"Tater" wrote in message
oups.com...
I just bought an old farmhouse an am going thru all the repairs that
need to be done and have a puzzle.

when a large load of waster is flushed down the pipes (i.e. bathtub
emptying) the basement fills with septic gas. found a cleanout cover
rusted out (and now fixed) but still having the gas.

I'd say that when the water enters the tank, the gas gets pushed back,
after the fix it has dropped noticeably, but it appears it has now been
directed to the tank vent.

still some gas in basement, and a fairly good stinker from the septic
vent, have i been living in the city soo long to forget that this is
normal?
Shortly after I bought my present house, I also found a rusted cleanout
cover. I replaced it and that stopped the sewer smell in the basement. I
do get sewer smell whenever my wife does laundry but only in the back yard.
I believe, however it is coming from one of the roof vents as my septic tank
has no vent. I lived in the city for 17 years and had also forgotten that
these things come with country life. We live with a pretty constant wind
from the West that after going over the house is backdrafted down behind the
East side of the house, thus I believe why the smell is in the back yard
when laundry is done. If you're still getting smell in the basement,
perhaps you have a plumbing trap that is empty of water, thus letting the
sewer gas through.

Tom G.