161 "Septic Tank Pumping," by Paul D. Robillard and Kelli S. Martin. Penn State College of Agriculture - Cooperative Extension, edited and annotated by Dan Friedman (Thanks: to Bob Mackey for proofreading the original source material.)
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Plumbing Diagnosis & Repair: Water supply, drainage, septic systems, water testing, water contamination, defective plumbing materials & products.
The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop. The Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® author/editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.
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