How to Deodorize a Smelly Sink

You clean your kitchen sink, you don’t leave dishes sitting in it, and you always run the garbage disposal completely to make sure all the food scraps go down. So why does your kitchen sink stink?

That icky aroma wafting up from the drain could be old foodstuffs stuck to the pipes, a dirty P trap, or a clog way, way down the pipe somewhere. Before you go inside to investigate, we suggest trying some natural de-stink methods.

Natural Remedies for Sink Odors

Your stinky sink may be caused by decaying food and waste sticking to the drain’s interior. We recommend that you first use the tried-and-true baking soda and vinegar method to get rid of the smell.

Toss a handful (a quarter- to a half-cup) of baking soda down the sink drain. Let it sit for about 15 minutes. Follow it with about a half-cup of vinegar. Listen for the fizzing to stop, and then let it sit for another 15 minutes. Finish up by pouring a kettleful of boiling water down the drain.

Some people do this as part of their weekly housecleaning routine. It’s a good idea to do it at least once a month, or more often if you find that your sink gets smelly often.

If you’ve got a garbage disposal, a good natural sink refresher is to run the disposal and send down a tray’s worth of ice cubes followed by a sliced lemon. You can even take this a step further and make vinegar ice cubes for this trick!

The P-Trap’s Bad Rap

The P-trap is the rounded pipe segment underneath your sink. Its job is to trap debris before it creates a clogged pipe and to block sewer gases from entering your home through the sink drain. If it fails at either one of these duties, the result could be a smelly sink drain.

Cleaning out the P trap

In order to inspect and clean out your P trap, you have to remove it. If you don’t feel confident about this, you can always call us here at R.V. Carey’s. If you know how to remove it yourself, simply clean it out thoroughly with a bottle brush and reassemble the pipe. Make sure the washers are properly sealed.

If this doesn’t eliminate the odor, or if you find that the P trap wasn’t harboring any gunk, there may be an issue further down the pipe. In that case, contact us to set an appointment.

Smelly Bathroom Sink?

If it’s your bathroom sink that’s sending out the stink, check the aerator cap (end of the faucet that usually unscrews off easily) for gunk, as well as the stopper. If those are both clear, you may have a P trap problem as described above or there may be some water stagnating inside the overflow drain.

Is Your Foul Sink Trying to Tell You Something?

If none of the remedies or suggestions we’ve described eliminate the sink smells, it could indicate a larger problem. Contact R.V. Carey’s to come take a look.