How to Unclog a Bathtub Drain Without Chemicals

Simply fish out the sticky pilus that clogs most drains

Fourth dimension

An hour or less

Complication

Beginner

Cost

Less than $xx

Introduction

Gear up a clogged tub drain quickly and easily by removing the stopper and fishing out the hair and gunk that causes the trouble nearly fourscore pct of the fourth dimension. Hither's how to open and unclog the most mutual drain types.

Tools Required

Materials Required

  • Heavy wire or coat hanger to curve into hook.

About 80 percent of the time, yous can prepare slow-draining or clogged tub drains in near v minutes, without chemicals and without a $100 plumber nib. In near cases, you'll but demand a screwdriver and a stiff wire or a bent coat hanger. The problem is ordinarily just a sticky wad of hair that collects on the crossbars, a few inches under the stopper. All you demand to do is figure out how to remove the stopper (that'due south near ever piece of cake) and fish out the gunk.

Follow our series of photos to determine which type of tub drain stopper yous have and how to remove it.

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Project step-by-step (iv)

Footstep 1

How to Remove a Drop Stopper

  • Only unscrew the stopper from the set up screw.
    • Note: A drop stopper has a prominent knob that you elevator and turn to open the drain. Information technology has a setscrew located under the cap.

Step 2

How to Remove Push/Lock Drain Stopper

  • Button down on the stopper to release it and open the drain.
    • Annotation: These stoppers lock and seal when you press them down and release when you push button downwards a second time.
  • Remove the stopper by holding onto the stem while unscrewing the cap.
  • Otherwise, simply remove the entire shaft past unscrewing it.
    • Pro tip: You may have to adjust the screw tension on the stem when you lot reinstall everything to get a good seal.

Step 3

How to Remove a Levered Stopper

    • Note: Many tubs, especially older ones, have a stopper located inside the bleed and overflow tube. Near of these accept a lever on the overflow plate and a screen over the drain.
  • Remove the screen and clean the crossbars.
  • Unscrew the overflow plate, pull out the linkage, make clean the stopper and linkage, and rinse the drainpipes.
  • Readjust the linkage if necessary.
    • Pro tip: Occasionally the linkage is out of adjustment and the stopper doesn't open far enough from its seat to allow a adept flow. Adjust it, reinsert it and exam information technology. Run water into the tub. If it leaks out, lengthen the stopper linkage to seal the drain better. If the bleed doesn't open to let the h2o out, shorten the stopper linkage.

Pace 4

Clear Out the Clog

  • Bend a lilliputian claw on the end of a stiff wire (or a coat hanger) with a pair of needle-nose pliers and shove it through the clog.
  • Pull out the pilus clog.
  • Repeat this step if needed.
  • If hair is wrapped around the crossbars, slice through it with a utility knife so grab it with the wire.