The tub drain receives the most abuse of all the drains in the house. We fill it with shampoo bottle caps, hair, soap, and other hair-related supplies. When you are standing in the tub taking a shower with several inches of filthy water lapping at your ankles, the drain has slowly clogged over time.
The water from the overflow drain is collected by a pipe that goes into the main tub drain. The necessity to plunge the tub is made more difficult by this. Plungers use suction to operate, and the overflow drain—which, for obvious reasons, never closes—acts as a large air vent that destroys the suction. Therefore, before using the plunger, you must close the overflow hole. Using duct tape to seal an overflow is the best solution.
Get the tub ready.
Cut out a few pieces of regular duct tape, cover the overflow hole, and press the tape’s edges firmly against the tub’s surface.
Remove the tub’s bottom (primary) drain stopper. You might need to crank it back and forth or unscrew it to pull it up.
Add one to two inches of hot water to the tub (not cold). Soap in clogs is more easily removed with hot water.
Setting up the Plunger
Plunge the cup over the drain until the cup’s full lip is flush with the tub’s surface. The cup seal is essential because it produces the suction necessary for the plunger to work, which releases the clog.
Clear the Drain
Push the plunger down and draw it up quickly and forcefully five to six times. Keep the cup’s seal intact throughout the first five or six strokes. With the final stroke, draw the cup completely up and away from the drain. The clog is forced up and down with the drain water when the plunger is pumped, breaking it apart as the water is forced down the pipe and then sucked back up.
Until the drain begins to flow freely, carry out the same procedure again as necessary.
Take the tape off.
Replace the drain stopper after removing the duct tape from the overflow.
