Ask Me Help Desk - Wall pipe too high

Wall pipe too high

I am installing a new lavatory in the master bathroom. I think my plumber set the drain pipe too high up on the wall. I slide the J bend all the way up onto the tailpiece but I still have a 3 inch gap between the J bend and the wall tube. What is the best solution for this problem?

Maybe he did or did you buy a real deep sink? How high off the floor is the lateral into the wall. Do not mount your cabinet because he may need a call back to cut into the drain in the wall, hope it runs vertical and not horizontal cause that's going to be expensive.

Quote:

Originally Posted by txmnt

I am installing a new lavatory in the master bathroom. I think my plumber set the drain pipe too high up on the wall. I slide the J bend all the way up onto the tailpiece but I still have a 3 inch gap between the J bend and the wall tube. What is the best solution for this problem?

As a rule we set a lavatory stubout 18" up from the floor unless there's a vanity with a deep lavatory sunk in it. Is that the case here? How high from the floor to the center of the stubout is it?
Bob's correct. This could be a real hassle to lower the stubout. To lower the stubout the wall will have to be opened up and the stack cut and the sanitary tee lowered. To add more I'd have to know the height of the stubout. Regards, Tom

OK I measure 24 and 1/2 inches from the floor up to the middle of the stub out. I hope there is another option other than calling the plumber back out.

Quote:

I hope there is another option other than calling the plumber back out

He should lower the stubout on his dime at no cost to you. 24 1/2" is way too high. how could he have made such a mistake? There is a way around this without tearing up your walls but it's way outta code and I bet I hear about it from the other experts If the bowl of the lavatory doesn't fall beneath the stubout you could 90 down from the stubout and build a deep trap. You drop down from the 90 in the stubout with a short piece and take two street ells and another short piece with a compression fitting on it to connect to the lavatory tailpiece. I had to do this on my friends master bath when she refused to let me cut into the shelf of her replacement vanity to install a "P" trap. It still will drain into a vent but deep traps are frowned upon. But hey! You now have options where you had none. Good luck in whatever you decide. Tom

2 Attachment(s)

Hi all:

OUCH!. 24.5 inches is missing by a country mile! Like Speedball said, 18" is normal. 20" is a maximum!

Since you said you are missing this by about 3" and most tailpieces are about 4", I'm thinking you may be able to pull this off if you CUT the 1.25" tailpiece coming out of the lavatory pop-up. Here, measure first before cutting to be sure it will work and then remove the new threaded tailpiece and cut it so it only leaves about an inch or so beyond the threads... then teflon tape the threads (or use pipe dope) and screw back into place.

You could also build your own DEEP TRAP... but that would probably be a code violation and simply isn't correct seeing how you paid this person to do the job right to begin with... it is an option though... ;)

Finally, if you have a tubular trap (see first picture) you may also be able to REVERSE it... that will add some extra depth for attaching to the threaded tailpiece... see last picture.

Otherwise, as suggested... you need to call this guy back and have him install the drain at the correct height.

Let us know what you think...

MARK

Sorry Tom...posting on top of you again...

Thanks for the help. Those are 2 good options. I will have to see what I have on hand to see which option I can do because I really don't want to make the 45 minute drive into town... again. In the interest of total disclosure my plumber isn't totally to blame. We bought a free standing vanity with an undermount sink. It has a square cutout in the back for the plumbing. I told him to make sure he put the stubouts in the right spot. However, he put the drain pipe a good 3 inches above the bottom of the square and the 2 copper supply pipes are actually lower than the drain pipe. So if he would have done it just the opposite way I think I would have a much easier job on my hands.

Let us know how you make out!

MARK

OK, I cut a 6 inch extension down to fit between the J bend and the wall tube. Used a little thread sealant to lock it all together and so far so good.

*crossing fingers* it works!

I think this will be a slow drain from here on, tending to clog more than a drain should. Curious, since we all say the plumber messed up, why did you not do a call back. It was his error.

Hi Mark,

You saved another life, Thanks.

Regards,
John

Let us know how you make out. Good luck, Tom

How tall is your cabinet ? Is it a custom cabinet ? Floating cabinet ? Ped lav ?

This looks like new installation (ABS or PVC drains ). Instead of Mickey Mousing the job - cut open the wall, set San T 4" lower and you are set to install your new sink rain the right way. If it is plastic, will take you 10 minutes to do...

Let us know if you us to guide you through this approach...

Milo.

Quote:

- cut open the wall, set San T 4" lower and you are set to install your new sink rain the right way. If it is plastic, will take you 10 minutes to do...

Tern minutes to pull the vanity, open up a wall , cut and prop the stack up and lower the san tee? Ten minutes? I want you on one of my crews. I can see a couple hours work if I were going to do the job complete. You just got to be one hellava plumber! You can play on my team any time you wish. Cheers, Tom

:D Ok, Tom, make it 20 minutes :D

I figured 1/2" Drywall, cabinet has no backing and ABS pipe connected with Fernco Flex coupling...