Trapped Gunk or Dirt Bathroom and kitchen sink drains are prone to developing bad odours, primarily because of hair, food, soap particles, grease and other types of gunk that accumulate and attract bacteria, which then emit a foul smell.
White Vinegar and Baking Soda
All you got to do is run hot water for a few seconds and pour one or two cups of baking soda down the drain plug hole. And then add a couple of cups of hot vinegar. Let it foam up and wait for an hour or two. Flush it through using hot water.
If the P-trap isn't working properly, sewer gasses can make their way into the bathroom and cause your sink to stink. Your sink should also have a vent that gives backflowing gases somewhere to go. If the sewer smell in your sink is caused by a blocked air vent, you may need professional assistance.
As a disinfectant, bleach can eliminate the bacteria in drains and plumbing systems. You can give your bleach a better chance of clearing the smell by adding hot water. Pour hot or boiling water down the drain: Only use boiling water for drains without ceramic basins, such as some kitchen sinks.
Professional plumbers may use industrial water jetters, snake augers, and pipe camera equipment to find and fix the cause of your drain smell.
When you are using a baking soda and vinegar solution to clean out your drain, you are actually causing the rubber and plastic that are used for the drain's pipes to be eaten away by the mixture. Over time, this rubber and plastic will break down, causing the drain to become even more blocked.
A slow-draining sink clogged with ordinary hair and soap scum can build up bacteria in the P-trap until your bathroom sink smells like rotten eggs.
A bathroom that smells like sewage means there is an issue with one of the drainage points in your bathroom. This means that the sewage gases contained in the sewage system can freely seep into the air. These drains, including the toilet, are designed not to allow sewage gas into your home.
Check for any food particles or debris stuck in the drain or garbage disposal, and remove them. Be sure to unplug the garbage disposal first so you don't risk sacrificing a finger to the smelly sink gods. Run or pour extremely hot water—use a tea kettle to get it almost boiling—down the drain slowly to soften the clog.
One of the most common issues of drain odor is due to blockages and clogs. Any type of blockages, whether they are partial or full, can prevent waste water from properly leaving your home. Over time, this stagnant water sitting in the pipes can build up bacteria and produce pungent odors throughout the night.
Pour Some Bleach in There: Bleach kills the majority of odor-causing bacteria. If you kill the odor-causing bacteria, you'll destroy their smell as well.
Just like cooking oil, bleach is one of those things you shouldn't pour into your sink. You should also never use bleach to unclog your drains. Doing so can even burst your drain pipes, and you'll be left with a nasty and expensive mess. Last but not least, it's harmful to the environment and sea life.
Clogged drains are a common cause of drain odors. Whatever is clogging the drain oftentimes just sits there, growing bacteria which causes the smell.
Step 1: Mix 1/2 cup baking soda with 1/4 cup table salt. Step 2: Pour the mixture down the drain. Step 3: Pour 1 cup heated vinegar down your drain; the concoction is going to foam and bubble. Step 4: Let the solution stand for 15 minutes (longer does not work any better).
Hot vinegar is an effective solution for dissolving biofilm and eliminating bacteria causing drain odors. To use this method, boil 4 cups of white vinegar on the stove. Pour half of the vinegar down the drain slowly, and wait two minutes for the heat to dissolve the biofilm.
Vinegar contains acid which neutralizes odor, cuts through grease and helps disinfect. By heating up (but not boiling) four cups of vinegar, pouring half down the drain, running the water for a minute and then pouring the remaining vinegar down the drain, you can help eliminate smells and smaller clogs.
Baking soda and vinegar
Follow with two cups of vinegar. Listen for bubbling and sizzling noises to indicate that the mixture is working. Wait another couple of minutes before either flushing the toilet or running water down the drain. If you still notice a smell, repeat the steps again.
Perhaps the smell is coming from something decaying in the P-trap or in the piping between the sink drain and the P-trap. Bacteria feeding on clumps of hair clogged with soap scum, for example, can create a nasty smell.
Generally speaking, if there is a revolting odor coming from your sink, it is for one of three reasons: There is a build-up of bacteria in your sink. There is an issue with your ventilation. There is no water in the p trap.
What you can do: Try this: put a couple teaspoons of baking soda in the drain and then pour in some vinegar. Then chase it with a pot of boiling water. The foaming of the baking soda/vinegar eats away at the junk in the drain and the boiling water helps wash it all away and sanitizes the drain.
It is safe to leave baking soda (and vinegar) to work overnight to unclog a drain. Always flush this mixture down with boiling water—no matter how long you leave it sitting in the drain.
Pouring boiling water is quite risky as it might lead to a steam burn or scalding. Another thing to keep in mind is what type of material you are pouring in into. If you have a porcelain sink, it is likely to crack due to the heat. All in all, pouring boiling water down your drain will only cause issues down the road.
Maintenance. Jones suggests pouring very hot water down the kitchen sink drain at least once a week. This can help prevent clog-causing buildup on the interior surface of pipes. Or you can pour one cup of vinegar down the drain and let it sit for 30 minutes, followed by a rinse with two quarts of very hot water.