The Stench No One Could Escape: Sewer Gas Takes Over a St. Pete Resort Kitchen
For weeks, something felt off inside a quiet little resort tucked near the beaches of St. Petersburg, Florida. It wasn’t the view, the staff, or the location. It was the smell.
Guests walked in and paused. Staff were mortified. At first, they blamed the trash bins outside or assumed maybe someone forgot to take the seafood out of the fridge. But no matter how much they scrubbed or sprayed, nothing worked.
They lit candles. Plugged in air fresheners. One staff member even set up a Keurig coffee maker beside a deodorizer on the kitchen table — as if hazelnut roast and synthetic citrus might somehow mask the foul stench.
It didn’t work. Because it wasn’t something on the surface — it was coming from the very bones of the building.
We Got the Call
When I Find Leaks arrived, the staff had already been dealing with the embarrassment for a month. “We’re getting complaints,” one of the managers said. “They’re asking what that smell is when they walk into the kitchen.”
We began our investigation, starting with a visual survey of the room. The kitchen had undergone some waterproofing work recently. Cabinets and countertops had been removed. More importantly — so had the kitchen sink.
The missing P-trap meant there was no water barrier to block sewer gas from entering the space. But we needed more than a theory — we needed proof.
Breaking Out the Hurco
We set up our Hurco Power Smoker outside the building — the same equipment trusted for large-scale sewer odor detection in both commercial and residential properties.
A smoke test involves pumping non-toxic smoke into the plumbing system. Wherever there’s a break, crack, or open line — the smoke escapes visibly. It’s one of the fastest and most accurate ways to find sewer gas problems.
In this case, we found a cleanout near the back of the building and routed our smoke through a flexible hose:
We sealed it with an orange rag and turned the smoker on. Within minutes, the evidence appeared.
Smoke in the Room
Back inside the kitchen, staff were gathered nervously, watching.
Smoke suddenly began billowing from beneath the kitchen table:
Guests had eaten breakfast here. Employees had tried covering the smell with deodorizers. All the while, sewer gas was pouring from a pipe that had never been properly sealed.
We walked closer and saw it more clearly — rising behind the table and chairs like mist from a manhole.
No flashlight needed. No thermal camera. Just thick, unmistakable smoke climbing from a line that had been left open.
We explained that a missing P-trap will always cause this — and it’s not just unpleasant. Sewer gas contains methane and hydrogen sulfide, both of which can be dangerous in confined or poorly ventilated areas.
Beyond the Smell: What Else Could Be Lurking?
We advised the resort to perform a full sewer pipe inspection of the building — not just to verify this issue, but to make sure no other caps were missing, no vent stacks were cracked, and no connections had been disturbed during the remodel.
If there had been any sludge or grease buildup from years of kitchen use, we would’ve recommended a high-pressure sewer jetting to clear the lines. Prevention is always cheaper than remediation — especially for high-traffic commercial kitchens.
The City of St. Petersburg also encourages property owners to stay ahead of plumbing issues by participating in their Wastewater Collection Maintenance program and staying current with Sewer Smarts educational guidelines. If you operate a business here, their Public Works Alerts page is worth bookmarking too — especially during renovation season.
The Real Fix? Common Sense
It wasn’t a broken sewer main. It wasn’t a rat-chewed pipe or corroded cast iron.
It was a missing plumbing trap.
A simple oversight, but one that turned a peaceful kitchen into a breathing hazard. And once it was identified, sealed, and retested — the problem was gone. Completely.
To close the case, here’s the moment the truth came to light — smoke billowing up from the blurry void where the open sewer line had been left uncapped:
Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late
If your property smells “off,” don’t waste weeks guessing. Don’t drown in candles and plug-ins. Don’t lose business or dignity over something invisible.
Let us find the problem. Let us find the leak.
📞 Call or Text I Find Leaks at 727-409-2815
We serve St. Petersburg and surrounding areas with fast, professional sewer odor detection backed by state-of-the-art tools and over 500 five-star reviews.
