leaking ABS closet flange joint

[paperprofit]

I cut holes in my kitchen soffit :( to determine the source of a very minimal water leak and discovered the joint of the ABS closet flange and the 3" diam. Schedule 40 waste pipe is leaking. (You can see a photo here

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/181/435871637_e67b9baaac_m.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/7539296@N06/435871637/)

...which shows the mineral build up at that joint, visually confirming the point of the leak... where the closet flange joins to the waste pipe.)

Does anyone make a wax ring with an extra deep funnel that might get me down past the joint?

Or should I try to (carefully) pry out the closet flange (from above, after removing the toilet)? If it comes out, is it possible to clean the waste pipe enough to cement on a new closet flange (maybe one that is deeper?)? If so, should I replace it with another ABS closet flange?

Or should I just cut the waste pipe in the middle, leaving a 1" long stub (there's only 2" of pipe connecting the closet flange and a 45 degree elbow directly below), add a coupling and cement everything back together? (Is 1" of waste pipe even long enough to make a proper cement joint?)


Thanks for any and all suggestions!

[jimbo]

Probably on my end, but I cannot see the pics.

Anyway, ABS fittings can often be removed. You need to use a hacksaw blade held in hand, and make 3 or 4 vertical slices through the piece you want to remove. Then, you can usually pop off the pieces. ABS solvent welded joints seem to have lot less penetration than PVC.

[hj]

None of the pictures come up, but while there are ways to remove and replace the flange, I hesitate to recommend it to someone who has not done it previously, because you can damage the pipe and then you have a bigger problem. Using a different wax ring will not cure the problem because the one you have already should have sealed it if that were possible. In any case, all you would be doing would be to cure the symptom, not the problem.

[paperprofit]

Thanks for the very helpful input, guys.

You should be able to access the photos here (I apologize for the snag):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7539296@N06/

Since I can access the entire drain assembly from the kitchen soffit, maybe it would be easier to replace everything from the sanitary tee (which I can easily remove with a hacksaw) up to and including the closet flange. The one floor joist would make cutting anything else difficult, if not impossible.

Thoughts?

Thanks so much.