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Old 07-28-2018, 06:33 AM   #1
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Help with terrible smell from under kitchen sink, please!

We are full time RVers in our Wildcat MK 333 and love it! Recently our lovely little home has had an odor which I suspected was coming from under the kitchen sink (which is in the island). Last night I went to bed determined to find the cause of that smell and this morning when I opened that cabinet door, the smell almost made me sick! (Of course hubby can barely smell it ) After reading this forum on other TT/ RVs, we will check the p-trap first ... any other thoughts or suggestions?
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Old 07-28-2018, 06:38 AM   #2
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Here's a great article on that very problem:


https://www.loveyourrv.com/bad-smell-coming-rv-sink/
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Old 07-28-2018, 06:40 AM   #3
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Replace the air admittance valve on the drain pipe in the cabinet.

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Old 07-28-2018, 01:00 PM   #4
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Thank you all! Replacing the air admittance valve did the trick ... best $24 ever spent!
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Old 07-29-2018, 07:19 AM   #5
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Thank you all! Replacing the air admittance valve did the trick ... best $24 ever spent!
Thanks for getting back to us with your solution! At $24.00, you must have bought one made by Studor or Oatey. It should last much longer.

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Old 07-30-2018, 07:56 AM   #6
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Can't those valves be removed and cleaned ???
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Old 07-30-2018, 08:34 AM   #7
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Looks like you have a fix for now. For future, and others with this problem, you can replace the P trap with a water-less trap that requires no air admittance valve or venting. You can mount them horizontal or vertical.
I think one of the main reasons the industry uses water-less traps is so they can eliminate air vents thru the roof and air admittance valves that can fail.
Good use for water-less traps is when a sink is located in and island like yours and venting through the roof would be difficult.
Also gives the designers more options in where to locate fixtures without having to worry about venting.
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Old 07-30-2018, 08:57 AM   #8
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Cindoor an't those valves be removed and cleaned ???
Yes, but not always successfully. If easy to access then I would try cleaning it first.
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Old 07-30-2018, 03:08 PM   #9
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Can't those valves be removed and cleaned ???
You can try cleaning them, but it is usually the spring that fails or the diaphragm begins to ripple with the cheap black ones.

Bruce
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Old 07-30-2018, 03:20 PM   #10
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Looks like you have a fix for now. For future, and others with this problem, you can replace the P trap with a water-less trap that requires no air admittance valve or venting. You can mount them horizontal or vertical.
I think one of the main reasons the industry uses water-less traps is so they can eliminate air vents thru the roof and air admittance valves that can fail.
Good use for water-less traps is when a sink is located in and island like yours and venting through the roof would be difficult.
Also gives the designers more options in where to locate fixtures without having to worry about venting.
I’m confused? The p-trap and waterless trap just stop holding tank odor from coming up into your RV. Don’t you still need air admittance behind the water so the sink will drain quickly and easily? Kinda like holding a gallon jug upside down and the water gurgles out but if you pop a hole in the top the water pours out freely. I think the p-trap and air admittance have 2 different purposes.
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Old 07-30-2018, 03:33 PM   #11
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We learn something new everyday on the forum...66 trips around the sun and I've never heard of an air admittance valve before, thanks
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Old 07-30-2018, 05:18 PM   #12
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Air admittance valves are used in place of venting thru the roof when there is not a easy access to a vent. The only requirement for a air admittance valve is that the valve is installed above the spill over level of the sink or shower pan.
The purpose of a vent is so that when emptying the sink, tub or residential toilet the water draining out will not siphon the trap dry.
Inside the water-less trap housing is just a duck bill check valve that opens to allow the water to drain then closes shut to prevent gases, or liquids, from coming up through the drain.
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Old 07-30-2018, 11:51 PM   #13
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Our new MH came with two water-less traps. One is on the bathroom sink and the other is on the kitchen sink. Both sinks drain as fast or faster as the sinks in every other RV we have owned.
The kitchen sink is on a Peninsula base cabinet with no wall near enough for a vent or a air admittance valve. The bathroom lavatory is located where running to a vent would be difficult.
The shower is sandwiched between walls and has a p trap. One of the walls has a vent thru the roof.
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Old 07-31-2018, 06:30 AM   #14
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We learn something new everyday on the forum...66 trips around the sun and I've never heard of an air admittance valve before, thanks
X2

I've seen it and didn't know what it was called. Knew it was some type of vent so the sinks would drain, but, didn't know exactly how it was supposed to work. This past weekend the DW said she smelled a foul odor when she came in the door. Go figure! Yep that was it. Took it off, rinsed it out. Shook it and sometime it rattled and sometimes it didn't. If you read into these, guess there's a fine spring and diaphragm that goes to heck. And with a desire for more wine and less whining, so, we went around looking for a new one. Mine is Female 1 1/4 NPT threads and downstream of the traps. Will have to look a little further, may have to use a reducer or coupling unless I find the exact animal. What I was finding was all 1 1/2 npt
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Old 07-31-2018, 06:51 AM   #15
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The only requirement for a air admittance valve is that the valve is installed above the spill over level of the sink or shower pan.
This is not correct. If it was, there would be very few practical uses for air admittance valves. As long as the air admittance valve is above the trap it is serving, that is high enough. This is why you see them in cabinets, under sinks, etc.

If I am installing them, I try to get them as high as I can under a counter in case there is a stoppage in a drain line, it is less likely that the backed-up water will reach the air admittance valve and get it nasty, but this certainly is not a requirement.

Perhaps you are confusing the air admittance valve with a vacuum breaker for potable water and cross connections.

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Old 07-31-2018, 07:24 AM   #16
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You are correct as far as using it for a single fixture. A air admittance valve should be installed a minimum 4" above the trap for a single fixture and 6" above the flood level of the highest fixture when it's in a stack vent application.
Probably not many RV's that have a stack vent application though.
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Old 09-15-2018, 04:50 PM   #17
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An Update and new question!

The $24 air admittance valve failed within 2 weeks! Took it back to our local RV supply, but they would not provide a refund. Purchased 2 on Amazon and were we glad we did! A week later, I noticed the smell in the bathroom cabinet and after replacing that one, we were all set! All set for a minute, that is ... all of a sudden we have a sewer smell in our RV that seems like it's coming from the bathroom/bedroom area! What in the world is THAT about?? Vent line to the roof? A sniff test around the toilet was ok ... No smell in the bathroom cabinet ... Any thoughts?? I'm hoping when we solve THIS problem, that will be the end of the sewer smells in our home! Thanks all!
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Old 09-15-2018, 05:20 PM   #18
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If you running a vent fan be sure you have a window or vent open to allow to enter. A vent fan can over power an AAV. It can also draw in fumes from the black tank.
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Old 09-15-2018, 06:03 PM   #19
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Looks like you have a fix for now. For future, and others with this problem, you can replace the P trap with a water-less trap that requires no air admittance valve or venting. You can mount them horizontal or vertical.
I think one of the main reasons the industry uses water-less traps is so they can eliminate air vents thru the roof and air admittance valves that can fail.
Good use for water-less traps is when a sink is located in and island like yours and venting through the roof would be difficult.
Also gives the designers more options in where to locate fixtures without having to worry about venting.
Waterless traps have issues also.
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