How to Get Rid of a Stinky Kitchen Sink

Posted by Rachel Schwartz on 10/29/2020 to Residential

hand holding teaspoon of baking soda above a covered sink drain

If you regularly use your kitchen, chances are you might have noticed an unpleasant odor wafting up from your kitchen sink at one time or another. This happens because any food washed down the drain or run through the garbage disposal can sometimes get caught in the pipes or stuck to the blades of the disposal, resulting in the smell. For this reason, it is a good idea to routinely clean your kitchen sink drain to prevent this from happening. Refraining from putting items like fat or grease--which are bad for your pipes--down the drain can also help this. Luckily, if you have noticed an odd smell emanating from your sink, there are several easy home fixes for it.

If you have a garbage disposal, start with hot water and soap. Fill up your sink with a few inches of hot water and drizzle in some soap. Then let this soapy water run down the drain while the garbage disposal is turned on and let the water continue to run for a few minutes before turning it off. If the smell is mild, this may be all that is needed. However, if the smell is strong or if you simply prefer to have a citrus scent in your sink, another popular option is to use a combination of salt, ice, and lemon peels. Pour a bit of salt down the drain before turning the disposal on and adding the ice followed by the lemon peels. The salt will help clean the sides while the ice should help knock loose any food stuck to the grinder or the blades. The lemon peels will add freshness and replace the stink with a nice, citrus-y scent. A third option is to freeze an ice cube tray filled with lemon wedges and vinegar and toss those cubes down the disposal while it is on. The will achieve the same result as the ice, salt, and lemon peels.

If you do not have a garbage disposal, then using ice and pieces of lemon are not an option, as there is no disposal to properly break them down without clogging your pipes. If the smell is mild, try pouring boiling water down the drain by itself. This can be leftover water that has just been boiled for tea or pasta that you pour down the drain immediately rather than letting it cool. Sometimes this is enough to clean out the pipes and dislodge any small pieces of food that may have accidentally been washed down the drain.

If boiling water by itself does not seem to have helped, then add baking soda and vinegar to the mix. Pour one cup of baking soda down the drain followed by two cups of vinegar. This mixture should begin to bubble up. Let the mix sit for a few minutes and bubble before running hot water down the drain to flush everything out. A little bit of salt can also be added to provide extra abrasion to help break up any stubborn food bits that might be stuck. If you dislike the strong scent of vinegar, it can be substituted for lemon juice for a fresher scent.

Any of these methods should work to rid your kitchen sink of any stink and clogging caused from prolonged normal, everyday use. If none of these methods seem to work or if you encounter a rotten egg smell, sewer smell, several drains in the home other than the kitchen sink smell bad, or find that the smell is accompanied by water backing up, then it may be time to call in a professional plumber because there may be a larger problem occurring.