Welcome to part six of our Leak Inspection and Repair Blog Series, exploring bathroom leakage causes and solutions. This article focuses on how to fix a bathtub waste drain stopper when your tub doesn’t hold water.

Have you noticed the water level in your bathtub is decreasing even after you plug the drain? If your tub doesn’t hold water, it’s essential to search for signs of bathtub leaking that could cause severe damage to your home. 

If you have found external signs of your bathtub leaking, our articles can help you identify the source and what to do next:

• Part 1 – 4 Main Causes of Pesky Bathtub Leaking
• Part 2 – Bathtub drain leaking (waste drain repair)
• Part 3 – Bathtub overflow drain leak repair
• Part 4 – Shower valve leaking repair (for two- or three-handle valves)
• Part 5 – Leaking shower valve repair (for one-handle Moen fixtures)
• Part 6 – You’re here

If you’ve screened for signs of leaking and found nothing, the problem could also be as small as your tub’s waste drain stopper. If a stopper assembly is really dirty or simply adjusted incorrectly, the tub may slowly drain despite the stopper being engaged. For guidance on how to address a leaking drain stopper, continue reading.

Dirty Bathtub Drain Stoppers and Bathtub Trip-levers

Regardless of what type of drain stopper you have (pop-up, foot-lock, roller-ball, lift-and-turn, plunger, etc…) The first step to troubleshooting a tub that doesn’t hold water is to check if the stopper has become so dirty that it cannot seal properly. If this is the case, use a 1:1 mixture of baking soda and vinegar to flush out the waste drain. After pouring the vinegar mixture down the drain, rinse the drain with very hot water. Finally, test to see if your bathtub drain is now sealing properly.

To test the tub drain seal, fill the tub a bit and then turn off the water and let it settle. Watch to see if the water level decreases. If the water line remains unchanged, you’ve succeeded. If the water line sinks, and you have a trip-lever, plunger-style drain (a lever you flip up or down on the side of the tub to engage or disengage the drain), the issue may be that the plunger is not completely sealing the waste drain pipe and simply needs to be adjusted (most likely lengthened).  

A trip-lever drain stopper (usually accompanied by a grate-style drain) works in conjunction with a plunger that hangs down the overflow pipe hidden behind the tub. The trip lever on the side of the tub can be flipped up (to stop the flow of water down the drain) or down (to allow the tub to drain).  When the trip lever is engaged or closed (flipped up), the plunger lowers and sits at the joint of the waste drain and overflow drain, completely stopping water flow down the drain and causing your tub to fill up.

A trip-lever drain stopper assembly however that is not adjusted correctly (i.e. the plunger does not fully sit at the drain joint and therefore cannot adequately block the water flow) can, at times, be the reason your tub doesn’t hold water.  To check if this is the case, follow our easy five-step process to learn how to lengthen the plunger of your trip-lever stopper assembly.

Tub Doesn’t Hold Water? 5 Step Bathtub Trip-lever Adjustment

Tools You’ll Need: screwdriver

Bathtub Trip-lever Adjustment Steps:

1.     Place a towel over the drain to provide your tub with some basic protection while you work. Remove the tub’s overflow drain cover plate.

• With your screwdriver, slowly remove the screws that hold the cover plate to the tub. Do this slowly, as a broken screw can make for a more difficult job. If there are no screws in the plate, gently use your thumbs to press up on the plate from the bottom. 

2.     Remove the trip lever, linkage, and plunger-stopper together.

• Remove the drain cover plate from the tub wall. The trip lever, linkage, and plunger should follow it.

3.     Clean all parts.

• Using a brush and vinegar (or other mild cleaning solution), clean the linkage and plunger. Use a 1:1 mixture of baking soda and vinegar to flush out both the waste drain and the overflow drain. After pouring the vinegar mixture down the drains, rinse both drains with very hot water.

4. Adjust the stopper linkage if necessary.

• One of the reasons that your tub doesn’t hold water may in fact be that the stopper needs to be adjusted. The assembly is made of two metal rods linked together. Check first to confirm that the rods are fully extended.  

• Next, lengthen the reach of the plunger by lowering (loosening) the bottom lock nut about ¼ inch or so on the lower rod. Lower the plastic adapter (connected to the plunger) and the upper lock nut by the same amount.  When you are done with this adjustment, the two lock nuts should be holding the plastic adapter snugly in place again. (To avoid over-correcting, make minor adjustments to the rod and then move onto Step 5 to test the way the assembly now seals your drain). Repeat Steps 4 and 5 until you’ve achieved your desired seal!    

5. Reinstall stopper assembly and test.

• After reinstalling the plunger, linkage, and trip lever, set the trip lever to the closed position and run enough water into the tub to create a visible water line. Turn off the water. Let it settle. Watch to see if the water level drops. If the water line remains unchanged, you’ve succeeded! If the water line sinks, your stopper is still not achieving a proper seal and you may need to repeat Step 4 above. If after repeating Steps 4 and 5 a few times, the stopper is still not working and your tub doesn’t hold water the way it should, contact your local plumber.

You might be in need of hydro jetting in Jessup or sewer line repair in Jessup or the surrounding areas. If so, connect with a plumber in Baltimore County today.

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Heil Plumbing is a family-run company owned by a third-generation master plumber. We can help you with a full range of plumbing services in Rockville and the greater Baltimore-D.C. metropolitan area, including toilet installation and repair, leak detection and pipe repair, water heater repair and installation, faucet repair and installation, drain cleaning, water treatment, and more.