Replace the drain assembly and then fasten the plate with the two mounting screws to finish the job. Make sure it seats evenly for a complete seal around the connection. The overflow pipe will have a little play (although not much) that should allow you to adjust its position and make room for the gasket. Use a little plumberвЂ™s silicone grease to lubricate the gasket and work it into place around the mouth of the overflow body. When installing the gasket, make sure the thick side is at the bottom. YouвЂ™ll need to buy a new overflow washer or gasket from the hardware store. But since I had already opened the wall, hereвЂ™s a look at the rear of the overflow body where the old gasket is falling out. With any luck you can complete the repair from the tub without having to open the wall. I used an old wire hanger to dig out the rotted gasket material from the overflow body. Shown here is the old deteriorated gasket that must be removed. Pull out the assembly, including the drain plug. The first step is to remove the screws that mount the cover plate. The good news is that replacing an overflow drain gasket is a fairly easy fix. I only mention this to demonstrate that plumbing leaks can happen in some seemingly unlikely places, and locating the problem can be half the battle. Something about the manner in which my wife showers-whether itвЂ™s the way she shampoos her hair or maybe shaves her legs-directs water onto the overflow drain, and consequently past the deteriorated gasket.

Finally, as she was showering, I inspected the plumbing from the floor below and followed the active leak all the way up to the overflow drain. The tub only leaked when my wife took a shower in it. Nor did we have problems when my kids took a bath. Most frustrating of all: I could not reproduce the leak when I took a shower. An opening is cut along the interior of the bathtub to divert extra water between the walls and send it down the tub drain. I eventually opened up the ceiling and the wall behind the faucet to investigate. Convinced of this, I replaced a couple of faucet valves, tightened some threaded connections, and sealed a couple different drain connections with silicone tape, yet I still had a leak. It didnвЂ™t make sense to me that the overflow drain got enough water exposure to be the source of a leak which was ruining a drywall ceiling downstairs. You wouldnвЂ™t think a bathtub overflow drain would be the source of a water leak, especially if you never fill the tub to a level at which water would enter the opening.

Alternative Heating & Fireplace InsertsДЄ simple leaky gasket can cause a big problem.

Overflow drain