Decided to DIY a refinish kit on my tub (it’s a rental and I’m broke); unfortunately, I cannot get the rusty, corroded drain to budge. Tried special tools, tried inserting pliers into the X and using channel locks to turn (YouTube tip). Still nothing. The overflow had a bunch of caulk on it, turns out it was the only thing holding it in place. When I removed it, the whole overflow pipe fell behind the wall. No access panel. Aside from taking apart the wall (half of tub wall is shared with linen closet, the other half is shared with a coat closet), any options for dealing with either of these? I removed the plywood “wall” in the linen closet, but there’s framing and drywall (I think) behind it that I’d need to cut into for access. 1953 house with a few owners.
PS. I’m a total novice DIYer. Trying not to make anything worse!
Bathtub drain & overflow
bathtub
Related Solutions
Your tub has an overflow drain. You just have to find it. Remove the two screws next to the combination drain toggle & overflow plate. Now gently pull up to reveal the overflow hole and the drain plug:
Get out your snake (you've got a snake, right?) and thread it down the newly revealed hole. Also remove the single screw holding the drain screen. Use some sort of semi-flexible plastic rod to clean out the horizontal section of the drain (a suitable tool comes with some bottles of drain cleaner, else you can improvise).
Don't bother with drain cleaner -- it is not right for your situation.
Contact American Standard. I've seen images online that show they have tubs with this type of overflow. They should be able to advise you. Also it looks as if you don't have any caulking around the edge of the tile joining the bathtub. It would be a really good idea to run some silicone caulking around that edge. Make sure it's silicone and you can get it in clear. If you're not used to using silicone it can be kind of messy when using it.
Best Answer
As a total novice DIYer I would say that this job is beyond what you are prepared to do. The house is an old rental so the previous work is old and most likely shoddy. Even if you were able to change the components successfully, you may cause more trouble somewhere else from wiggling the pipes around.
But if you must: The plywood you removed can cover the hole you make in the drywall so cut with a drywall saw, but don't go deep. Just one inch max. And if you feel something that doesn't feel like drywall stop cutting and make a small hole to investigate. There are pipes in there and though there shouldn't be wires, there may be. Once you have a hole large enough to take a picture, snap a few and post it here. If we can help, great, if not replace the plywood and call your landlord because the overflow "fell off" and your worried about a leak. Oh also, is this a basement washroom?