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Help!
I recently did a bathroom remodel that required the replacement of the lav faucet and pop up drain. My customer insists that the drain hold water until it is released in other words a perfect seal. She insists that all good drain valves hold water perfectly. I have never had to make a drain hold water till hell freezes over. Usually if they hold for 10-15 minutes it is considered working. I have replaced the drain twice. the first a Moen the second a Kohler. they hold water good enough for most folks but not good enough for this woman. Any suggestions? I am losing my generally pleasant attitude about this
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Jim,
Pop-ups normally have an O-ring seal under the lip of the cap and are, in the better ones, adjustable via a threaded post. If you are just sitting the post on top of the pop-up arm and hoping gravity and water pressure will hold the seal you may not get that lasting seal. (The O-ring is there???)
Insert the pivot arm into the hole in the bottom of the stem, adjust the stem so the cover with the O-ring bottoms out on the drain hole before the travel limit of the pop-up arm is reached, tighten the arms packing nut to provide positive pressure to the pivot ball and the extra pull, held by the pivot arm, should hold the O-ring tightly against the drain lip and prevent leakage.
O-rings also could be helped with an extremely light application of lube made especially for O-rings. They do dry out, become less pliable and fail in their sealant job. They also have been known to come damaged (cut) from the assembly line.
*I'd get something from a company rep that says they hold water for 15 min. and thats fine. Then get the hell out of there! Any additional work to be done would be perceded by a very specific contract that said basically this isn't a perfect world. Jeff
*She's probably using the sink to soak/hand wash her angora sweater. Get her a bucket.
*There are several styles of these drain tube assemblies. Here is a picture of the two most common, but they are both pvc. I try to use brass assemblies when possible. The one on the left has a large, flat, soft seal. The beveled edge of the sink ring, and the large, soft seal make this assembly leak proof. This sucker, if tightened correctly, will not leak by until you pull the lever and let out the water. The drain stem also has a hole in the bottom where the rod goes through. When the actuator rod is tightened correctly, there should be enough tension on the drain stem to hold it closed, and let the seal do its thing.It also comes in brass.The one on the right is a bad example of a drain stem assembly. The sink ring has no bevel at all, and relies on the tiny bevel on the plastic threaded insert. The drain stem has an o ring, but it is a small little bugger, and won't seal worth a crap. It also has a hole in the stem, but it doesn't help much. It also comes in brass.There is another type, and relies on gravity and the weight of the water to push the stem down enough to create a seal. These stems have no hole in them, and the actuator rod simply pushes up on the bottom to open, and gravity/water weight pushes the stem back down. You can tell if you have one of these kind by reaching in with your fingers and pulling it completely out of the sink. It also comes in brass.Cost, or even brand name doesn't mean it is a quality assembly.just fyinear the ditch...James DuHamel
*Dear Jim;Yes I have had the same problem more than once. Now I just tell my client in advance that these things rarely hold the water in the bowl for more than 15 minutes, and that the purpose of these originally was just to hold water long enough to fill the bowl and wash the hands, particularly before they had faucets which mixed the water before dispensing it. I'm with the guy that said tell her to use a bucket for soaking ladies things. If that doesn't work, tell her you'll happily fill the drain with construction adhesive. That should do the job quite nicely I think...Jon.
*Dear JonYesteday I made another trip to the Ladys house.I replace the existing O ring with several others no luck.I then decided to change my program,instad of looking for good qualityI decided to find a pop up that had a good tight plug, it didn't matter if it was plastic Junk. I found a 8.99 cheepo that had a good cork to it. She seems happy. I brought the good Kohler drain home and put it on my sink. It works great and my wife is happy. I hope this story is over.