How to Remove Plumbers Putty

Plumber’s putty is one of the basic tools in an emergency plumber’s toolbox. You probably already know how integral the plumbers putty is to the success of your domestic and commercial plumbing. Which is why it’s exceptionally important to learn how to effectively remove plumbers putty.

Like Benjamin Franklin once said, “An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.” Our “How to” blog post provides you with a step-by-step guide to remove a plumber’s putty. In this post, we’ll explain why plumber’s putty is important, its common uses, how to remove it, and provide 4 hot tips if you’re new to a plumber’s putty removal.

What Is Plumbers Putty?

Putty is a doughlike material typically made of whiting and linseed oil that is used especially to fasten glass in window frames and to fill crevices in woodwork. It easily qualifies as a convenient choice for sealing where a watertight, but reversible, the seal is preferred.

Plumbers putty, like every other putty, is a malleable jelly-like yellowish-grey paste, made from ground chalk and raw linseed oil, that hardens after a few hours and is used for sealing plumbing works such as tap fitment or pipe rethreading.

One of the biggest advantages of the plumber’s putty is that it creates a water-tight seal when used, making it ideal for situations where complete waterproof sealing is needed. Here’s a closer look at what a plumber’s putty is and how to use it.

Caution should not be thrown to the wind while applying plumber’s putty, as it contains oils capable of changing the color of surfaces it is applied upon. We usually do not recommend the use of plumber’s putty on granite, plastics, marble, or any other porous surfaces. Be sure to read the instructions on your plumber’s putty you grab from the local store in order to avoid these problems.

Plumber’s putty can come in handy for many question areas when it comes to waterworks. It provides a waterproof sealing that you can interest around drains, taps, and other areas. The superior thing throughout it is quiet to attach and detach whenever you emergency too. If you have ever removed a tap from a sink and discover some rubbery residue under the bottom of the body of the cauk, that’s probably plumbers putty.

Common Uses For Plumbers Putty

Common applications for the plumbers putty include the installation of drain pipes, sinks, and valves. Service Heroes’ emergency plumbers in Sydney use putty for burst and leaking pipe repairs, toilet repairs, bathroom renovations, and many more. Basically, the putty works to seal areas exposed to unpressurized water, thereby preventing leaks and seepage, smelly shower drain, blocked drains, toilets, and bathrooms. Common use cases for plumbers putty include: treating water leakages through drainage, the installation of bathroom or kitchen sink, It can also be used for how to fix a tap.

While we learn the common usage of a plumber’s putty, it’s also ideal to recognize when not to use a plumbers putty. Plumber’s putty should not be confused with a Teflon tape, which is used to seal threaded pipe joints. Plumbers putty is often used any time plumbing fixtures are replaced. Use cases of putty include:

Sinks

When correctly applied, a plumber’s putty around the rim of a sink creates a watertight seal, preventing water from seeping into the area under the sink and creating mold or water damage.

Drains

You may use a plumber’s putty to seal drains in the sink or the bathtub. Like with the installation of a sink, plumber’s putty is applicable in sealing off drains in the sink or the bathtub. This would be carried out by placing the putty underneath the drain before fitting the drain. pressure in order to create a watertight bond.

Plumbing work

Plumber’s putty can only be used for pipes that will not experience a great deal of pressure. To seal pipes together, place the putty on the inside of the pipe, where the threads will twist together. Twist the other end of the pipe into the threads and the putty. Wipe away excess putty and allow time for it to set.

What Is In Plumbers Putty

Plumber’s putty composition often varies but commonly include powdered white clay and linseed oil. Other commonly used constituents include talc, limestone, and fish oil. Silicon and epoxy sealants are considered good alternatives to a plumbers putty.

While different blends of putty exist in the market today, traditional blends of putty comprise a mixture of linseed oil and white clay, with minimal amounts of linseed oil or fish oil. While some brands of putty contain a larger percentage of limestone without mentioning linseed oil as one of its components, traces of the oil are still present in the putty.
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Plumber’s putty should never be applied to marble and granite sinks to avoid staining them as the oil is capable of staining porous surfaces. Silicone sealants are ideal when working with marble and granite sinks. When considering whether to use silicone or plumber’s putty, remember that plumbers putty are less challenging to remove from surfaces than silicone sealants.

Plumbers Putty Removal

Putty creates a strong, watertight seal. However, it’s temporary. Hence, it can be easily removed from a fixture upon drying. You’ll simply put some pressure on a plumbing joint to break up the hardened putty. It doesn’t require a ton of skill to remove plumber putty whenever you want to. Our stepwise approach would give just anyone clear actions to take to remove plumbers putty. To remove plumber’s putty:

Apply pressure to hardened putty, enough to break off hardened putty as crumbles.
You’ll easily remove much of the putty that may remain behind using your fingers.
Alternatively, you can remove the remaining putty by scraping it off with a sturdy putty knife. However, a film of linseed oil may be left behind.
You can remove the linseed oil residue from most sink materials by scraping it. If you’re unable to scrape it off, try washing it off with water and soap.
If some residue still remains behind, remove them using a paint thinner or mineral spirit. To do this, wet a piece of rag with a paint thinner or mineral spirit and wipe the residue vigorously.

You can remove the hardened putty from a faucet or drain flange the same way you’ve done with a plumbing joint.

Plumbers Putty Hot Tips

Take a little bit of the putty and roll it into a snake. Place the putty around the area you’re sealing forming a complete ring.

Grab a container of putty from your local store. Plumbers putty com in different sizes just ensure you have one that contains the right amount of putty you need.
Clean the surface you’ll put the putty on. Plumbers putty needs to be applied to clean surfaces. Wash the surface you’ll be applying the putty to with soap and water. If you’re applying the putty to an old fixture, go over it several times until it is free of any dirt.
Work the putty with your hands until it is soft and malleable. When first out of the can, putty is usually cold. Take a handful of it and roll it into a ball. Rub it between your palms quickly and firmly. Stop once you’re able to pull and stretch the putty easily.
Stretch putty into a long, skinny shape. Now that your putty is warm, stretch it until it is long enough to cover the area you need to apply it to. If long and skinny putty won’t fit over your surface, mold it into a shape that will.