How To Clean Out Domestic Water Pipes

[dogleg]

Hi, I cant find anything comparable searching the site...

Almost immediately after having a new bathroon built we started getting a rotten smell from the shower and basin (cold) tap. This has now spread to the older bathroom next along the supply chain. It's definitely not the drains or the well water itself. Seems like something inside the new pipes. Just the usual blue plastic pipes and metal taps.

We get drinking water further along via UV/filtration but this part is not affected so far.

All I can think of is filling the first filter housing with bleach and trying to kill whatever it is, but wondered if anyone has any better/safer ideas.

Much obliged for any help.

[Khonwan]

Hi, I cant find anything comparable searching the site...

"Real Estate, housing, house and land ownership" forum.

(Edited to clarify: This was originally posted in the Farming forum.)

Edited April 6, 2007 by Khonwan

[Somtham]

Hi, I cant find anything comparable searching the site...

"Real Estate, housing, house and land ownership" forum.

(Edited to clarify: This was originally posted in the Farming forum.)

I would venture to guess you are getting gases from the septic system flowing back to the new bathroom. Is there a vent on your septic?

rgds

[dogleg]

Hi, I cant find anything comparable searching the site...

"Real Estate, housing, house and land ownership" forum.

(Edited to clarify: This was originally posted in the Farming forum.)

I would venture to guess you are getting gases from the septic system flowing back to the new bathroom. Is there a vent on your septic?

rgds

Thank you.

Yes there is, it's round the corner and downwind. I thought it must be that or the drains for a long time but now I'm convinced its directly from the water supply,,, I turn on the tap and fill a glass full of clear but stinky water! I take it elsewhere and it still pongs. If I run it from the kitchen or garden hose it's fine.

[SamSipEt]

You could try getting the water analyzed for bacterial content. Don’t know where you are located but Chiang Mai University have a wide ranging choice of tests available on a pick and mix basis.

[Khonwan]

... now I'm convinced its directly from the water supply,,, I turn on the tap and fill a glass full of clear but stinky water! I take it elsewhere and it still pongs. If I run it from the kitchen or garden hose it's fine.

I think it's probably the PVC glue. Every time I have ever installed a new pipeline, the water has always been contaminated by the PVC-glue (even after leaving it 24 hours before allowing water to flow); it tastes awful but will eventually disappear (after MANY days).

Rgds

Khonwan

[sinam]

We had the same problem when we moved into our new house. Something to do with the septic and pipes. Housing estate came and fitted some sort of system outside under one of the drain covers. I didn't see them do it but from what I saw afterwords it was more than just a little filter added on. I don't think they would have done this if we hadn't have complained. I find once you move in anything left undone won't get done until you notice it and call the builders and remind them of what they forgot to do. If you haven't just purchased or don't have any redress than you will need to call a plumber. No amount of bleach, vinegar or creative cocktail will solve the problem...

Si Nam

[Toni]

Hi, I cant find anything comparable searching the site...

Almost immediately after having a new bathroon built we started getting a rotten smell from the shower and basin (cold) tap. This has now spread to the older bathroom next along the supply chain. It's definitely not the drains or the well water itself. Seems like something inside the new pipes. Just the usual blue plastic pipes and metal taps.

We get drinking water further along via UV/filtration but this part is not affected so far.

All I can think of is filling the first filter housing with bleach and trying to kill whatever it is, but wondered if anyone has any better/safer ideas.

Much obliged for any help.

when it is a real terrible smell of rotten eggs it is for sure coming from the inside of the domestic installation and more specific from a device containing water like a (hot)water tank/boiler etc., when you cannot flush it out in a reasonable time. If so the only way to get rid of it is to search and open all containers and clean them with bleach (carefull!) to kill the existing bacterias. If you can run also bleach through the system by using a pump.There is no way that it is coming from outside of the system because a domestic water system is a closed system otherwise one does not has pressure. If it is a system, which I do not believe, which uses gravity there is an aired tank somewhere at a high point. That tank is vented, but this vent to open air avoids normally that the water starts stinking. The "rotten eggs"-smell has been generated only in closed systems which has not been used for a lon(ger) time. This I experienced sometimes in clients' villas in Spain which were not used outside the season and than always in the (electric) boilers which content was minimum 75 litres of water.

When you cannot get rid of the problem you have to start investigating unfortunately the source of your water supply

[xerostar]

A few months ago I installed some new plastic pipes around the house.

The pipes had been lying outside on the ground for a few weeks beforehand.

I was surprised to find things crawling out of the pipes. I saw a few cockroachs,

a lizard and even a small mouse that was hiding inside.

I flushed the pipes out before connecting up the taps just in case.

If you have a tank, check that the inspection lid is firmly in place.

Another possibility is that the tank has a dead animal in it.

We used to find dead crows in our tank on the farm in Oz.

If you have scheme water then there must be another source of contamination.

Thais use blue pipes for everything, fresh water and grey water, even sewer pipes

are blue! I can imagine that maybe somebody has somehow connected your water taps

to an old grey water pipe?

If the original "draining" end of the grey water pipe was blocked with something, it can still

hold pressure and allow ingress of contaminated water into the clean water as the

pressure drops when the tap is opened.

It's amazing how much water gets "stored" in plastic pipes under pressure.

If you cut into a pipe that is isolated from the source and all the taps are closed

around the house, you will get a bucket of water coming out under pressure due to

the contraction of the plastic. That's without any great difference in levels.

I believe a solution of caustic soda is good for cleaning pipes.

You would need to leave it in the pipes for a day or so before flushing out thoroughly.

The septic tank needs a vent pipe - preferrably high in the air above the house.

Make sure you have p-traps fitted to all the basins and floor wastes too.

The bathroom can get very stinky when a breeze comes up the floor waste.

Grey water pipes can be bad.

An exhaust fan in the bathroom without a p-trap will not get used very much!

I hope this has plumbed the depths of your problem!

[dogleg]

Update: Hey Thanks All.

Pinned the water smell down to the new shower heater unit or the flexi pipe to it (which broke during bleaching). For now I'm enjoying cool but fragrant showers!!