Waste Line Q: Cleanout plug not closing tightly
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My cleanout plug is not closing tightly on the trap of the house’s main waste line; there is a 1/2″ gap. Odors escape from it. Do you know if (1) the black rubber gasket is supposed to seal tightly or (2) it is not but there should be a layer of horse hair or hemp in between the plug & gasket and the trap? I think the gasket is supposed to seal and used to do so. I think I removed it and did not put it back tightly enough, which enabled rust to build up inside the trap, and which now prevents the plug from descending the final 1/2″ that it is supposed to and used to. The height of my plug is 3-1/2″, and so is the height on the inside of the trap piece from its exterior top down to the top on the narrower inner diameter. I think the rust is on the angled part of the trap. Please let me know if my theory is totally wrong. If I am correct, what is the best fix? Switch my plug for a 3″ high one? Is there supposed something like horsehair or hemp in there, as a secondary seal? Thanks in advance.

renoishard2
in Plumbers and Plumbing 13 years and 3 months ago
1
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eman134 | 13 years and 3 months ago
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remove the plug, insert the rubber seal all the way into the trap, and thump the plug back in with a block of wood and a small sledge