sulfur smell in water

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pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
My water has been smelling like sulfur for awhile now and I haven't been able to get rid of it.
I've read that it could be the water heater if it's only with the hot water, but it's both hot and cold water for me.
So that means it could be the well. I did get water out of a faucet as close to the well as i could (where it comes into the house), and it didn't seem to smell there.

Could it be something in my pipes? They are plastic, not copper.

The bathroom water seems worse than anywhere else in the house.

I've read about shocking the well, but with it being winter, it will make it difficult because you have to run the water outside (so the bleach doesn't go into the septic tank). Temps have been below freezing lately.

I already have a UV filter and a sediment filter (with i think a .5 micron filter that also says its for odor) and that I still have this issue. I replaced the filter recently and the smell seemed to lessen after I did that, but then it came back strong shortly after.

I think shocking the well is the next step, but wanted to see what other options I had (lower cost the better!) before doing that.
 
boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
Have you done anything as simple as removing the aerator at the bathroom faucet and checking for contamination?

Is the problem bathroom used infrequently? When on a well we would have odor problems when the water was stagnant when we went on vacation or returned after heading south for months over the winter. Are you certain the problem is not hot water related? How long have you let the cold water flow before checking it for odor?

Have you recently replaced the hot water heater? With our well water we had to remove the anode rod or the water would stink to high heaven. Your problem could be the opposite in that the anode rod may have eroded away to nothing. When the water in the HWH expands it backflows into the cold side of the system. Mixing will occur and if a little used faucet is opened the cold could very well have the same odor as the hot until it's run for a period of time.

It seems very odd that the problem is contained within the home and is worst at one faucet. The UV filter should kill bacteria. Combine that with the lack of odor close to the well and I don't see shocking the well as being a solution. Shocking it has to do with the elimination of bacteria that would be introduced when it was drilled or serviced.

That's about all I've got for now.
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
boomerang said:
Have you done anything as simple as removing the aerator at the bathroom faucet and checking for contamination?

Is the problem bathroom used infrequently? When on a well we would have odor problems when the water was stagnant when we went on vacation or returned after heading south for months over the winter. Are you certain the problem is not hot water related? How long have you let the cold water flow before checking it for odor?

Have you recently replaced the hot water heater? With our well water we had to remove the anode rod or the water would stink to high heaven. Your problem could be the opposite in that the anode rod may have eroded away to nothing. When the water in the HWH expands it backflows into the cold side of the system. Mixing will occur and if a little used faucet is opened the cold could very well have the same odor as the hot until it's run for a period of time.

It seems very odd that the problem is contained within the home and is worst at one faucet. The UV filter should kill bacteria. Combine that with the lack of odor close to the well and I don't see shocking the well as being a solution. Shocking it has to do with the elimination of bacteria that would be introduced when it was drilled or serviced.

That's about all I've got for now.
Click to expand...

The smell is at kitchen and bathroom sinks, plus a sink in the basement. Kitchen and bathroom are used multiple times a day.

It's both hot and cold water. I let cold water run for several minutes and still smell it.

Water heater is fairly old, from the 80s I think. I have not done anything with it. So you're saying that the hot water from the hot water heater could be flowing into the cold water? How do I check the anode?
 
boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
pontifex said:
The smell is at kitchen and bathroom sinks, plus a sink in the basement. Kitchen and bathroom are used multiple times a day.

It's both hot and cold water. I let cold water run for several minutes and still smell it.

Water heater is fairly old, from the 80s I think. I have not done anything with it. So you're saying that the hot water from the hot water heater could be flowing into the cold water? How do I check the anode?
Click to expand...
Regarding the flow back, it's not going to be a lot of water and IMO would only be a problem in a faucet that is unused for a long time which based on what you're saying is not the issue.

But if you have the odor in both hot and cold I can't imagine it's related to the anode rod. There should be a date on the HWH or a date code that can be translated - typically at the manufacturers website. That's a really old HWH, you might just get yourself into a replacement scenario by even trying to check the anode rod.

Checking the anode rod can be a bear. They are in extremely tight.

https://www.familyhandyman.com/plum...r-heater-by-replacing-the-anode-rod/view-all/

The people below would like to sell you something but it may be helpful for informational purposes.

https://www.culligannation.com/sulfur-rotten-eggs/

Do you have a water softener? Ours eliminated enough of the sulfur smell to make it nearly unnoticeable.
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
boomerang said:
Regarding the flow back, it's not going to be a lot of water and IMO would only be a problem in a faucet that is unused for a long time which based on what you're saying is not the issue.

But if you have the odor in both hot and cold I can't imagine it's related to the anode rod. There should be a date on the HWH or a date code that can be translated - typically at the manufacturers website. That's a really old HWH, you might just get yourself into a replacement scenario by even trying to check the anode rod.

Checking the anode rod can be a bear. They are in extremely tight.

https://www.familyhandyman.com/plum...r-heater-by-replacing-the-anode-rod/view-all/

The people below would like to sell you something but it may be helpful for informational purposes.

https://www.culligannation.com/sulfur-rotten-eggs/

Do you have a water softener? Ours eliminated enough of the sulfur smell to make it nearly unnoticeable.
Click to expand...

no water softener, just the 2 filters

would tons of leaves over the top of the well area be an issue? I get tons of leaves every year and they just blanket everything here. I've tried raking a like 3 foot radius around the well cap, but not sure if that would help or if it needs a larger radius?

I've also opened the well cap to let it get air as a local guy suggested, but neither of these things helped that I can tell.

it sounds like shocking the well is the next best low cost option then...
 
shortylickens

shortylickens

No Lifer
Jul 15, 2003
80,287
17,080
136
In the 8 years I've been living in Virginia I noticed the water has slowly gotten worse. The Water Co-op refuses to admit anything is wrong, and when I sent in a sample for testing (a private company on my own dollar) they couldnt find anything wrong even after checking for 238 seperate things.

We got a filter installed under the tap and while it does taste better, our showers and laundry stink just a teeny bit.

I dont recommend a professional test kit unless you really think something is terribly wrong. Even then you may need a plumber to find the issue and fix it.
 
boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
pontifex said:
it sounds like shocking the well is the next best low cost option then...
Click to expand...
How do you explain the lack of odor on water drawn close to the well? That's an important question to ask and get answered.

At the risk of pissing you off, if you were looking for confirmation of your plan to shock the well I'll give it to you right now. Go ahead. But until you can answer the question above I maintain that it will be a waste of effort.

https://www.amazon.com/PurTest-Home-Drinking-Water-Test/dp/B00MCLV0PY

I would test as close to where the water enters the home as is possible even if it means rigging something up. I would also test at a tap as far away as is possible and compare the two results.
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
boomerang said:
How do you explain the lack of odor on water drawn close to the well? That's an important question to ask and get answered.

At the risk of pissing you off, if you were looking for confirmation of your plan to shock the well I'll give it to you right now. Go ahead. But until you can answer the question above I maintain that it will be a waste of effort.

https://www.amazon.com/PurTest-Home-Drinking-Water-Test/dp/B00MCLV0PY

I would test as close to where the water enters the home as is possible even if it means rigging something up. I would also test at a tap as far away as is possible and compare the two results.
Click to expand...

i figure the shocking the well will send the bleach through the pipes as well, so if there's something in the pipes, that might help clear it up.

if it's not the well and not the hot water heater, then what else could it be?
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
did some further investigating.

confirmed no smell where water comes into the house from the well
drained a bunch of water from the hot water heater, no smell from there.

turned on all taps in the house and let them run for probably 10 minutes. Smell went away.
I left the house for several hours and checked the water again and it's starting to smell again.
So where the hell can the smell be coming from?

I did find an old anode rod behind the water heater, so the previous owners replaced it at some point, but I don't see how that could be the issue since there was no smell in the water from the hot water heater.
Also the water coming out of the water heater was cold...

ok, i read up on draining the water heater and I did not turn off the cold water before draining.
so the water coming out now is hot but still doesn't smell like sulfur.
although with the cold water bypassing the water heater, i don't smell sulfur in the cold water at the faucets that I normally smell it.

so more confused now...
 
Last edited:
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
Drained all the hot water from the hot water heater and let it fill back up. No sulfur smell while draining, and no sulfur smell in either hot or cold water right now.
Guess I'll see what it smells like tomorrow.

This is a complete mystery as to where it's been coming from!
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
it started to smell the next day so i changed out the whole house filter cartridge (used a different brand this time) and so far the smell has not come back again.

the filter is right after where the well water comes in, so if the filter is helping, then that would mean the smell was coming from the well, but there was no smell from the well water faucet...
 
N

NetWareHead

THAT guy
Aug 10, 2002
5,847
154
106
pontifex said:
Happens at all faucets, even bathtub. It's gone right now, but for how long? So its not likely the faucets.
Click to expand...

Are all of your faucets the same style or manufacturer? In a newer home where the builder installed them all at once, likely to have standardized on one vendor...

You mentioned you have plastic piping for your supply piping. As in cpvc? Any galvanized metal piping anywhere in the house? That stuff rusts internally
 
pontifex

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
NetWareHead said:
Are all of your faucets the same style or manufacturer? In a newer home where the builder installed them all at once, likely to have standardized on one vendor...

You mentioned you have plastic piping for your supply piping. As in cpvc? Any galvanized metal piping anywhere in the house? That stuff rusts internally
Click to expand...

This house was built in 80s, different faucets everywhere. Not sure if all same manufacturer, but different models anyway.

It's pvc piping through out. I don't recall seeing any galvanized pipe. Not sure if there's even any copper pipe.
 
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