# Leaking drain pipe under kitchen sink



## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

I am in dire need of advice on how to fix the pipe under my kitchen sink. Most of the drain pipes under the sink are plastic, with the exception of the drain pipe that goes into the wall. The metal drain pipe that goes into the wall is the pipe that started leaking. I dismantled all the plastic drain pipes to make room to work on the leaking metal pipe that appears to be threaded into the wall. This metal pipe was encased in duct tape so I started pealing the tape off to see what part of the pipe was leaking. Turns out the whole underside of the pipe is missing due to extreme corrosion. I don’t think duct tape is my answer. I purchased plastic pipe to replace the metal pipe, but I can’t get the metal pipe out. I have used tons of WD40 to try and loosen the threads, scrubbed the threads gently with a wire brush, used a hair dryer to apply slight heat, but the pipe won’t budge. Due to the extreme corrosion, I can’t really get a strong grip on the pipe with a wrench. I am not sure if this is a galvanized pipe that is threaded into the vertical pipe in the wall. I am not sure if the pipe in the wall is cast iron??? Can you tell from viewing my pictures what kind of pipes these are? I do not have the resources to hire a plumber so I need to figure out how to fix this myself. Can you please view the attached pictures and give me any suggestions on how I should proceed?


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## TheEplumber (Jul 20, 2010)

It looks like a cast iron tee inside the wall which is common. If you have about 1.5" of good nipple coming out of the tee you could cut it off at that point and use a nohub coupling to transition to plastic. This would by a little time until you hire a plumber- may last for years.


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## Jackofall1 (Dec 5, 2010)

The Eplumber x2


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## semore 102 (Jan 1, 2011)

You need a pipe wrench. A 12" will work, with an additional pipe to fit in the end of the pipe wrench , 18" to 20"- 1 1/2 diameter. The pipe will increase your torque. Hair dryer won't do anything. Turn counter clockwise


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

TheEplumber said:


> It looks like a cast iron tee inside the wall which is common. If you have about 1.5" of good nipple coming out of the tee you could cut it off at that point and use a nohub coupling to transition to plastic. This would by a little time until you hire a plumber- may last for years.


I am soooo not a plumber - I don't understand most plumbing jargon so please bear with me. I am learning (slowly, but still learning). I don't think there is any good nipple coming out of the tee. (I am adding 3 more pictures so you can see what I am trying to talk about.) Below is a picture of the underside of the pipe going into the wall - I am terribly embarrassed that this pipe is so GONE and I didn't even know it. I don’t know if this can be cut right at the point where it goes into the tee or not? It is rotted all the way to the tee. Should I try to cut it right at the tee? If so, then what do I do next? 

Is the round piece on the tee (see pic with red arrow) part of the tee and it doesn’t come off or is it a nut connecting the threaded pipe to the tee? My guess is that it is not a piece that comes off and the threaded pipe is simply twisted into the tee? At any rate, I can’t really get to this tee unless I cut more of the wall out. I will do it if necessary, but I don’t know if it is necessary? 

I have plumber pipe wrenches and tried to get the threaded pipe to twist off, but it won’t move at all and if I use too much force, the pipe will probably start breaking into pieces. I could probably remove the pipe by prying it off in pieces but I don’t know what would happen once I get to the part that is threaded into the tee in the wall. I just do not want to damage any part of the tee or drain line that is in the wall. Is there any kind of miracle loosening oil that I could try?

I do not need a fix that will last for decades but I would like to fix it for a year or more if possible. Thanks for your suggestions.


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## semore 102 (Jan 1, 2011)

It looks bad. You have to extract the pipe . It will fold on you when you turn it. You will have to get some picks, some small screw drivers , etc. Remove all the old pipe. Clean threads with a small wire brush. Put some pipe thread sealer on the threads of the pvc and thread it in. Transition from there to p - trap


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

semore 102 said:


> It looks bad. You have to extract the pipe . It will fold on you when you turn it. You will have to get some picks, some small screw drivers , etc. Remove all the old pipe. Clean threads with a small wire brush. Put some pipe thread sealer on the threads of the pvc and thread it in. Transition from there to p - trap


Thank you for your advice. I really appreciate it. I kinda figured it was bad, but I was hoping I was wrong. So to be sure I understand your advice, I should use little tools (screw drivers, little clipper things, etc) to start breaking the pipe off piece by piece until I get the whole pipe out (I don't know what a "pick" is - some kind of sharp poking tool?). Then clean the tee's threads (gently) with a wire brush. Put tape on the threads of the new pvc pipe and screw it into the tee. Is that right? Is there something special I should try to get the threaded part of the piece-of-crap pipe out of the tee once I get that far in the removal process or just use little tools to break and pry pieces out little by little? 
Also, in your expert opinion, how hard do you think this is going to be to fix and can a novice (determined, yet still a novice) do it? I really do not want to make things worse, but I would like to wash my dishes in the kitchen again rather than my bathtub.


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## adpanko (Jun 18, 2009)

*tedious extraction*

The previous poster is right - all of the pipe coming out of the tee needs to come out. There doesn't appear to be anything salvageable about it. If you wrench down hard enough to actually apply enough grip to unthread the pipe, it will just crumble since it is so corroded. So you basically need any means possible to neatly and carefully break up and take out all of the pipe (which looks like brass). It would be helpful to use a Dremel with a cutting wheel to carefully make cuts and try to nibble out the remnants of what will still be threaded into the tee. But you don't want to cut any of the threads in the tee because you'll need to thread the new replacement pipe into it. It is worth trying to extract all the old pipe, but honestly, don't be surprised if you end up damaging the threads in the tee to some extent.

The other option (which may end up needed to be done if you damage the tee enough, but requires significantly much more skill and knowledge), is to cut into the wall, and replace the whole tee. If the drain/vent pipe in the wall was copper or PVC, this wouldn't be too hard to do. But I'm guessing the whole stack is cast iron since the tee appears to be cast iron. I don't recommend a novice attempt to cut into a cast iron stack and replumb it.

So my recommendation: try to cut away the existing pipe while not damaging the tee. If you end up not being able to do this, or damage the tee beyond use, you'll have to call a plumber who will likely do the second option I gave. Even if it resorts to that, at least you tried.


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

Do you have a pipe wrench? --I would try to unscrew that rotten pipe-
It will probably break off,but you just might get lucky-Picking the broken bits of pipe out of the hole might work.

Be prepared for this,however,if those attempts fail you will need a Sawsall with a couple of hacksaw blades.

You will open up the wall to expose the T and the drain and vent pipe( the threaded piece is a T with one pipe going down and one going up)

You will cut the drain pipe below the T and the vent above it---replace the pipe and T and trap adapter (the threaded fitting with a nut that your P-trap will go into)

Attach the new PVC to the old iron using fernco couplings (rubber tubes with radiator clamps)

I tried to put this in simple terms--trying to save the old iron T will not be likely--

Maybe someone here has pictures of this repair---Mike--


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

adpanko said:


> The previous poster is right - all of the pipe coming out of the tee needs to come out. There doesn't appear to be anything salvageable about it. If you wrench down hard enough to actually apply enough grip to unthread the pipe, it will just crumble since it is so corroded. So you basically need any means possible to neatly and carefully break up and take out all of the pipe (which looks like brass). It would be helpful to use a Dremel with a cutting wheel to carefully make cuts and try to nibble out the remnants of what will still be threaded into the tee. But you don't want to cut any of the threads in the tee because you'll need to thread the new replacement pipe into it. It is worth trying to extract all the old pipe, but honestly, don't be surprised if you end up damaging the threads in the tee to some extent.
> 
> The other option (which may end up needed to be done if you damage the tee enough, but requires significantly much more skill and knowledge), is to cut into the wall, and replace the whole tee. If the drain/vent pipe in the wall was copper or PVC, this wouldn't be too hard to do. But I'm guessing the whole stack is cast iron since the tee appears to be cast iron. I don't recommend a novice attempt to cut into a cast iron stack and replumb it.
> 
> So my recommendation: try to cut away the existing pipe while not damaging the tee. If you end up not being able to do this, or damage the tee beyond use, you'll have to call a plumber who will likely do the second option I gave. Even if it resorts to that, at least you tried.


Thank you so much for your help. I must say you are absolutely the most adorable plumber I have ever seen!! How you became a plumber so young I have no clue - must be a genius. You look to be 6 or 7 months old, maybe 8. Oh, wait. It just occurred to me that perhaps the other person in the picture is a plumber also. Well at any rate, I thank you both for taking time to offer me your help. I am determined to fix this pipe issue regardless of my inexperience and miniscule knowledge of plumbing. You guys may have just made the accomplishment of my feat possible. Thanks again.


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

oh'mike said:


> Do you have a pipe wrench? --I would try to unscrew that rotten pipe-
> It will probably break off,but you just might get lucky-Picking the broken bits of pipe out of the hole might work.
> 
> Be prepared for this,however,if those attempts fail you will need a Sawsall with a couple of hacksaw blades.
> ...


Thank you for your response. I am going to try the suggestions I have been given and hopefully the next time you hear from me, it will be to thank you a thousand times over for helping me fix my drain pipe nightmare. Otherwise I will probably find myself posting more info and begging you for more advice. Wish me luck, here I go...


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

Funny thing---last night I went to Google images to find "kitchen sink drain repair"

Your picture was on page two--:laughing:


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

oh'mike said:


> Funny thing---last night I went to Google images to find "kitchen sink drain repair"
> 
> Your picture was on page two--:laughing:


Ok, you just made me chuckle - not an easy thing to do, given my current pipe problems. Not much makes me chuckle these days but my current home-drain-pipe-issue has provided me plenty of tears to date. Bravo for you. I needed a chuckle. Now I must get back to smashing my drain pipes...


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

dethun said:


> Ok, . I needed a chuckle. Now I must get back to smashing my drain pipes...



:laughing:




Put your location into your profile--Might be someone here lives near by--


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

*Thank you for your advice!!*

Ta Dahhhhh! Check out the picture of my now non-leaking kitchen pipes. I am so happy I don't have to wash my dishes in my bathtub anymore. To all of you who offered me your advice and shared your plumbing wisdom - Thank you! I am seriously amazed I got that nightmare pipe extracted without damaging anything and installed new pipes that don't leak. I couldn't have done it without your help. Thanks again. :thumbup:


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## TheEplumber (Jul 20, 2010)

That looks purdy:thumbsup:
I'd hate to tell you the 1 minor code violation so I'll keep my mouth shout.
How'd you get the pipe out?


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

I am sorry for not responding sooner. My computer crashed shortly after I fixed my kitchen drain pipes so I have been busy trying to get my pc up and running. Needless to say, I am not a computer guru or a plumber!

I extracted the pipe by using a big wrench and twisting slowly (so slow it took days to loosen the @#@!!* - I just worked a little each day) and I was very patient and gentle. I can only attribute my success to some miracle force - I am not that gifted. 

I have to ask: what is the violation? Please pretty please tell me. I am a glutton for punishment:no:


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## the_man (Aug 14, 2010)

you can only have one slip nut past the trap to connect the white stuff to the pipes in the wall. to do it right, you'd need to extend the pipe from the wall with pvc/abs and connect your trap to that, using just the single slip nut. but like eplumber said, it's not a big deal :thumbsup:


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## dethun (Jan 5, 2011)

Thank you for your response. I will likely end up fixing the pipe to get up to code (it drives me insane to not do things right), but it will be awhile before I walk that plank. I am sure when I do, I will be logging back on to this site to beg for help. Until then (or until my work of art starts to leak - whichever occurs first) I will enjoy my kitchen sinks and being able to wash my dishes without having to take a bath at the same time:yes: There is just something about taking a bath with dirty dishes that just doesn't work for me...


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## tribe_fan (May 18, 2006)

For future reference (and maybe not to code !).
I was faced with helping someone else with a similar problem, but the previous owner ruined the threads with so a new pipe could not be inserted, I found a no hub adapter that fit *over* the T in the wall to something that accepted the tail piece. (I think it was 2 inch x1 /1/2).


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## bob22 (May 28, 2008)

Dethun,
Congrats! Looks very well done!


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## Urmy (Mar 13, 2016)

I'm in desperate need of assistance with a very bad leak under my kitchen sink. The leak is coming from the metal pipe that attaches to the PVC pipe. I took the PVC pipe apart and the metal pipe has a hole in it. It looks like it might be possible to unscrew the metal pipe, but since this is the first time I've ever touched anything plumbing wise, I am afraid to proceed without advice. I can't afford to pay anyone to help me. I have a video and some pictures, I'll see what I can post. I appreciate any help anyone can give. Thank you so much!


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## jmon (Nov 5, 2012)

Welcome to the forum urmy.

It's best to start a new thread of your own instead of piggybacking off a 5 year old thread, you will get better results. Members will see it's an old post and move on.

It will be tricky, but can be done. Stop flushing grease and chemicals down your kitchen sink, your pipes will last longer.


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