Bath Sink overflow drain

[Mred.Mcgee]

Hi, while troubleshooting a bath sink drain issue I bumped the tailpiece below and water leaked out down from the sink. Hmmm. I unscrewed the tailpiece and removed the drain flange, and there was nasty gook between the sink and the overflow port in the flange.. I removed the nasty stuff, and reinstalled the piping, but when I put everything back together I noticed that water pools behind the overflow port and the drain and the sink where the overflow comes down. The overflow port on the drain tail holds back the water from draining down, and is trapped by the gasket below the sink. I hope i described that well enough, please See the pic. Is this normal? Overtime it just gets nasty leaving to unsavory smells.

Thanks

 

[WorthFlorida]

Do not use a gasket under the drain flange (top side). Use silicone or stainless plumbers putty. This should allow the flange to be deeper into the tail piece. The picture seems to suggest that a gasket was used. The tail piece should thread all the way or as much as possible until it bottoms out into the flange.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Mred.Mcgee]

Do not use a gasket under the drain flange (top side). Use silicone or stainless plumbers putty. This should allow the flange to be deeper into the tail piece. The picture seems to suggest that a gasket was used. The tail piece should thread all the way or as much as possible until it bottoms out into the flange.

Thank you. Im in Florida too. Winter Garden.The small rubber gasket is probably 1/16" and does not contribute to the approx 3/8 height. I'm thinking of maybe notching the bottom of the overflow port about 1/4". Thoughts?I

 

[WorthFlorida]

That gap you see may just be the overflow. It can get nasty if the overflow is not flushed out occasionally. Close the sink drain and let the hot water run to fill the sink and let it flow down the overflow for several minutes. Before hand, with a funnel pour some bleach into the overflow and allow it to sit a few minutes. I do this every few months especially when you're waiting for hot water to arrive, I'll let the sink fill up. My wife's bathroom sink, once a year I need to remove the stopper and clean out the old soap scum clogged up with hair. It's nasty and I'll flush the overflow during the cleaning process.

ap

 

[Mred.Mcgee]

That gap you see may just be the overflow. It can get nasty if the overflow is not flushed out occasionally. Close the sink drain and let the hot water run to fill the sink and let it flow down the overflow for several minutes. Before hand, with a funnel pour some bleach into the overflow and allow it to sit a few minutes. I do this every few months especially when you're waiting for hot water to arrive, I'll let the sink fill up. My wife's bathroom sink, once a year I need to remove the stopper and clean out the old soap scum clogged up with hair. It's nasty and I'll flush the overflow during the cleaning process.

Thanks. I'll start with the bleach and flush mtce. It just seemed odd that the distance between the top inside sink and bottom, were different size for the drain flange/ overflow. I guess there's no standard. I appreciate your replies.

Thanks

Ed

 

[Jeff H Young]

Lousy design just gives us a hard time . the thin gasket on top I don't usually use the drain port could be enlarged I think but I've rarely modified them . another problem is the big rubber on the bottom sometimes doesn't mate well with the sink or it leaks around the threads good times

 

[Reach4]

I have not done it, but if just running bleach solution thru the overflow does not do it, how about removing the trap and blocking the tailpiece with plastic sheet and a rubber band. You could then let the bleach solution stand until you remove the block and restore the trap.

Notching the bottom of the overflow port sounds good to me.