When you climb the roof you may find that the vent opening is blocked with leaves and other debris.
My stinks pipe on the roof is not covered.
There are pipe boots installed on plumbing vent pipes that penetrate through roofs.
It looks like the top of the pipe may have previously had a cover based on some decay uneven edges around the pipe.
If so clearing the debris should solve the problem.
Strong sewage smells are a telltale sign that your toilet vent pipe may be clogged.
One of the main jobs of vent pipes is to get rid of those nasty odors and gasses so if you smell something off it s time to check it out.
It is made from a u shaped pipe or tubing which connects on one end to the drain such as a floor drain or the drain of a restroom fixture and on the other end to the line going to the sewer.
If there is a clog in the plumbing vent those sewer gasses can t escape properly.
If an individual sink vent is blocked that.
Without the roof vent pipe the drains would gurgle up into your sinks tubs and toilets.
If your pipes become clogged they can produce an odor both inside and outside your home.
The plumbing vent pipes in your house perform two functions since the vent pipes go through the roof and into the outside air.
There is also the possibility that the vent pipe can become clogged by leaves debris animals ice or snow allowing for the possibility of gases and odors to enter your building.
Sewer gases enter the house s drainpipes through its connection with the sewer system.
Just as drain pipes remove water and waste from your home the plumbing vent pipe also known as a plumbing air vent removes gas and odors it also allows fresh air into the plumbing system to help water flow smoothly through the drain pipes however no water.
This is most likely to occur on a flat roof from which the snow does not drain properly or after a really heavy snowstorm that results in several feet of snow on the roof.
The plumbing vent also known as a vent stack helps regulate the air pressure in your plumbing system.
No matter the type is a pipe boot becomes weathered or damaged a roof leak can occur.
You ll usually notice the sewer smell during times of heavy water usage or if it s very windy outside because the gas is forced toward areas that it wouldn t normally occupy.
Pic 1 of basement pic 2 of attic pic 3 of.
I noticed this uncovered pipe on my roof today when emptying my swamp cooler.
The plumbing roof vent pipe and yard based sewer vent pipe are also a place where septic gases and sewer gases exit the system safely.
In the short term your plumber can fix the issue by clearing snow away from the vent and melting any snow that has made its way down inside of the vent.
This is true whether the roof is sloped or flat but the type of pipe boot depends on the type of roof.
This is the most common cause of sewer odors.
What is a plumbing vent.
The vent pipes give an escape path for the sewer gases so they do not try to come into the house through the plumbing fixtures.