Sewer Gas Smell – Hazardous Breathing and Dangerous Health Effects

The sewer gas smell is one of the chief indicators that something wrong is going on in your sewerage system. Not only that, the sewer gas smell is also intoxicating and can cause hazardous health effects. Breathing sewer gas can cause some unlikely damages, especially when you inhale them for long periods of time. As such, you must take care to take the proper actions to eliminate the dangerous sewer gas smell for good.

Why Breathing Sewer Gas is Hazardous

Sewer gas smell is usually caused by a certain gas, Hydrogen Sulfide. It is colorless. Being colorless, the gas may not give any impression to your eyes that something is wrong. However, its odor is regarded as very strong. For the first few minutes, it stinks of rotten eggs. After a certain amount of time (usually 15-20 minutes), however, the stench somewhat subsides. This is a natural reaction of Hyrdogen Sulfide when it has contact with air. But just because its odor has already subsided doesn’t mean that the gas has already evaporated. The Hydrogen Sulfide is just as toxic as when it was very odorous.

More than being colorless and odorless (after a certain period of time), Hydrogen Sulfide is flammable. This means that, when left unattended, the gas will accumulate and can ignite. When it comes in contact with a flame-igniting material (such as a match), the accumulated Hydrogen Sulfide within the area can cause an explosion.

Aside from its flammable property, Hyrdrogen Sulfide also has quite dangerous health effects. It is purported to be a reason for miscarriage and gall bladder problems. Breathing sewer gas can cause this to happen.

Addressing Sewer Gas Smell

Obviously, sewer gas smell is everything but a simple problem. But its complex and dangerous effects are quite solvable with simple mechanisms. In some cases, the sewer gas smell is but a simple accumulation of stagnated water, trapped in your shower drain, sink drain and other drains. In these cases, you can easily bleach the drains with water and, consequently, with baking soda. There are also liquid solutions that can help address this basic sewer gas smell problem.

If doing these simple and basic steps doesn’t work, you will need to contact a specialist in drainage and sewerage systems. This you must do immediately to prevent further escalation of problems. The costs of having a plumber eradicate your sewers’ gas smell depend on the gravity of damage of your sewers.