When you receive persistent complaints about an unpleasant odor in your restrooms, your maintenance crew will almost certainly check the American standard toilets and if emanating from the men’s room, the urinals. Often overlooked is the floor drain which is designed to prevent odors rising into the restroom and you may need a drain odor eliminator to solve the issue.
Is There Water in The Trap?
The floor drain is a trap that is designed to hold water. This prevents poor odors and sewer gasses from rising into the air of the restroom. Floor drains are often poorly maintained which may result in the water disappearing or completely evaporating as it dries out. Without a drain odor eliminator in place, the poor odor can pass straight through and into the room.
These floor drains should be frequently cleaned, and maintenance crews ensure that the water is present in the trap in the correct quantities.
Some maintenance crews who are aware that a floor drain can dry out may regularly pour a bucket of water down the drain in the hope of refilling the trap. This may include any cleaning liquids or disinfectants which may attack and kill the bacteria which may be causing some of the odor problems.
By using the techniques designed for waterless urinals, where a technologically designed liquid sits on top of the urine to prevent odor from passing back into the urinal, a drain odor eliminator is a liquid that sits on top of the water in the floor drain.
As any water is passed to the floor drain, from mopping and cleaning the restroom, the water passes through the eliminator liquid. This keeps the drain odor eliminator always on top of the water.
The Odor Is Sealed Away
A consistent maintenance program will ensure that the trap seal is in place over the water that is passed through the floor drain. The liquid floats above the water, preventing any odors from seeping back into the restroom. The barrier forms a trap so that sewer gasses cannot re-enter the restroom area.
