(I mistakenly posted this to ‘Construction Techniques’ – my bad)
My kitchen sink drain is sealed to the sink with the generic Sta-Put putty from the big box stores. Every so often, my wife pours a pot of boiling water into the sink, the putty softens, and a leak occurs. My recourse has been to pull the drain apart, reputty, and caution my wife about boiling water.
Last night my wife did it again. This time she asked me why I don’t put something between the drain and sink that won’t leak, as she was adamant she was going to pour more boiling water into the sink in the near future.
Any suggestions?
Art
Replies
Art, somethings not right
Plumbers putty is for a sort of another line of defense, the gasket between the nut and the sink shouldn't be leaking if a bit of water gets by the putty. Is the drain seated properly in the sink?
thanks for the input
Well guys, you'll like the outcome of this one....
So, I pulled the drain apart and everything looked OK, but just to be on the safe side, I replaced the gasket and putty.
The darn thing seemed to be OK then all of a sudden there was water under the drain.
So I repeated the procedure.
It still leaked. Then, as my wife turned the water on and I got under the sink it became apparent that the issue wasn't the drain - it was the faucet seal. The faucet was leaking around the base and dripping under the sink.
Gotta go - my wife wants me to order replacement parts.
Thanks for the guidance
Art
Whelp, Breaktime solved another problem!
hey, we can't admit defeat now can we.
Nicely done Art!
I never had that happen with thousands of sinks; it may be the generic putty (not made in China, is it), or it could be because you are not tightening it enough, should be tightened to where there is only a thin amount thats almost invisible when you are done. You don't have a defect in the drain area, do you, like something thats not completely smooth or bent? If this persists I would use silicone on it, luck.
Yeah, sounds like something isn't right. You should be squeezing 90% of the putty out when you tighten the fitting -- you don't want to squeeze it til it crunches, but you want just a thin layer of putty left. Hot water shouldn't bother it, unless you're pouring a whole fish-boil pot in the sink.