# Inverted "J"'s coming out of the ground **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 18, 2002, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763 "2002-06-18T22:52:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/21 "2002-08-05T22:28:21Z")
Methane is odorless. ---
**Author:** ![alex\_arg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@alex\_arg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alex_arg)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/22 "2002-08-05T22:35:21Z")
I knew that. ---
**Author:** ![alex\_arg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@alex\_arg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alex_arg)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/23 "2002-08-05T23:09:18Z")
I knew that. ---
**Author:** ![JimSox5](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5a626/32.png) [@JimSox5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimSox5)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/24 "2002-08-06T00:39:47Z")
If methane is odorless, then why does cow poop smell so bad? And btw, I do believe this is post #1000. ---
**Author:** ![JimSox5](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5a626/32.png) [@JimSox5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimSox5)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/25 "2002-08-06T00:41:25Z")
ummm. . .lop a 0 out of that number. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![happyheathen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5e925/32.png) [@happyheathen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/happyheathen)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/26 "2002-08-06T00:52:19Z")
I have seen these on lots which used to contain gas stations the ground was, presumably, badly contaminated - better to let the gas vaporize than sink and contaminate the ground water. ---
**Author:** ![alex\_arg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@alex\_arg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alex_arg)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/27 "2002-08-06T02:02:20Z")
I have checked this out. Methane is indeed odorless. Ringo, can you answer JimSox5’s question? ---
**Author:** ![MelCthefirst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@MelCthefirst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MelCthefirst)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/28 "2002-08-06T02:31:36Z")
“They’re one-half of a giant alien velcro pad that will be used on December 12, 2012 to pluck the planet out of orbit and doom humanity.” How long have you spent studying Velcro up close?? Like it like it, and the one about the submarines gets my vote too! ---
**Author:** ![Sue\_Duhnym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/91b2a8/32.png) [@Sue\_Duhnym](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sue_Duhnym)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/29 "2002-08-06T04:09:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by JimSox5 \* > If methane is odorless, then why does cow poop smell so bad? Because cow poop smells like shit. Sorry, I couldn’t resist. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TVGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/82dd89/32.png) [@TVGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/30 "2002-08-06T04:18:46Z")
because there’s a LOT more in cow dung than Methane… It’s all the other, um, biomass that smells. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/31 "2002-08-06T06:01:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TVGuy \* > \*\*because there’s a LOT more in cow dung than Methane… > > It’s all the other, um, biomass that smells. \*\* Hydrogen sulfide. ---
**Author:** ![Already\_in\_Use](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@Already\_in\_Use](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Already_in_Use)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/32 "2002-08-06T07:23:02Z")
In my high school, they had two of those things sticking out of the ground in this one field, painted like candy canes. This led to everyone’s calling the place Candyland (including the teachers), partially because of that, and partially because the druggie types would always go there to ingest illicit substances. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d26b3c/32.png) [@UncleBill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBill)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/33 "2002-08-06T18:39:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Duck Duck Goose \* > **On the diagram on the left, the thing that is 12" is part of the trench for the pipes. The trench itself is 8" wide, so the vent has to be narrower than 8".** I don’t know jack about leach fields, but I do know that the symbol “\>” means “greater than”. The trenches are greater than 8"wide. ---
**Author:** ![Chavardz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/91b2a8/32.png) [@Chavardz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chavardz)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/34 "2002-08-06T19:28:03Z")
Actually, the methane is a by-product of the biomass decomposing, so mostly anything that rots (i.e. organic) gives of methane ---
**Author:** ![bhb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ab992/32.png) [@bhb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bhb)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/35 "2002-08-06T19:44:44Z")
I was born and raised in Kentucky very close to Shelbyville and Springfield KY. Here are the driving directions between the two using > [@](#): > > \*\* Mapquest time between Shelbyville KY and Springfield KY \*\* > > Total Estimated Time: Total Distance: > 1 hour, 22 minutes 45.86 miles [Click Here to See the Map](http://www.mapquest.com/directions/main.adp?go=1&do=nw&ct=NA&1y=US&1a=&1p=&1c=Springfield&1s=KY&1z=&1ah=&2y=US&2a=&2p=&2c=Shelbyville&2s=KY&2z=&2ah=&lr=2&x=60&y=10) Anyways, it could be based on that area in Kentucky, but they’re definitely stretching it into another area. Remember the episode where there’s a hurricaine and it blows Flanders house down? There are no hurricaines in KY! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/36 "2002-08-06T20:27:09Z")
Well, _that_ explains it. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/37 "2002-08-06T21:51:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ringo \* > \*\*Well, _that_ explains it. \*\* Methinks **bhb** believed himself (herself?) to be in the “In ‘The Simpsons,’ what state is Springfield in?” thread when composing that reply. ---
**Author:** ![cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/38 "2002-08-07T04:57:38Z")
Do they look anything like [THIS](http://www.boners.com/grub/384023.html)? ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763/39 "2002-08-07T05:04:26Z")
I know **Cervaise** ; it was just an available wisecrack. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inverted-j-s-coming-out-of-the-ground/114763.md?page=1)