[Kithikor]

Hello.
My fiancé had a new bathroom sink put in. It is a glass bowel vessel sink that sits on a granite slab. The venting holes on the drain do not help because they are sealed in by the counter. It goes drain, glass sink, counter, and then sealant. There is no overflow in this glass sink so that might be the problem. Is there a way to make the water drain better? We have to swirl our finger in a circle to get it to drain or just wait a few min.

Thank you in advance.

[ballengerb1]

Is the sink properly trapped and vented? Have you complained to the installer? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IxwNgRPsdc

[massplumber2008]

Hi Kithikor

I am all too familiar with your issue at hand. Most vessel sinks do not have the overflow hole as you mentioned and most of the vessel sink drain assemblies stink... especially the "standard" GRID DRAIN (see 1st image).

Here, I would have your plumber back out and I would ask him to install a FLIP TOP (2nd image) or an PUSH BUTTON UMBRELLA (also called a MUSHROOM) type of vessel sink drain assembly... see 3rd image. Note that if the vessel sink came with a grid type drain then it is not the plumber's fault that things don't work, although it would be nice if he had mentioned the issues seen with these kinds of sinks/drains.

These drains (#2 and #3) should resolve your issue as they allow more air to mix with the water and that is what makes water flow/drain!

Questions? Let us know, OK?

Mark

[Kithikor]

Unfortunately, this job was done a few years back. With the video and suggested drains, it looks like I have a weekend project. I will get back with you when I am done.

[Kithikor]

Well, Murphey's Law... I took the old sink apart only to find out the granite top had a 1 1/4" hole drilled into it. Not big enough for the correct parts. I did learn, however, that a non overflow and an overflow type sink MAKES a big difference. I am a n00b at plumbing, so I got to learn a lesson about that!

Thank you all for your guidance/help. At least I learned something =-D

[massplumber2008]

That is an odd setup, for sure, Kithikor... UGH! I have never heard of such a thing, but if you are SURE then I can't question you on it... at least not from here!

If you are planning on sticking with the old setup and you have a typical grid type strainer you could try drilling the holes to be larger in the grid strainer... that would help some!

Thank you for posting the update... always appreciated!

Mark

[Kithikor]

Ok...
Got the hole enlarged, bought the proper drain, a non-overflow, got it hooked up, with no water leakage!

Now... :rolls eyes: there is some kind of an air trap that was put in after the plumber. There is a P trap drain, it leads into the wall, not the floor. (please correct me if I am wrong) Do I need that? I ask, because there is a slight sway in the pipe, it has been like that even when I took it apart, just looks wrong to me. If I don't need it, I figure I can use a union to reconnect it all. Am I on the right track?

Thanks again.

[massplumber2008]

Great job on the drain/sink!

Yes, you need the PTRAP... keeps sewer gasses out of the house!

If I misunderstood see if you can post a picture of what you are talking about and we'll see what we think!

Mark

[Kithikor]

Here the air vent and the vent hooked up (not my photos):




Except mine goes into the wall, not down. (having hard time to get my pictures uploaded)

[massplumber2008]

So you are asking if you need the vent? If so, then yes, you ABSOLUTELY need the vent! If draining the sink hasn't improved when you replaced the drain (did it?) then you could have a defective vent and it may be a good idea to replace it... just spins out to replace!

[tonywilson]

Thank you very so much sharing information.

[Mike45plus]

The black air vent in the photo is not approved for use as an aav, and is also prone to failure, and if your aav is buried in a wall, it may not be getting enough air to breathe...