Smoke Test

Ready to Find the Source of That Mysterious Sewer Smell?

Locate hidden leaks and breaches with Absolute Drain Service's professional smoke testing technology. At Absolute, we understand that few things are more frustrating than persistent sewage odors you simply cannot locate—you've checked every toilet, inspected every drain, yet the smell remains. It's not just about the unpleasant odor; it's about the reality that sewer gas contains hazardous compounds that shouldn't be present in your living or working space, and finding the source often seems impossible without tearing into walls, floors, or foundations. Our smoke testing service makes invisible problems suddenly visible, revealing exactly where sewer gas is entering your property without any destructive investigation.

Professional Smoke Testing Services

We begin by discussing your specific situation—when and where you smell sewage, whether odors appear under certain conditions like wind or water usage, and what areas of your property are affected. This conversation helps us understand the scope of the problem and plan our smoke test approach for maximum effectiveness. Every property and every leak situation is unique, so we tailor our testing strategy accordingly. Understanding smoke testing technology explains why it succeeds where visual inspection fails. We seal off your sewer line at a cleanout or access point, then use specialized smoke-generating equipment to fill your drain and sewer system with dense, white, non-toxic smoke under slight pressure. This smoke travels throughout your entire pipe network—through every branch, every connection, every joint. Wherever there's an opening in your system—a crack in a pipe, a failed toilet seal, a broken vent, a gap around penetrations, any breach whatsoever—the pressurized smoke escapes and becomes visible. Within minutes, you literally see smoke appearing at the exact location of problems that were previously impossible to find. The variety of leaks and breaches smoke testing reveals is remarkable. Our smoke tests identify cracked or broken sewer pipes under slabs or in walls, failed wax seals at toilet bases allowing gas to escape around fixtures, damaged or disconnected vent pipes that should carry gases safely outside, foundation cracks where sewer lines penetrate, allowing gas entry into living spaces, gaps around pipe penetrations through floors, walls, or ceilings, broken cleanout caps or access points, separated joints in older cast iron or clay systems, and any other breach in your sewer system that allows gas to escape where it shouldn't. Each leak location becomes immediately obvious as smoke appears, eliminating all guesswork about where repairs are needed. With Absolute, the smoke testing process is safe, clean, and remarkably effective. The smoke we use is completely non-toxic, non-staining, odorless, and leaves absolutely no residue on surfaces or belongings. It's safe for people, pets, plants, and property—it simply dissipates naturally after testing completes. We pump smoke into your system while systematically observing your property—inside and outside—watching for smoke to appear. When it does, we mark the location, photograph it for documentation, and continue testing to ensure we've identified every leak in your system. The entire process typically takes 1-2 hours and provides definitive answers to questions you couldn't solve any other way. Protect your health and property through precise leak detection. Our smoke testing services identify hazardous sewer gas entry points before prolonged exposure causes health problems, prevent the need for expensive exploratory demolition searching blindly for leak sources, provide documented evidence of problem locations for targeted, cost-effective repairs, verify that sewer systems are properly sealed in older homes or after renovations, and eliminate the frustration of persistent odors you couldn't locate despite repeated attempts. One smoke test typically reveals problems that could take weeks of trial-and-error investigation to find—if you found them at all without this specialized diagnostic capability.

‍