Plumber cost

Hi, on some days my apartment stinks of rotten eggs/like a sewer, on other days it's fine. I've tried covering the drains but the smell still gets through. I went to my landlady; she didn't help. I'm thinking it's time to call in a plumber but I'm worried about the cost. Does anyone know how much a plumber costs? I'm in Changwon.

Thanks in advance for any help/insights.

This has been covered before.

Suffice it to say, sewer gas is typically restricted from entering buildings through plumbing traps that create a water seal at potential points of entry. In addition, plumbing vents allow sewer gases to be exhausted outdoors.

In Korea, they don't install nor use effective plumbing traps.  Also, they do not vent kitchen or bathroom gases to the outside.  Therefore, these gases enter Korean homes regularly.

It is very harmful to your health and can be deadly.

Please use google to find out how you can best ameliorate this toxic/hazardous issue.

Contacting a Korean plumber will be of no help, as they don't understand these basic plumbing principles of p-traps and exhaust vents from the west.

I wonder if you could just get an S-trap or whatever shipped to you, show it to a Korean plumber, do that Korean "UH-UH-UH" thing while pointing at the sink, and they would hook it up for you. But probably the only pipes they have are the stupid plastic or metal slinky ones that go straight down into the ground.

You could install u bends or jerry-rig the flexihoses under your sink drains, etc., but you'll need to go out and buy longer sections of hose first and then seal up any gaps where the drain hose meets/connects to the main drain pipe with a grommet, putty, duck tape, etc.

Most Koreans think it's "normal", so trying to explain it to others is pretty pointless, as you'll be met with blank stares.

I used some half circle things I brought from diso with cable ties to create u bends in my sinks. Works like a charm!

Last time I went to Homeplus they had an entire aisle-long shelf dedciated to things you can stick in your drain to reduce (but not eliminate) the sewer stench coming up your sink without installing an S-bend. I've never seen so much innovation towards a lost cause in my life.

I agree.

Why they don't adopt recognized plumbing standards is quite the mystery.

They don't even use wax rings and mounting bolts for the toilet.

Thanks for the responses. I had no idea about water traps, s bends, nor that  Korea doesn't have any safeguards against sewer smell. First time with this problem in my home, but I do remember walking downtown Daegu and it often smelling like a sewer. Maybe that's another problem. Anyway I don't dare mess with the pipes, although I checked that my bathroom sink has a vertical pipe (no s bend). Presently, I close the plug hole, have a dishcloth over the shower drain with a tub weighing it down, and the toilet seat closed, close the bathroom door and the kitchen door. Seems to halt the smell from reaching the living room but if it is really bad, windows open in spite of the sub zero temperatures. half a year to go!

I usually cover the floor drain in the shower with a big ice pack, (not frozen). But I aso squeegee or towel the floor after showering to keep it dry and put the ice pack back. The smell has never returned.

I usually cover the floor drain in the shower with a big ice pack, (not frozen). But I aso squeegee or towel the floor after showering to keep it dry and put the ice pack back. The smell has never returned.

might want to invest in one of these

http://www.coupang.com/vp/products/60793401?vendorItemId=3017182530

The UriNara dude needs to come along and explain how smelly drains are a part of Korean culture, and how anyone who disagrees needs to go 'home'.

Therefore, these gases enter Korean homes regularly.

It is very harmful to your health and can be deadly.

Casts new perspective on the fan death legend.