Anyone else sitting in their empty bathtub with tools and a mess everywhere watching this video hoping to god it will help get the damn broken drain out of the friggin tub?!
Saw the video and bought this puppy at my local Ace Hardware for $20. It worked exactly like it was supposed to. Thank you for solving that ugly problem!!!!!!
I bought the tool and it worked on 27 year old fiberglass tub drain. I did have to tap a lot harder than I expected as it slipped out a few times. Once it began to turn, I kept the pressure on it to keep it moving.
My husband used your technique to remove and replace two drains. Worked out beautifully--and I am sure much cheaper than a plumber's bill would have been. Thank you for such great instructions!
i bought this exact one cuz i saw ur video. I was not going to risk damaging my 1500 dollar bathtub over 21 dollars! Ive done some really effing stupid stuff before and this wasnt going to be the day! All the other ideas of getting that thing out were extremely horrible to me. got it at lowes and it was as easy as can be. I dont think there could be a better tool. I just hate having extra stuff cuz I already look like a hoarder all the tools i got. But never mind that it was worth every penny! If i was cheap id take the tool back to lowes haha. Thank you sir.
Thanks! spent 2 days and a lot of draino thinking the drain was clogged. Following your video I used picture frame wire wrapped around a cup hook (macguyver-ed it) and fixed the drain in less than 5 minutes.
Just used one of these extractors on my very corroded, very stuck drain. I had to use more than a "love tap" and added a foot or so galv. pipe to the ratchet handle for more torque. But, it finally gave way and came out! Thanks for the video!
Man, I was not expecting to hammer this tool in that hard! I just bought it and going to give it a shot tomorrow but it’s just a plastic tub with minimum support underneath it and a PVC elbow. I’m hoping the “love tap” is enough because I don’t want to crack the tub.
Update: the tool did not work, just spun around but my drain was pretty corroded there was nothing to bite onto. Had to chisel the thread out and all is well now. Whew...
Sorry I should have said the tool was too big to go into the drain hole far enough to get any traction. I bought the tool long before I saw your video. I just assumed that the drains were all the same size. Later I found out that Superior Tool only makes the 1 1/2 " size in that model. I went to their website and saw that they offered a more expensive model that was suitable for 1- 3/8" and the 1- 1/2". My drain will not turn. I bought the other tool that fits in like a fork. I used a 3 foot pipe as extra leverage. I used the heat gun. In all the videos that I saw nobody had to apply the force that I used. We are getting our bathtub re-finished and I thought that installing a shiny new drain would compliment the job. Any future work on the drain will be done by a professional. Over and out and thanks for the tutorial.
Very well done...have 20 year tub and need to replace drain. Tried the prong remover but it broke the cross pieces. Just got this tool and am preparing with a lil help from youtube. Thinking of heating the drain to soften any putty/caulk. Also thinking of using impact wrench for the vibration factor.
Mr Hollow Down, thanks for your video. This happened to me: bought the Tub Drain Remover Wrench and started unscrewing and unscrewing and although it seemed to initially loosening and unscrewing, I then realized it was not coming out. After going in circle and it not unscrewing, I stopped not knowing exactly what was going on. It never unscrewed but it would move in circle. The drain part is only 14 yrs old. Have no idea if I can use the tub at all at this point. Any ideas? Any help is extremely valuable and appreciated. Puzzled in SanFran
Great demo, many thanks! My issue is how to get the broken trip lever plug out of the drain? No back panel anywhere! Tried for an hour with a hook, no luck.
I had a leaking tub cartridge I was unaware of. Bought the house it’s been leaking fo over a year. I replace the Cartridge so it took care of the leak. But there’s like black mold and hard build up all inside. Can I just use vinegar and baking soda or do I need to pull my tub out and replace all this plumbing pipe?
Honestly it depends on how bad the mold is. I would always attempt cleaning it first to avoid extra cost, but if you don't feel completely satisfied that you got it entirely cleaned out, then replace the pipe. Definitely don't want your people getting sick due to that mold.
Chinese made products, I am convinced that they actually make them to not last so you buy another, because I remember things so differently, my parents still had the refrigerator, clothes washing machine and dryer in their home that they raised my brothers and I in, get this, from 1968 till 1996 or 97, pop died mom moved to Florida, I don't know what else to think, everything we grew up with in our home was introduced to their grandchildren.
Waiting for an answer for this comment! My top half is broken off. I’m about go find this part and try it out! Home Depot are I come! My drain pipe is also loose 😩 I hope this part works for me.
I bought One of these because the T cross or whatever you want to call it broke. The thing doesn’t go in snug because I think my drain is bigger than a standard drain. What do I do in this case? I have tried everything I have found on RU-vid and I can’t get it out. It is very corroded
This Tool did not work for me either! i ended up using the Claw of my Hammer slightly tilted and turned counter clockwise and came right out. I will be returning this tool back for Refund!
Had high hopes for this attachment. It unfortunately did not work. I had to hack saw pizza pie quarters of the drain off very carefully till the large portion left could be removed by hand.
I've been doing commercial plumbing for thirty years. I can count on one hand the times this tool actually worked. It's the greatest thing in the world when it does work, but normally use a sawzall & cut out a wedge & chisel it out. I recommend to try it first though, cuz if it does work, great! I have actually broke the fine thread tubular nipple out of the shoe before the MF 'r would turn & unscrew! Good luck
@@chriswalerski9613 I agree. The thing does not work. have also tried the other wrench they sell and it is useless. I've tried WD-40 alternating with a heat gun, I've tried a 38" pipe on the end of my wrench for added torque and nothing will move it. Old metal tub with cast iron plumbing.
@@chriswalerski9613 I feel better. I felt like I was the first human who discovered fire when I learned about this tool. But in practice, it's driven me nuts all afternoon. Not gonna work.
I've watched a few of these videos about this extractor tool. I just can't get it to catch and all the "taps" are just chipping the corroded drain apart. I'm no pro but I've done enough plumbing ... I can't be the only one who has run into this problem with this tool?
Is there a tool like this that will allow you to reinstall the same drain, in particular one where the cross-piece at the bottom is broken such that a traditional drain wrench cannot be used?
Not really, the reinstall tools use the cross bars. I wouldn't recommend putting the same drain back in either. Doesn't always seal well, and new ones are extremely cheap.
@@TheHollowDown thanks. Problem is that so far all the new drains I've tried are a coarser thread pitch than the original and they won't fit. I'm trying to figure out how to get a drain back into the tub without having to cut into the wall and completely replace the entire drain assembly/shoe/etc. For now I'm just going to keep looking for a fine-thread drain that will fit. Thanks!
With this tool it can, tapping it in grabs the inside of the drain so you don't rely on the cross bars or the upper rim. It's basically designed for your situation.
just tried to remove my drain piece and the tines on the inside broke, so found your video next, and imma go buy that tool or whatever it is. WHAT IS IT CALLED? the bronze colored piece you're using?
If you absolutely can't spin the tub drain you can cut 3 cuts into the tub strainer and hit them with a large screwdriver and hammer 🔨. Be VERY careful NOT to cut the tub especially if it's FIBERGLASS
That's not an issue. If the old drain comes out, give it a little tap from the underside to push it back out. If it does not work a day the drain won't come out, use some channel locks and turn it back the other way to loosen the grip.
You actually don't want to over-tighten the new one. Best trick I've found.... Use a pair of pliers that will reach the crossbars and turn gently, but use a rag or towel to protect the teeth of the pliers from actually touching the new drain itself. Stop when snug and sealed.
Pipe dope helps, but this video was aimed at OLD drains held by long term rust and corrosion. The one removed in this video had been in place since the 60s.
Bought one of those babies, and had to really bang it into the drain to make it grip. Finally, one drain turned out with the help of a cheater bar. Using the same tool for a second drain didn't work so well. The tool continually slips, making it worthless.
I just purchased the tool not the brass one. And I doesn't work just slips. And when I put it in drain, it doesn't sit up high enough so you can tap it down.
So mine did the same. I had to use a longer socket extension and put the plug thing in at sort of an angle, the angle was key, and slowly got it off while keeping pressure on the extension and using my other hand on the breaker bar (ratchet didn't give me enough leverage).
Maybe 1 out of 100 cone out like this. It's obvious he had already loosened the drain prior to filming. Most if the time you'll be cutting it out and good luck with the remaining threads to replace it especially if you're on a slab and there is no access to the assembly below.
I appreciate the comment, but that's a negative sir. I took the video because I had some several of these successfully and wanted to share. I had not loosened up anything prior to removal with this tool. However, it doesn't always work and sometimes cutting or other aggressive means are still required. But this video was as is.
I got the tool. I started the job by putting the the thing in the drain hole. I found that It did not fit the hole. It has to kind of go deep enough to get some traction. I hope I will get a refund from the store.
It's a 1/2" ratchet with just a standard 1/2" extension. Doesn't matter what length, I just used a short one long enough to keep my knuckles from rubbing the bottom of the tub.
Maybe they’re out of stock? I just bought mine today at HD, $19.95 Of course I forgot to purchase the adapter to install the new drain so I’ll be back tomorrow. Ugh
Asked one handy guy to help and he put chemical in and used a flat tool of some sort. He basically butchered it. So now I have half that metal drain stuck and I can’t do your trick. What do I do? 😂
Oh dear... That's an unfortunate happening. And once it's broken, there's not really a magic way of getting it out with a simple tool. You may very well have to keep safely chiseling it out, purposefully breaking it more to release it. =/
Fyi, measure your inner diameter of your bad drain. These tools will NOT work on all drains! I have 1.75" inner diameter drain that need removed. This tool is only 1.625" at it widest! It will NOT remove my drain.
Tool teeth did not bite and slipped every time. Frustrating garbage. That brass coloured coating even flaked off. Piece of junk and a waste of time and money. The metal teeth in the extractor tool need to be harder than the tub drain it needs to cut into.
