Henry Ramsey
Member
I am remodelling an upstairs shower in a 30+ year old condo. I was originally just going to re-tile the walls and curb, but that plan fell through when the curb fell apart with the tiles. It was made from mortar with clay bricks as a base. The showerpan liner was over the top of the curb and it disintegrated with the removal of the tiles. There was no salvaging it and it was just a mess.
So I have ripped out the walls and mudbed to bare studs and concrete floor(yes, concrete is what the upstairs floor is made of). I removed the showerpan liner, but the drain assembly is presenting a problem. There are three pieces, the top part which held the drain cover. That is screwed into a cast iron nipple which is screwed or cemented to a cast iron flange. The latter two pieces held the showerpan sandwiched between them to make a watertight seal. There is ample rust in all of this, but even with liquid wrench I cannot get the treaded part apart.
I have been trying to use a wrench on the nipple piece but it's either cemented or just too rusted to let go. I cannot buy a wrench big enough to go around the top portion. It measures roughly 3.5" and none of the wrenches at either Home Depot or Lowes can go around it.
I want to remove this as easily as possible since I think this cast iron is over PVC. Inside the drain looking down the pipe is white plastic. I'd like to preserve this if possible.
I do not have any access from below so all of this must be done from the top.
My ultimate goal is to switch to the Kerdi drain system and use the kerdi shower tray kit.
Any help or comments will be appreciated.
I have attached photos of the drain.
So I have ripped out the walls and mudbed to bare studs and concrete floor(yes, concrete is what the upstairs floor is made of). I removed the showerpan liner, but the drain assembly is presenting a problem. There are three pieces, the top part which held the drain cover. That is screwed into a cast iron nipple which is screwed or cemented to a cast iron flange. The latter two pieces held the showerpan sandwiched between them to make a watertight seal. There is ample rust in all of this, but even with liquid wrench I cannot get the treaded part apart.
I have been trying to use a wrench on the nipple piece but it's either cemented or just too rusted to let go. I cannot buy a wrench big enough to go around the top portion. It measures roughly 3.5" and none of the wrenches at either Home Depot or Lowes can go around it.
I want to remove this as easily as possible since I think this cast iron is over PVC. Inside the drain looking down the pipe is white plastic. I'd like to preserve this if possible.
I do not have any access from below so all of this must be done from the top.
My ultimate goal is to switch to the Kerdi drain system and use the kerdi shower tray kit.
Any help or comments will be appreciated.
I have attached photos of the drain.