ServiceMaster Professional Cleaning and Restoration Provides Odor Removal in Exton, Norristown, West Chester, and Lansdale, PA
One common complaint for people moving into a new home or business during the busy summer real estate season is unexpected smells. These may be immediately apparent or take weeks to become noticeable. A surprising amount of these odors can be attributed to plumbing, and for the most part there are easy DIY fixes for them. Save costs and skip the plumber, if you can, to take charge of odor removal in your Lansdale, PA home.
In a new home or business office, you may notice a sewer smell after a few weeks. This is often due to an unused or under-used shower or floor drain, usually in the basement floor. These fixtures rely on a small amount of water to function properly and seal. If the water seal is allowed to evaporate, sewer gases can escape. Evaporation is the issue, and the fix is to simply pour some water into the drain. For under-used showers in a spare bathroom, make sure to run the shower for a few minutes each week. For basement floor drains, one trick is to add a small amount of vegetable oil after pouring in a pitcher of water. The vegetable oil will slow evaporation of the water and keep your home odor-free longer. Talk about do-it-yourself odor control!
If you cannot track down just one location in your home that has a bit of a sewer smell, but you still sense it occasionally, the culprit is likely your rooftop vent. A vent that is too short or is affected by the prevailing wind can end up blowing sewer gases back into your home. If this is the case you or a handyman can provide odor control very cheaply by extending the pipe higher.
Most sinks have a bent joint below, known as a P-trap. If a bad smell is emanating from just one sink or fixture, this trap is probably blocked. You will need to either remove that bend in the pipe and clean it out—which is a very hands-on odor removal method—or use a liquid drain cleaning agent. Some green cleaning products are becoming popular for this, and we encourage you to try one if you can. If you treat the sink regularly with this solution you can prevent these jams in the future. Baking soda and vinegar are a simple, non-toxic solution for regular odor control and keeping the trap clear, but may not have enough oomph to unblock or clean out one that is severely blocked.
Finally, does your water smell bad? If your cold water smells fine, but your hot water has an odor, this can be caused by a hot-water heater anode that has deteriorated. Don’t worry – they’re actually designed to do this and are known in the industry as “sacrificial anodes!” If you over-soften your water the anode can last less than a year. If you are moving into a new place, it’s possible the previous owner wasn’t aware of this and didn’t replace the anode, resulting in your hot water now holding odor. Anodes are usually inexpensive whether you call a professional or install a new one yourself.
These tips should help you breathe easy with DIY odor control in your new Lansdale, PA home or office, and may save a few bucks too! If you find yourself in need of odor removal in your new property for other reasons, call ServiceMaster Professional Cleaning and Restoration. Our professionals have experience in all kinds of odor control, plus pet odor removal in Lansdale, PA as well as Exton, Norristown, and West Chester.