My favorite earring fell into the sink drain. Can I retrieve it any other way than with a pipe wrench?

Question

Will an ordinary pair of pliers work? And how do I go about removing the trap?

Answer 1

If you can't see it, it's in the trap - the curved piece that you can see under the sink.

The trap is held on with two nuts.  If they are plastic, you can usually turn them off by hand.  Put a small bucket under the trap, it's full of water.  

If they are metal or won't come off by hand, use an adjustable wrench to turn them off.

Answer 2

If it's magnetic you can fish it out with a magnet. If precious you can get a tool at the auto parts store that has a grabber on the end that is operated with a push button.

Answer 3

Pliers will probably just cause you to slip off the nut and damage the trap.  You need a pair of channel locks.  They cost about $12 for a cheap pair.  If it's a chrome p-trap make sure you take it easy when tightening/loosening the nuts.  If it's a PVC p-trap you shouldn't need anything other than a strong set of hands to loosen the nuts.

Answer 4

Rather than remove the trap, you can get a set of mechanics fingers at an auto parts store for about $10. They are a flexible set of retrieve tools that can go down the drain when you remove the the stopper. The built in stopper can be removed by a twist the left and reinstalled the opposite way.

Answer 5

You may be able to vacuum it out using a shop -vac

Answer 6

I don't have a pipe wrench either, and I have managed to successfully loosen the pipe trap with a pair of pliars.



First I wrapped a rubber glove loosely around the pipe connection in order to get a better grip and to prevent damage to the pipe; then I applied pressure with the pliars and the pipe fitting came apart. I then retrieved the item, and fished out a lot of gunk also. Then I just cleaned the pipe threads with a rag, and tightened it again. I gave it a few gentle turns with my pliars (again with a rubber glove loosely placed around the pipe connection).  

It worked for me.

Place a small pail or basin under the sink trap first, before you do this.

PS: You could also try putting on a pair of rubber gloves, and then loosening it by hand. Your grip will be far better this way.

Answer 7

Have you used the drain?

If so it may be gone.

Take the drain apart.

Answer 8

Beverly,

Before resorting to opening the trap, which can often lead to more trouble, here's an alternative that I've used successfully many times.

The success rate will vary some with how clean the trap is, and the style of earring, but if you've got the means handy, it's worth a shot.

What I've used has been a length of floral wire with a small fish hook on the end, but you can try any similar combination that achieves the same idea; even just a wire with a hook bend on the end can do the trick. I say floral wire because it is thin enough to flex fairly readily and curve into the trap, but sturdy enough it will not easily wad up or unfold your hook end. However you create the "hook", keep it small, not something that barely fits in the drain; after all you will likely have to have the hook slide beyond the earring, picking it up as you bring it upwards. Slow and patient wins the battle- also, as you start down the tailpiece, try to get a "feel" of where the end of the wire is. Go slowly, and tune into or "sense" what's happening at the other end through your hand. By doing so, you'll better read the signals that say the wire has started curving in the trap, and maybe feel your earring when the wire bumps into it. If you think you feel it running into an object that may be your jewelry, rotating the wire as it passes over it can also help to snag it rather than pushing it along in front of it.

If worse comes to worse and you do need to open the trap, it will hopefully be the newer plastic "P" trap, which normally has small tabs built into the couplings. With a roasting pan or bucket under the trap, begin to unscrew the coupling farthest from the sink first. If a plastic trap, this should be able to be done without tools, by hand only.  Once the nut has released, you can gently wiggle the trap downwards enough to clear the end it was attached to, then swivel it clear. From here, you may be able to reach the item; if not undo the nut holding the trap onto the tailpiece of the sink. The first end should have a flared lip built into the pipe; the end below the sink will have a separate flared sealing ring under the nut; be sure not to lose the ring, and notice that the tapered end goes downward towards the trap. Before re-installing, make sure all nuts, seals and threaded areas are free of hair or gunk, and hand tighten them. With your pan or bucket still in place, close the drain of your sink and fill it full. Open the drain, and watch/feel carefully around the nuts of the trap for any water drops seeping out. If you don't find any drips, congratulations; you're done. If you find water, tighten the nut a bit more, dry off the pipe, and do the leak test again.

Good Luck!

Answer 9

Hi,  You have gotten some good answers from the helpful people.I would remove the stopper in the sink bowel first.Get your self a piece of flex able wire,maybe 2ft.Make a little hook at one end with a pair of pliers.Fish the wire down the drain till you hit the S curve in the pipe.Try to hook the earring first before you take the trap apart.Good Luck