I can smell sewer odour
Sewer odour in or around your home is no fun, and it can be tricky to find the source.
Here are some tips to help identify the cause, inside and outside the home.
Inside your home
Is your toilet or sewer blocked?
A blocked toilet or sewer is one of the most common reasons for sewer odour inside your home.
Is your kitchen or bathroom sink blocked?
Hair, food scraps and other materials can build up in the s-bend of your sink, causing unpleasant odours.
Is the s-bend dried out?
If a drain is not used often, the water is the s-bend can dry out. This breaks the water seal, allowing odours from the sewer main to enter your home through toilets, floor drains or sinks.
As Hunter Water is not responsible for household plumbing, contact a licensed plumber to investigate.
Outside your home
Some common causes of odours outside or near your home include:
- Mulch, fertilisers and decomposing plant or animal matter
- Stagnant water in creeks, dams or rivers
- Coral spawn or seaweed deposits near coastal areas
- Heavy rain causing sewer smells to rise through floor drains
- Flowering Pink Phyllanthus, a native shrub known for its strong odour
There's a 'rotten egg' smell from Hunter Water infrastructure
Nearby Hunter Water infrastructure, such as pump stations or wastewater treatment plants, can sometimes cause odour. These systems may release hydrogen sulphide, which has an unpleasant ‘rotten egg’ smell, as part of moving sewage through the network.
We try to minimise these smells, but some odour is occasionally unavoidable.
If the smell continues, contact us.
Still can’t find where the smell is coming from?
If you have ruled out all possible causes and the smell persists, our team can help.
Before contacting us, have the following information handy:
- Which direction is the odour coming from?
- What time of day did you first notice it?
- Does it occur regularly? If yes, how often?
- Have your neighbours noticed it too?
- Is it coming from inside or outside the house?
- Do you have a sewer manhole nearby?