Trials and Tribulations and Smell

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   This stinky problem is not easy to completely resolve. Sewer gas and propane are the leading candidates under the stove. I my case it was sewer gas coming back through the vacuum breaker. I was able to isolate this by noting that the problem only occurred when the gray tank valve was open and connected to the campground sewer and it was worse with the Pod ceiling vent fan running. If it had been leaking propane it would have been present without a sewer connection and even at home in the driveway. 

The function of the vacuum breaker is to allow air to enter the drain pipe downstream of the the P trap when water flow ceases, thereby preventing water from being siphoned out of the P trap. It's a one way air flow device: air into the piping but no air or gases back from the tank or sewer. There is no way to test while installed and probably not reliably even when removed. It must be vertical to work and works on very small pressure differentials. Best to replace if it's suspect. They're not expensive and are easy to replace. 

All that said, the possibility of a propane leak also exists as a previous poster described. That is serious and dangerous and should be checked out. 

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CharlieM Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 23 Nov 2012 Location: N. Colorado Online Status: Offline Posts: 1797	Topic: Trials and Tribulations and Smell Posted: 23 Mar 2014 at 11:16am
	This stinky problem is not easy to completely resolve. Sewer gas and propane are the leading candidates under the stove. I my case it was sewer gas coming back through the vacuum breaker. I was able to isolate this by noting that the problem only occurred when the gray tank valve was open and connected to the campground sewer and it was worse with the Pod ceiling vent fan running. If it had been leaking propane it would have been present without a sewer connection and even at home in the driveway. The function of the vacuum breaker is to allow air to enter the drain pipe downstream of the the P trap when water flow ceases, thereby preventing water from being siphoned out of the P trap. It's a one way air flow device: air into the piping but no air or gases back from the tank or sewer. There is no way to test while installed and probably not reliably even when removed. It must be vertical to work and works on very small pressure differentials. Best to replace if it's suspect. They're not expensive and are easy to replace. All that said, the possibility of a propane leak also exists as a previous poster described. That is serious and dangerous and should be checked out.
	Charlie Northern Colorado OLD: 2013 RP-172, 2010 Honda Pilot 3.5L 4WD PRESENT: 2014 Camplite 21RBS, 2013 Supercharged Tacoma 4L V6 4WD