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| Smelly Cold Water | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Thu Jul 3rd, 2008 08:30 pm |
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1st Post |
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OCTravis Member 
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This has been a long process, so here is the story. Moved into a new condo that I am RENTING. I go to take my first shower and the water smells so bad of sulfur/rotten egg smell. I gave it a day or two to maybe flush itself out but it only got worse and more unbearable. (Can you get sick from breathing that stuff cause for the first week of breathing it I wasn't feeling good at all?) I had one handyman guy come up and take the water heater off vacation mode and put it on extra hot to flush the water out. This help in some areas, the water first came out all black/gray color for about 10 minutes then settled down. The hot water didn't really smell as bad but the cold water still had an odor to it that wasn't normal. A week and half later the property mgmt comes w/ a plumber to officially flush out the water heater. The same thing happens w/ the gray water and sediment coming out. So here I am 1 month and 3 days in my new condo that I am renting and have yet to take a shower at this place and having to go to family and friends to get ready for work. I get conflicting solutions from various plumbers/professionals. Most say replacing the water will be the solution, this water heater is an '05 model so its not old. But then I hear others say its not the water heater but the pipes having bacteria(I did do the bleach down the drains twice). The property mgmt approved replacement of the heater. Should I just go for it and see what happens? Its not out of my pocket. This is just getting old and I can't keep living like this. What would you do if you were in my shoes? Also wanted to mention I spoke to a couple people who were saying just let the water run for awhile. I do it and it seems to help for a while then when I get up in the morning it has that order to it and more sediment is in the faucet w/ the filter. That isn't normal is it? II lived in Ir
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| Posted: Fri Jul 4th, 2008 12:17 am |
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2nd Post |
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elenano Member
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It is unusual for the cold water to smell unless there is a strong sulfur content in it. That could be the case. As to the water heater, the one thing nobody seems to have done so far is apply bleach (preferably hydrogen peroxide) to the water heater. Pour two pints into it and then run some water through the pipes. There is a good chance that is all that needs to be done. If not, come back and we'll explore the rest of the scenarios. Randy Schuyler
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| Posted: Sun Jul 6th, 2008 09:51 pm |
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3rd Post |
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OCTravis Member
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This is what was on your website: Cheap, simple, effective, but not forever. Shut off the cold water valve to your water heater, open a hot faucet somewhere in your house to relieve pressure, drain some water from the tank, open the plumbing on one side, and dump in a few pints of hydrogen peroxide. Close everything up, turn on the cold water again, and let some water run from all spigots and taps. You should be odor-free until the next time you go out of town and allow the water heater to sit, unused. Then you'll have the problem again. For details on this procedure, go to Know-how. I don't want the problem to happen again over time so if the my landlords said they will replace the water heater should I just let them or should I have a plumber come out and pour the peroxide into the water heater or can I just do it myself? where exactly would I pour the into the water heater? The first week I lived here I was smelling the sulfur/rotten egg vapors and felt terrible, is it harmful to my health? Thank you so much for the help!!!
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| Posted: Mon Jul 7th, 2008 12:31 am |
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4th Post |
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elenano Member
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That passage refers to people who have chronic odor problems due to anaerobic bacteria often found in well water that react with standard anodes and make hydrogen sulfide gas. I strongly suspect your problem is simply a tank that sat unused. That's why I think it will only take one application of peroxide and that then the problem won't return. I do not know if showering in what smells like the sewer is harmful, but it would be enough to make anyone feel terrible! As to where to put the peroxide, either the hot or cold port or the anode port, if there is a separate one. And let the plumber do it. Randy Schuyler
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