How to remove old drain pipes in the wall

 

If you are removing a sink in the kitchen, bathroom or laundry room, you will need to disconnect the drain from the waste pipe. Unless you are planning a new sink, you will probably want to remove it and patch the wall. When you open up the wall, you will probably find that the stub has vertical connections to the basement drain and the roof. If you can find these pipes in the attic or crawl space, it is possible to cut them off and remove them. If you cannot find them, it is probably better to seal the pipes behind the wall.

Locate the studs on either side of the drain stub you want to remove with a stud finder. Using a box cutter and a wall saw, cut a rectangular piece of drywall that extends at least to the sides of these studs and about three feet above the drain stub to the floor. Cut through the drywall in the middle of the stud faces so that you have access to wood to which you can attach the new drywall.

Using a hacksaw, cut the PVC pipe anywhere in the wall that will allow you to remove the stub. You may need to make two cuts to separate the T-piece holding the stub from the drain and vent pipes. Using a screwdriver or hammer, remove all the clamps holding the stub and pull the stub out.

Go into the crawlspace if the sink is at ground level and locate the point where the pipe passes through the base plate of the wall. Follow the pipe to the point where it connects to the basement drain. Cut it off about 10 cm from this point and glue a cap with plastic pipe cement on the part that remains on the basement drain. Remove the drain pipe.

Locate the vent pipe that comes up through the top plate of the wall after it goes into the attic. Cut it where it comes out vertically. Follow the remaining pipe sideways to the main vent and cut it about 10 cm from the connection point. Seal the part that is still connected to the vent. Remove the cut pipe.

Seal the pipes in the wall after cutting the branch as an alternative to removing them completely. If you cannot find the drain and vent pipes in the attic or crawl space, they may be connected to other fixtures and you cannot remove them without re-routing those fixtures. Capping the pipes is a safe alternative that does not affect the fittings, although it may leave unused pipes in the walls.

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