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Why does our porta potty smell like rotten eggs after a week?

Luis A.asked 2 viewsOdor, Cleaning & ChemicalsOdorDeodorizerService frequencyStandard unitHolding tank

We have one standard unit for our six-person crew on a remote ranch. The rental company serviced it last Monday. By Friday, a strong rotten egg smell was coming from it, but the holding tank was only half full. The unit sits on gravel near the barn, and the service truck has no trouble reaching it. The weather has been warm, around 80 degrees. I use the unit myself and the crew is careful with it. Why does a half-full unit smell like sulfur after just four days? Could it be the deodorizer they used, or is something wrong with the vent?

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Ashley M.Boise, ID

That rotten egg smell is hydrogen sulfide from the waste breaking down, and warm weather speeds it up a lot even when the tank is only half full. A fill level tells you about capacity, not odor. Once the deodorizer charge they added on Monday gets used up, the tank starts smelling like sulfur, and at 80 degrees that can happen in four days.

We had the exact same thing with one unit out by our equipment shed last summer. Three things fixed it for us:

  1. Check the vent stack on the roof. If a wasp nest, a bird, or a cracked cap is blocking it, the gas has nowhere to go but out the seat.
  2. Move it out of full afternoon sun if you can. Ours sat against a metal wall that baked it all day. Shade made a real difference.
  3. Ask the company for a midweek deodorizer recharge or a second service visit during hot months. Six people on one unit in summer heat is a lot for a single weekly pump.

Also keep the lid down between uses. Sounds silly, but it helps.

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