Tub drain thingy

[myTdogs]

Hi Everyone,

This is my first post. I just bought a manufactured home (1998 Fleetwood). It is my first home and I am very excited to have a place of my own. I haven't actually moved in yet because I need to make some repairs & get up a decent fence for my dogs.

One thing that is really bugging me is my bathtub- the drain & faucets are horribly corroded (the untreated well water has tons of sulfur & even some salt). I need to replace both of them but I am not sure how to proceed. I tried to unscrew the tub drain using a tool I bought at the home depot. Of course the metal cross at the bottom of the drain disintegrated when pressure was applied by the tool. The only other option they guys gave me was to chisel it out! Now that freaks me out for sure. I saw the article & read with interest about replacing a tub but all I need to replace right now (all I can afford actually) is the drain & the faucet. Any hints on what I should do? BTW, my tub has an offset center drain...in the center but towards the back wall of the tub.

Also, I found an decent faucet with 3 handles that would require me to make a 4th hole below for the tub spout. Can I install a faucet like this or maybe even one witha single handle do I have special requirements? I looked in the access panel & I found what looks like a simple connection with plastic connectors (pex?) so it looks straight forward but I know there must be a reason they use those horrible inline handles & spouts with the metal plate. Right?

BTW this is the coolest site!!

[Mark]

Hi,

Welcome to our website.

Most mobile home tub drains have to be removed from the bottom of the tub. Very few of the items you'll find at home improvement stores will fit your tub. Tub drain and faucet parts can be found here: http://www.mobilehomerepair.com/Order3.html#catalog

Thanks,
Mark

[JD]

You will usually find a nut holding the drain to the P-trap from under the tub. This will be a swivel strainer adapter, usually 1 1/2" ABS plastic. If there is no nut there, the drain will be attached to a drain shoe, which will not loosen from the underneath side. I have not seen a drain shoe used as OEM stuff from mobile home manufacturers. They are used in drains with an overflow installed.

I would try to remove the nut from underneath as Mark said. This is the best way when there is a nut. But you can remove a stuck drain from the top side without a chisel. I use a hack saw blade in a gloved hand. Sawzalls and dremmel tools would probably work too. But I put the blade into the drain, angle it back and start cutting on the bent corner of the drain. I will work the angle to extend the cut up the flat top part of the tub drain, being careful not to scratch the tub. You do not need to cut the entire drain. Then angle the blade the other way and cut the line down into the throat of the drain, being very careful not to cut all the way through into the the threads of the adapter or shoe. Just a good scoring is enough. At this point, you should be able to force needle nose and then regular pliers into your cut and twist. The drain should just fold up, making it small enough to just lift out of the threads.

JD

[myTdogs]

Thanks for the replies! though I dont think I like your answers

Do I have to go underneath the house to get to the tub drain??? Or from the access panel? Please say from the access panel! But if so how on earth do I reach it? As I said it is in the center of the tub..not down near the access panel.

I have horrible bug & critter phobia & the thought of crawling underneath makes me queasy. So far I have had to kill 2 GIANT (but slow) spiders in the house....very traumatic for me

Also, Mark, are you saying that I cannot buy a faucet from home depot? I looked at the MH store & the stuff is all so cheap looking. I am sure the cheap quality contributed to the premature corrosion of the fixtures (all of them). I found a nice one at HD for less than the MH store and I am sure the quality is much better.

[JD]

We cannot see your tub drain plumbing to be able to give you an absolute answer as to whether you have to go under your home or not. Again, if you do have an overflow and drain shoe set up, you will have to remove the tub drain from the top side of the tub. But more than likely, you will have a swivel strainer adapter, the ABS piece with the big nut on it. You will usally need a pair of channel lock pliers to loosen it (picture below).

Usually, there are huge openings in the floor where the drain plumbing goes and the nut is usually right at the floor level. You can look into the access panel to see if you can get to it. If the access panel does not go to the floor, you still might be able to tell where everything is at by just reaching down there and feeling around. Just give the area a shot of Raid or something first to get any bugs to leave the area. If the bottom of this access panel is more than a foot off of the floor, you may not be able to get to it. You could cut the access panel out bigger to the floor level, but then you will have to make a new cover for it. If you can loosen and tighten the drain through the wall, you will have to cut this panel out bigger anyways. This is why most people will just bite the bullet and go underneath. You can easily get to the drain from there after getting through the underbelly and insulation.

I am not crazy about spiders and other bugs either. Army time in Panama C.Z. gave me the real heebie jeebies about bugs. Now I live in Black Widow and Recluse country and when in the foothills, I also get these little scorpions too. But in all the years I have been crawling under these homes I have never got a serious bite. The bites I have had, which are very few, were about as bad as a bad mosquito bite. Your mileage may vary. Go to a home store and buy a Tyvek overall suit. (usually in the paint canvas area) They are cheap. You can tighten cuffs with tape, but leave yourself room to move.

Most any faucet from the home stores can be used in your mobile home tub. You may need to re-plumb the the shower feed line and connections to the faucet, but that may be a good idea anyways. You will also probably see a stain and/or color difference in the footprint of the front of the shower faucet.

If you are new to plumbing, just take your time and dry fit everything before crimping, gluing or teflon taping. Be triple sure there are no leaks before closing stuff up.

I hope this helps and good luck with your project.

JD

[myTdogs]

Thanks JD,

Sorry to sound so wimpy about the bugs. It is a phobia & not logical in any way. I like the tyvek suit idea & i appreciate you making that suggestion & not laughing at me!

Can I ask why they use this drain configuration in MH's? Could I just replace the whole drain set-up with a regular screw in from the top drain? I'd prefer not to buy the MH stuff as I think the quality of the metal is an issue.

Thanks again, you guys are great!

[JD]

If you do not have overflow plumbing to your tub, I would stay with the swivel strainer. Most times when you remove a drain from the other type, the drain shoe with no nut, the thing will slide over just a little bit. When this happens, someone needs to go underneath to hold it under the tub hole while someone on top screws in the drain. With the swivel strainer, it can be a one person job. The drain shoe type also has a better chance of leaking than the straight swivel strainer. With the swivel strainer, there is the nut that tighten the drain down into your gasket or plumbers putty evenly. With the drain shoe, the shoe becomes your nut and is usually glued in place. If this shoe is not aligned with the bottom of the drain hole, you can get uneven pressure applied to the drain when tightening. This could easily cause a leak.

The quality of the "mobile home" plumbing parts is the same as what you would find at a home store, at least the stuff that Mark sells here through this web site. There can be a huge difference in the quality of faucets though. I do not install MH faucets for my customers. But there is a huge difference in quality at most home stores too. The $39.99 type cheap stuff is all junk. I also stay away from Price Phister. I almost always go with Moen or Delta. The brand I pick is more based on the style or look the customer wants. While some faucets are well over $200, 99% of the faucets I use sell for $75-$140.

You local home store may only have one or two designs of Tyvek suits. I find that most stores here sell the open cuff style, which is popular for painters. Tyvek also makes an elastic cuff with hood model which would be great for crawling under the homes. With knee pads and gloves and you are ready for anything.

JD

[70dart360]

The Home Depot and Lowes here in Ga have a MH section. I got stainless drains with the giant nuts there for mine, I dont like the cheapo plastic ones.

[myTdogs]

Thanks Dart,

Are you anywhere near Baxley? My dad lives up there & maybe I can have him stop by & pick a couple up before he comes down next week.

There is supposed to be a MH supply store near me (since there are parks everywhere in FL) and I really should just bite the bullet & check it out. I have been distracted trying to get my fence up & with putting down laminate floors. Both jobs ended up being way harder than I thought.

Thanks again for the tip. I know I can order online but I am an instant gratification type & I like to touch the stuff before I buy