Bathroom sinks are notorious for getting clogged. In some instances it is almost a on going problem but curing the clog yourself is not always that difficult.
For the most part I never suggest a chemical cleaner and the reason for this is often the clog is in an area where the chemical won’t come in extended contact with the material. Another good reason is if the Chemical does not work you will have caustic chemicals within pipes that you need to disassemble.
For Toilets just let the clog sit for 20 minutes or so and come back and give a partial flush.
For Sinks you have 2 options either using a small snake or taking the pieces apart and cleaning them manually.
I usually resort to taking the PTrap and Pop-up assembly apart. It is not that difficult to do and if you remove the parts you may see other problems such as a clog in the opening of the wall waste pipe that could be causing the PTrap to continuously clog up.
In this instance our clog is in the pop-up assembly. This is the first pipe that connects to the bottom of the sink. The Pop-up is the Drain Plug mechanism that goes up and down when you depress the rod found behind the faucet.
If you had previously used a chemical cleaner to try to remove the clog you must wear rubber gloves and eye protection durring this whole process and keep a bucket with some water in it so you can clean the pipe as you remove it.
Before we start we line the interior of the vanity base with some painters plastic tarp. 10 mill painters tarp is an excellent material and can be used for many different things. I suggest every home owner get a roll of it for a couple dollars at your local store. I buy 10 foot wide x 100 foot boxes of the stuff for under $20 and use it for everything.
You will also need a couple buckets. One to catch the water and one to put the pipe parts in so you don’t mess up the bathroom.
Thinking ahead about being clean is one of the things I learned about professionals. I am always amazed how little paint a professional gets on them during the day in comparison to a do it yourselfer the first time they paint a room. Can you imagine coming home every day with paint in your hair and all over yourself. They learn quick and it is something you should watch for when ever you see a professional working.
To remove the Pop-up we first have to remove the P-trap.
Place your bucket under the pipe you are removing to catch the water.
Our P-trap is made of plastic an ABS type material so getting the pieces apart can be done by hand. If you are in an older home or in a home that uses chrome plated metal then you may have a tougher time and may need to use a Channel Lock Plier. Channel Locks are the wide mouth pliers that can extend their grip to 1″ to 3″ inches or even wider.
When you use any type of tool on a chrome surface be very careful not to mar the plating of the chrome. If you scratch it not only will it look ugly but it will also start to rust. Use a shop rag or hand towel if needed between the jaws of the pliers and the pipe.
When you remove the P-Trap you will want to stuff a rag or paper towel in the pipe so sewer gases do not escape. This is important because sewer gases can contain methane but also it smells pretty bad. Just make sure you don’t insert the paper towel too deep or it will be difficult to remove later.
Next unscrew the fitting on the back of the pipe that holds the pop-up ball and rod.
You can then remove the drain plug from the sink. With the fitting lose and the rod still in the hole pull down on the rod and the drain plug will move up in the sink. Then grab the drain plug and remove the parts. It is a little tricky because the drain in the sink will be hard to grab and you can’t remove the plug all the way while the rod is still inserted in the pipe below.
When you remove the pop-up pipe you will want to count the number of turns it takes to get it off that way you can use the same number of turns when you replace it.
At this point you can see we have a pretty nasty clog.
All you need to do now is clean everything with paper towels and a little spray cleaner and follow the reverse process to get everything back together.
Here you can see we are forcing a wadded paper towel through the pop-up with a screw driver.
On the Plastic P-Trap you do not have to use White Plumbers tape. On the pop-up pipe you have the option of using tape or some plumbers dope.
I actually use just a little bit of plumbers putty when I install the sink that way some will remain on the threads if i need to remove it later.
Make sure all your waste line fittings are hand tight. You don’t have to use all of your strength to tighten the pipe connections just make sure they are snug and won’t move.
Test your sink with the bucket still below the pipe and then clean up any remaining mess.