Mom needs help with leaky tub

[mamilli]

Here is the scenario. I bought a home two months ago. Last night, my daughter took a bath and left the water in there instead of draining it. Several hours later I was in the basement and heard a dripping sound. Water was dripping through the drop ceiling below the bathtub. At this point, the water was still in the plugged bath tub. So we drained the tub, cleaned up the mess and I shut the water off to the tub overnight. This morning, I checked and everything was dry so I turned the water back on at the shut off valve. Again, dry. I tell my son to go take a shower as normal. When he starts the water from the faucet it starts leaking pretty good. It is coming out all around the drain shoe. Once he turns the shower on, it leaks less, but still leaks. I was thinking it was the gasket, but why was it leaking while the tub was plugged last night? Could the drain plug just need to be tightened on to the drain shoe? Help~!

[DonL]

Here is the scenario. I bought a home two months ago. Last night, my daughter took a bath and left the water in there instead of draining it. Several hours later I was in the basement and heard a dripping sound. Water was dripping through the drop ceiling below the bathtub. At this point, the water was still in the plugged bath tub. So we drained the tub, cleaned up the mess and I shut the water off to the tub overnight. This morning, I checked and everything was dry so I turned the water back on at the shut off valve. Again, dry. I tell my son to go take a shower as normal. When he starts the water from the faucet it starts leaking pretty good. It is coming out all around the drain shoe. Once he turns the shower on, it leaks less, but still leaks. I was thinking it was the gasket, but why was it leaking while the tub was plugged last night? Could the drain plug just need to be tightened on to the drain shoe? Help~!

You can put some silicon rubber around the drain to tub surface until you can fix it right or get a plumber to fix it.

[SeymourStuart]

Mainly worn rubber washers, seals or gaskets in the valve assembly cause most leaks. Just check all of them. And if you need to change one of them it's not that hard, you can do it yourself with little help.

[johnfrwhipple]

In any home visit the first thing we like to check is the tub or shower drain connection. To check this and rule out a leg coming from the water lines you can simply get a hose from the yard or some buckets of water.

If the tub leaks with water from another source you know it is your drain connection. Replacing the seal is something that you might be able to do but my money is on hiring a pro plumber. They have special wrenches that are designed to turn these tub drain connenection points.

If the tub doesn't leak with the water from the hose or buckets next check the shower head. Just turn it on. Does it leak. If not try moving the shower's fixture - does that make it leak?

If you still have not sourced the leak you know that the water line is OK and the tub drain is OK. Now it might be flexing or deflection at the core of the problem.

Run the water and stand near the drain of the tub. Does it leak now?

If not start soaking the walls of the bathtub.....

Good Luck.

JW

[mamilli]

It is definitely leaking between the drain plug and the drain shoe. I removed the drain plug last night and there is no plumber's putty on the plug. I put some around it and tried to reinstall, but am having the hardest time getting it screwed all the way in. Is something wrong, should it be incredibly hard to put it. I don't have the money to hire a plumber, but I am pretty handy and can usually do this stuff.

[DonL]

It is definitely leaking between the drain plug and the drain shoe. I removed the drain plug last night and there is no plumber's putty on the plug. I put some around it and tried to reinstall, but am having the hardest time getting it screwed all the way in. Is something wrong, should it be incredibly hard to put it. I don't have the money to hire a plumber, but I am pretty handy and can usually do this stuff.

Could you just replace it ?

Did you clean it up before reinstalling ?

[jadnashua]

The drain may not need plumber's putty...the gasket on the bottom does the sealing on many. Now, some fiberglass reinforced tubs (if that's what you have) aren't all that smooth where the gasket is, and the gasket may not seal properly. Or, if there's no reinforcement there, the fiberglass can flex and eventually, it'll get spiderweb cracks in it and it may leak horizontally through the tub regardless of the seal for the drain.

You may have cross-threaded the anchoring nut on the drain.