How to remove a broken tub drain pipe

How to remove the drain from a tub when there is nothing for your tools to grab. Unscrew the drain with a claw hammer.

[alexicastillo]

Thank you so much for this amazing hint! You posted it 8 years ago but it’s still helping some (or maybe lots) of us! I literally used this method 10 minutes ago and it worked! I was at the point of frustration when I started looking for suggestions in YouTube and bumped into yours! Thank you again!

[terrim]

Amazing! I was trying to figure it out with the plumbing tools and no luck because it was missing in the center. I searched on line and someone showed how to cut it out, and I thought I'd try yours first. I found your video and it worked!!! The first hammer didn't work. I used a smaller hammer and I couldn't seem to get it to turn and I was uncertain if it was catching the thread. What I did do, is apply pressure on the top of the hammer as I tried to turn it and I got a tiny movement. Mine was really rusted on there, so each time I used two hands, one to twist and one to apply pressure on top of hammer and it was smooth sailing after that. Thank you for sharing you video!!! I am so happy I was able to do it myself. PS -I had a plumber what wouldn't touch it for fear of breaking the tub so I lived with a broken drain for many years.

[chadparkin]

I got to the point of using the drain remover and the cross inside just collapsed into the drain. I watched a different clip where a jigsaw and crowbar were used but searched a little further and saw this. Thanks! You saved the day and probably my marriage

[louieangeldeleon]

Thank you for not bulking it up with 1000 tools I need to buy. True handy man video!

[nopointshorts]

9 years ago and still a usefully video ! Thank you.

[stebolavirus]

Thanks for posting! This video inspired me to use other tools besides the standard tub wrenches. In my situation, the openings in the crosshairs in the bottom of the tub drain were smaller than any of the tools I had, so I used needle nose pliers and put a hammer handle in between the plier handles to rotate the entire assembly...super easy to use if your tools and the drain opening are not the same size!

[JDPassini]

I bought a drain tool that I ruined before trying this first. After smashing my finger and wasting $30, I found your method. Easy! Thank you for sharing.

[suzettemartz]

Thank you for this!  I had to find the right hammer to reach the bottom of the rim, but once I got it in there, it worked like a charm!!  New toe touch drain installed and ready to use!

[klgg]

I wish there was some way to optimize this video to show up first when looking this stuff up. I knew there was something that didn't involve buying a forty dollar tool. Super handy in a pandemic. Thank you!

[TheContentofCory]

I tried a drain tool, pliers and a wrench... Your method worked like a charm

[vickimarq]

OMG! I love you!!! Everything was broken on my drain even the outer ring so the whole drain had fallen down down in the hole away from the tub with just the stubborn threaded part still attached. After watching several other videos of guys taking way too long and cracking stupid jokes, nothing they said worked. Then finally I found your video using a hammer and I had that stupid ring out in seconds!!! Thank you so much! God Bless

[garyg]

Great idea, using hammer! My drain didn't have the "cross" at the bottom, just two slots on either side. This saved me from having to design a tool or pay over $30.00 for a non-returnable tool at Lowe's. Thanks.

[celticman]

Eric, this is AWESOME! This is not something that has to be done very often, and the other methods like the ezextractor get costly for a 1x use. It took a little time to get comfortable with the hammer position and the amount of pressure to apply, but I started slowly & worked up to the point where the drain starting moving. Thanks again for sharing this tip!

[brandonmcintosh]

Wish I seen this about 4 hours ago before I didn't $10 on a drain wrench and then $20 on an extractor. Great vid! Definition of handy man!

[PakiSpaceProgram]

watch and read about at least
a dozen on this topic. this is the only one that works, and works every time. Thank you so much

[PolskaBabii]

I’ve been looking for a video that addresses this for two hours!!! Thank

[germandimplez]

Thanks so much. Saw a vid using pliers and a screw driver but just could not tell exactly what the person is doing. I have no cross hairs or ring. Just from the old drain. I’m going to try this! Thanks again. 🤞🏻 🙏🏻

[dozdeshabb]

Thanks a lot man. I was just about to give up on my tub removal project till i saw this trick. you save me a tub of time and money.

[rstar]

TURN RIGHT WHEN YOU GRIP! i barely got mine with that method and i was unfortunately not paying attention and was turning the other way. Also thank you for posting this!

[rnmike]

THANK YOU!!! I was going to head to HD to buy an extractor when I saw your video. I remembered I had an old school hammer with the long claws buried in my tool box, & it worked perfectly!!! You are the man!