How can I make my kitchen sink drain fully?

September 26, 2006 4:36 PM

How to fix the drain of my kitchen sink?

I have a stainless steel kitchen sink that does not drain fully.

The drain at the bottom is not flush with the bottom surface of the sink; the drain sticks out slightly above the bottom (maybe 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch), and so there is always a small "halo" of water surrounding the ring where the drain meets the bottom of the sink. It doesn't dry, and so I have to clean regularly or else mold forms there.

This strikes me as something that could be adjusted, but I don't know how. I'm generally pretty handy around the house although in the past I have steered clear of monkeying with plumbing lest I create a leak.

Anyone out there know what I'm talking about, and how to fix it?

posted by Brian James to home & garden (4 answers total)

Sounds to me like someone put the rubber gasket inside the sink instead of underneath. Take it apart and install it like this.
If that's not the case, you've got a basket that's the wrong size for the sink.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 5:05 PM on September 26, 2006

Ha, I was just about to post the same page (and answer) as weapons-grade pandemonium.

You will need plumbers putty, not silicone caulk to set the drain. It's not difficult to take apart, just hard to reach.
posted by lee at 5:10 PM on September 26, 2006

I think weapons-grade is right, I do see what looks like a black O-ring between the drain basket--that's the mystery term I was looking for--and the bottom of the sink.
posted by Brian James at 5:50 PM on September 26, 2006

A lot of the el cheapo and offshore basket strainers come with a very thick rubber gasket.Plumbers turf them in the garbage and use silicone for the most part.Plumbers putty is not used by many plumbers nowadays.Silicone will travel into all the voids and will seal even if you move the strainer during install.

The biggest problem with putty is that it dries out with age and if there is a very sharp edge on the strainer indent ( a lot of sinks have this due to dull stamping dies) the putty will be cut off whereas this does not happen to silicone.Just make sure you wipe the excess off with paper towel or similar before it dries.If you do have excess residue just peel it off .
posted by plumberonkarst at 6:26 AM on September 27, 2006