How To Snake Bathtub
This old house plumbing and heating expert richard trethewey shows how to fix a slow draining tub.
How to snake bathtub. How to snake a tub drain do not snake through the drain. However if plunging the drain yields no results snaking it is the next step. See below for tools subscribe to this old house. Tub drains in homes usually are not that big so the smaller snake should do the trick.
So it may seem counter intuitive not to do the same for a tub. However the process is the same when using a hand snake. Clearing a clogged tub drain is a pretty straightforward process. Drain a ugers a re built to handle sink clogs easily and effectively.
A clogged bathtub drain can be cleared in several ways. Well the shape of the tub s pipe is quite. If your bathtub drain is clogged it s usually an easy fix. Don t snake from the drain if you were clearing out a clog from a kitchen sink or a toilet you d certainly send a snake down exactly where the water drains.
Snake it out take your snake and advance the wire down the overflow. Depending on your bathtub you will need a screwdriver to remove screws first. You are probably wondering why the bathtub is so special and where we should put the snake then. Your overflow cover is attached to a trip lever and they should come out together from the overflow pipe.
How to snake a tub drain. Rental plumbing snakes often come in a kit with a couple of different sized snakes. But in most bathtubs there s a sharp bend in the pipe just below the tub drain. Most clogged bathtub drains can be cleared with a plunger or by removing and cleaning out the tub stopper if after trying both of these your bathtub is still clogged the next step is to use a snake to clear the drain.
To remove the clog start by unscrewing the tub drain stopper. The whole difference between snaking the bathtub and the shower drain is that in case of a bathtub you should never snake through the drain. Push the wire out of the snake till you feel some resistance. Most of the time bathtub clogs are caused by a build up of hair and other debris in the drain.
Choose the right size snake. A rigid k 50 motor driven snake is used in this step by step. Check out our latest post on the best drain augers by crushing the button below and get leveled up on your plumbing tools and know how. As with most blocked drains the first method to try on a clogged tub is a toilet plunger.
Depending on the size of the drain and the extent of the clog one may work better than the other. Tub drains are susceptible to clogs from hair soap residue and grease.