Need advice: removing bathtub plunger

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SD44

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Guys,

My tub has the attached metal plunger that has a rod going down into the drain. I've been having some drainage problems with the tub, and want to run a snake down through it. How do I remove this type of plunger?
 

Jadnashua

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A picture would help. Normally, they unscrew, but after many years, that is often tough. Often, you can remove the overflow cover, and snake the drain through there. That often has a straighter path to the trap than out the bottom of the tub.
 

hj

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you do NOT snake the drain through the pop up plug, but you DO often have to remove accumulated hair from it. Usually the knob unscrews and then there is a bolt underneath it that unscrews the assembly.
 

SD44

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Well I can pull up on the knob and just spin it round and round endlessly, so it obviously doesn't catch anywhere for me to screw it off. Are you suggesting holding the rod with maybe vicegrips or something, then twisting the knob off the rod? I won't be able to do that because the gap between the opened knob and the tub bottom isn't enough to get pliers in there.
 

Jadnashua

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You typically take the overflow cap off, and snake the drain from there.
 

dwkman0117

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Can not remove the lift bucket

I do not have the room to remove the lift bucket out of my tub/shower plumbing. My tub drains very slow and this bucket doesn't seem to do anything anyway except make for a slow drain. It wasn't even hooked up to work. So - I open the overflow area with the 2 screws and I see a metal rod - I can only pull it up about an inch. I can turn it around with pliers but nothing else. Is there any other way I can remove this? Maybe from the access panel from behind the tub?

thanks
 

dwkman0117

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maybe not a lift bucket

I just looked at a diagram on this fourm and I am thinking that maybe I have a pop up stopper instead of a lift bucket. I had a company redo my bathroom about 5 years ago and they never hooked the lever back up to work the drain. My drain is sooooo slow. I wish I could somehow get into this pipe to see what the backup is...
 

dwkman0117

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ok cool - thanks for that link with the info. After reading this here is what I believe i have - this is messed up.
I have a toe tap stopper in the tub - used to seal the tub for a bath.
But - I also have something that is either a drain plug or a lift bucket. When my bathroom was remodeled they disconnected whatever device that was in the pipe and just put in a screw toe tap stop. I would like to remove whatever device is in the pipes and just go with the toe tap stopper if we want to take a bath....
 
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