New van weird smell when moving off site

[Christoph]

Hi, we have a Burstner Lyseo picked up in May and have noticed on the last couple of occasions when leaving site a sulphur like smell in the van. It smells like a catalytic converter smell to me or could be the waste tank? The smell clears after a little while. Anyone else had this issue?

Thanks

 

[Jim]

This will likely be your grey waste. This can be smellier than the black. Putting sink plugs in place before you move off will stop most of it. It's probably not clearing after a while, rather you are getting used to it

 

[tonka]

Waste tank is my vote.
Had it in past vans and current one... Put the plugs in the sinks and showers..
It often will show up more when you open a window as it seems to suck out the nasty smell..

 

[Christoph]

Thanks. I did think it may be the waste but we never had this issue in the previous Chausson in the 3 years we had it.

 

[DigglyDog]

This happened to us in Italy, turned out to be the leisure battery cooking and the resulting gas getting into the hab area.. shouldn't happen with a couple of month old van though

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[Jaws]

Hi, we have a Burstner Lyseo picked up in May and have noticed on the last couple of occasions when leaving site a sulphur like smell in the van. It smells like a catalytic converter smell to me or could be the waste tank? The smell clears after a little while. Anyone else had this issue?

Thanks

Do you use hook up ?
Might be worth checking:
The electrolytic level in the leisure battery(s) if they are not the sealed type
The charging voltage as it may be high

 

[Christoph]

Yes we do use hook up. Hasn’t thought it could be the battery.

 

[Minxy]

My first thought was the battery ... even the worst smelling waste tank doesn't usually have the sulphur smell you get from batteries.

 

[Christoph]

If it is the battery why would the smell only happen when we move off? We don’t get any smells at all when on a pitch or in hook up at home. We do have a solar panel on the van too.

 

[Jim]

If it is the battery why would the smell only happen when we move off? We don’t get any smells at all when on a pitch or in hook up at home. We do have a solar panel on the van too.

Because the motion could put battery cooking fumes into the van. But get your nose near the batteries and you'll know, ditto for head in the sink

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[DigglyDog]

Also touch the battery case to see if it's getting hot. Our problem turned out to be the split charge relay which was misreading the state of the engine battery and shoving everything into the leisure battery for a short period, cooking a couple of the plates.

 

[Minxy]

If it is the battery why would the smell only happen when we move off? We don’t get any smells at all when on a pitch or in hook up at home. We do have a solar panel on the van too.

When you move off the fumes that may have been escaping to the outside are pushed inwards and as you're also sitting in the cab near where the leisure batteries are located (I assume) you'll notice it.

 

[TheBig1]

bad eggs smell = sulphur dioxide, a byproduct of heating sulphuric acid

waste smell is the product of incomplete aerobic digestion of food and starch in waste water. often smells like cabbage

 

[Just smiffy]

When you leave the site you go to the dump station...? When you open the waste valve the suction takes out the water in the traps on the sinks and shower, once the rush of water from the waste tank diminishes just run the taps/shower a little to refill the traps to stop the smell coming back up...

To try to get rid of the smell in he tank we now and again put a dishwasher tablet in the sink and shower plug holes and let them dissolve over time and it helps....

 

[Lenny HB]

Another vote for cooling battery.

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[Christoph]

Checked battery and all seems ok - no smell at all with voltage at 13.7 on the gauge. All sink drains seem ok too. Will see if it happens again when we move off. Thanks

 

[ambulancekidd]

Our last motorhome (an Autosleeper) wasn't guilty of creating waste tank smells but, the KonTiki we have now is often smelly, even after one day so a deep clean of the tank is the order of the day.
I can't see your waste tank being dirty yet but, yes plugs in or better still drain the waste tank before travelling.

 

[Jaws]

Of course the other more obvious answer is simply the catalytic converter... They stink of rotten eggs as they start to heat up

 

[Camping Gaza]

Does your battery have a vent tube? find out where it goes, or disconnect it stick your nose near the end of that and sniff.

 

[Beltie]

If the smell only occurs after you have started the engine, my guess is the catalytic converter.

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[Off da Grid]

I would say the catalytic converter especially if the vans been parked for a while, out Fiat Ducato smells a bit until the engine etc. gets hot if it’s not been used.

 

[GMLS]

Another vote for the catalytic converter. Should settle down with more usage

 

[Christoph]

Thanks all. Will see how it goes and report back!

 

[17RAP]

Suspect cause of smell could be the vehicle battery. When you start the engine the alternator kicks in it initially starts charging the vehicle battery which may already be at full capacity via charge from solar panels and EHU. I've just experienced the same issue but have not had chance to fully investigate yet.

 

[TheBig1]

Suspect cause of smell could be the vehicle battery. When you start the engine the alternator kicks in it initially starts charging the vehicle battery which may already be at full capacity via charge from solar panels and EHU. I've just experienced the same issue but have not had chance to fully investigate yet.

I think he might just have sorted the smell after 3 years. A rotten egg smell is sulphur dioxide. Usually from the waste tank but a bad battery that has been way overcharged and cooked will smell the same. Problem is if its the battery it will also produce highly flamable hydrogen gas at the same time

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[maison]

After draining our grey waste we drop a bleach tablet into the sink plug hole and run just enough water to dissolve/disintegrate the tablet into the tank.

Driving “sloshes” it around and the bleach solution stops any smells developing, keeping the tank fresh.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

A lot of new van sinks don't have waste traps so the smells come up through the waste into the sink. Best to plug in and place a damp cloth over the plug when travelling.