Drain smells in an empty holiday home: causes and simple fixes
Coming back to a sewer smell in your Costa del Sol home? Dry drain traps are a common cause. How to find the source, fix it and prevent it while you are away.
· 2 min read
Why an empty home starts to smell of drains
Under every sink, shower and floor drain there is a curved section of pipe, the trap, that holds a little water. That water is a seal: it stops air from the sewer coming back up into the room.
When nobody uses a bathroom for weeks, the water slowly evaporates, especially in a warm, dry or air-conditioned home. Once the seal is gone, the smell arrives, and it is usually strongest in guest bathrooms, outdoor showers and utility-room floor drains that are rarely used.
Find the source before you clean
Start with the drains nobody has used the longest: the guest shower, the bidet, the laundry floor drain and any terrace or garage drain. Put your nose close to each one, and pour in a jug of water to see if the smell fades within a few minutes.
If the smell is only there after a long absence and disappears once the water has run, dry traps were the cause. If it comes back quickly or is present even in rooms used every day, the problem may be elsewhere in the pipework, and that is a job for a plumber.
Simple fixes that usually work
Run water into every drain for a minute or two, then flush toilets that have not been used. Wipe the drain cover and the visible rim with warm water and a mild cleaner, because biofilm and soap residue also smell.
Avoid strong drain chemicals as a first step: they can be harsh on old pipes and are never to be mixed with other products. For stubborn organic build-up in a kitchen sink, hot water and a plunger go a long way.
Keeping the seals full while you are away
If the property stands empty for weeks, ask someone to run the water in every drain once or twice a month. For a long closure, some people add a small spoonful of cooking oil after the water: a thin film on top slows evaporation. Wash it out when you return.
A regular visit also lets you air the rooms and check for damp at the same time. Lavanda can include running the taps and drains in a routine visit to your home on the Costa del Sol; tell us which bathrooms are used least and we will keep an eye on them.
