Leaking Pop up Bath waste plug

[MarkMi]

Hi, I can see this subject has been discussed a few times already but none of the suggestions work for me.

I have a popup bath plug, the type where you have the round controller on the side of the bath that pulls on a wire to lift/lower the plug.

If we run a bath, if left the water will drain out in less than 30mins. It has done this from day one so it isnt wear and tear.

I have adjusted the screw and no matter what level I set it to, the plug still leaks. I have checked the seal and it is sitting perfectly level, I even went to B&Q and bought a replacement but that is exactly the same. It looks like the plug is held down by gravity alone, and then water pressure when you fill the bath?

The plummer that fitted it says this is normal with these types of plugs and he cannot think of anything that will fix it. I suspect this is BS so I am reaching out to you guys to see if you can offer more constructive help on this.

regards

 

[oldbuffer]

1. Normally the wire inside the outer casing on these is a single, relatively rigid, strand.
2. The plug itself is normally held in place (closed) by friction in the mechanism plus gravity and the force of water on the top.
3. If fitted properly they should not allow water past. If they do then:
3.1 The seal is damaged or there is unevenness / lack or roundness in the plug or waste fitting.
3.2 The cable is sticking so it never closes properly. They are sometime steel cables in a steel spiral outer, and prone to rusting unless exercised very regularly.
4. Try removing the pop up part and replacing with an ordinary, tight fitting rubber plug. Then:
4.1 If the bath seals well, the problem is the pop up waste. The only realistic solution is to replace it. However, if it is against a long edge of the bath this may be quite difficult and could require removal of the bath. You might put the ordinary plug into permanent use.
4.2 If it still leaks it suggests a problem with the seal between the waste and the bath. If the waste is held in place with a central screw visible in the centre of the waste fitting, you might try tightening it up. Don't overdo the tightening or you could strip the screw, or break it if it is plastic. If tightening is not feasible or doesn't work you will need to remove and probably replace the whole waste fitting.

 

[MarkMi]

|Hi, thanks for the reply and the suggestions.
There doesnt seem to be any mis-shaping of the plug area. the plug fits evenly around the hole
The cable is running free and I have measured the lever drop is greater than the spigot/adjusting screw in the base of the plug. I can see the lever move smoothly up and down when I use the winder knob.
There doesnt seem to be a plug that would fit correctly, the plug base is wider and shallower than a normal plug. I did investigate this as an option prior to posting.
Replacing the waste itself isnt going to be a fun job due to it being tiled in. But as I say, it has done this from brand new.
If I manually seal the plug, the leak is reduced to 1cm drop in 40mins so it doesnt seem like it is the waste itself.

regards