Replies

1. 
   jet | Aug 28, 2005 01:28am | #1

   Smalls like what??? eggs?

   "Sir! You are drunk!"

   "Madam! You are ugly, and tomorrow I shall be sober!!"  Winston Churchill

2. 
   DanH | Aug 28, 2005 01:43am | #2

   Galv pipes tend to make this sort of thing worse. Is this well or city water? Rotten egg (sulfur) smell or something else?

   Check with water co or neighbors and find out what's typically the problem where you are. Can be plain old H2S in well water, often however it's due to "iron bacteria" in the well or hot water tank.

   For iron bacteria on city water: Make sure you've flushed all sediment out of the HWH. Then figure out some way to introduce about a gallon of chlorine bleach into the HWH. (One way is to remove the T&P valve and pour through that opening.) Let sit several hours, then flush through the pipes.

   But if it's a well likely you'll have to have this treatment done on the well.

3. 
   Danno | Aug 28, 2005 02:56am | #3

   Just a guess, but have you checked the sacrificial anode?--may be used up, or I've heard that replacing magnesium with aluminum or vice versa will help.

   [Sir, I am drunk, slightly, having just returned from dinner with wife and I finished the liter of wine after she drank one glass (plus I had a Manhattan for an appetizer)].

1. 
   DanH | Aug 28, 2005 04:01am | #4

   Hopefully you didn't give your wife the Churchill quote.

2. 
   DanH | Aug 28, 2005 04:02am | #5

   (But sometimes REMOVING the anode, or replacing it with a different type, will help with the odor.)

4. 
   IKEMATTSON | Aug 28, 2005 04:46am | #6

   o.k. thanks for all the help.  it is city water.  I'll drain it completely, introduce the chlorine bleach.  check the anode.  thanks again.      And no I'm not drunk....

1. 
   DanH | Aug 28, 2005 05:57am | #7

   Call the city water people. They'll likely know if replacing the anode with (IIRC) an aluminum one would be worthwhile.