Size of Adjustable Wrench to Tighten Drain Pipe

[DTalos]

The drain pipe under my bathroom sink became loose at the seal and nut area where it meets the sink. I tried to tighten the nut and seal area with a 10 inch adjustable wrench, but it was too small to fit over the seal and nut area. In your opinion, what size adjustable wrench fits most common household sink drain pipes?

[bobn60014]

Home Depot or other stores.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Adjus ... /304217578?

[DTalos]

Home Depot or other stores.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Adjus ... /304217578?

Thank you for the information. How is this different from or better than a common adjustable wrench, like one from the popular and familiar brand Crescent?

[livesoft]

I am lending my wrenches to my neighbors routinely. Do you have neighbors? Please ask them for some help and save yourself some money. At least they will have a wrench that works and then you can get one for yourself for the future. And maybe even lend it to them.

[baconavocado]

I use a large slip joint pliers kind of like this to disassemble the drain on my bathroom sink:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Channellock ... /202304947

[bobn60014]

Home Depot or other stores.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Adjus ... /304217578?

Thank you for the information. How is this different from or better than a common adjustable wrench, like one from the popular and familiar brand Crescent?

It s an adjustable plumbers wrench, self explanatory.

[iamlucky13]

Since the parts under a sink can vary, I can't guarantee what size you need, although it's probably close to 2 inches jaw width. It would be best to measure yourself, but I think you'd probably end up needing an awkwardly large and relatively pricey 16+ inch adjustable wrench to reach that size. It's actually not the ideal tool for this use case.

Tongue and groove pliers (aka "Channel Locks, after the brand known for the modern design) would probably be the most convenient way to do what you need. Most 10 inch tongue and groove pliers will probably fit, and this task doesn't require a high end set. I'm actually working on my bathroom sink this weekend, and I used the cheap Harbor Freight "Pittsburgh" house brand to loosen the loosen the drain fittings.

[suemarkp]

And then replace the pipes with plastic pipes and nuts. Those nuts are like wing nuts and you only need your hand to get them on and off. Plastic ones won't corroded over time. I use slip joint pliers for large drain nuts because that tool is more useful than a plumbers wrench.

[PoorPlumber]

Channellocks #430.

Yes, I know Knipex and had my hands on probably most, if not all, available brands.

Good luck with your project.

[Tracker968]

Wouldn't it be better to use a pipe wrench?
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-1 ... /206865420

[adamthesmythe]

There are few home repairs that can be accomplished without at least one trip to the hardware store.

Spend some time in the wrench section. Then go to the plumbing fixtures section to find a fixture that roughly matches the one in your house. Then go back to the wrench section. (...)

I have been known to "modify" tools that don't quite fit. Way cheaper than a plumber.

By the way, there are special wrenches to match plastic fittings. They are not always just hand-tight.

[PoorPlumber]

Wouldn't it be better to use a pipe wrench?
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-1 ... /206865420

No.
From the description of the OP, it appears they have a leak at the "Mack" washer.

Channellocks will supply plenty of torque but are also limited by grip strength of the user to keep from over torquing. (You can still DEFINITELY over torque with Channel locks as well though.)

Plus they have many more varieties of use on different plumbing & mechanical things.

Whereas a pipe wrench is more specific & limited in its use, can be more cumbersome for this application, and easier to over torque something.

[Doom&Gloom]

Linear measurements.
How do they work?

[firebirdparts]

I prefer channellocks for this. Just my preference.

That plus a crescent wrench that would actually fit that is really big and heavy and adjustable wrenches don't really work on anything serious.

[tibbitts]

I prefer channellocks for this. Just my preference.

That plus a crescent wrench that would actually fit that is really big and heavy and adjustable wrenches don't really work on anything serious.

Doesn't it depend if "anything serious" means high-torque requirements? With an adjustable wrench you can generate a fair amount of torque. With pliers you'd need something to lock the handles together - some kind of clamp, basically converting your pliers into locking pliers.

As for the discussion of pipe wrenches, the only choices if you have to actually grip a round object and generate torque are a pipe wrench or locking pliers or possibly a strap or chain wrench. I would think a pipe wrench wouldn't be much use for a hex fitting that's part of the plumbing?

[the_wiki]

There shouldn’t be anything under a sink that needs a pipe wrench. If you have to tighten that hard, something else is probably wrong. More likely you need new gaskets or some putty/silicone.

[walkabout]

As several have mentioned, slip joint pliers (aka channel locks) are what you probably want.

[suemarkp]

Wouldn't it be better to use a pipe wrench?
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-1 ... /206865420

No, pipe wrenches are for threaded pipes (round object). They don't work well on items with flats (nuts) where you would use a normal parallel jaw wrench.

[adamthesmythe]

Maybe OP REALLY wants something like this

https://www.acehardware.com/departments ... es/4500443

which is probably PERFECT if he finds the right size. But then it's a uni-tasker, and I try to avoid buying uni-taskers.

One doesn't always use the perfect tool. I have certainly used a pipe wrench on nuts and a channellok on round pipes. You use what you've got if it works and you take a trip to the hardware store if you don't.

[Luke Duke]

Home Depot or other stores.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Adjus ... /304217578?

Thank you for the information. How is this different from or better than a common adjustable wrench, like one from the popular and familiar brand Crescent?

It's cheaper. You don't own a big Crescent wrench because you've presumably never needed one. Get the cheap one for a very specialized task. Also pliers aren't the best tool to tighten or loosen nuts.

[DTalos]

Thank you for all the helpful suggestions on tools! Your replies were informative.

Do I have to purchase the faucet's brand of o-ring type rubber seal that connects the metal pipe to where the pipe meets the underside of the sink or are their universal black seals/gaskets? I have attached a picture.

https://ibb.co/c2zDWLf

Do drain cleaners wear out seals/gaskets?

[PoorPlumber]

No, you do not have to have an original manufacturers drain or "Mack" washer.

Majority are universal. Having the original gives you a reasonable guarantee of taking it apart and putting back together one time though.

But to tell you the truth, I can't remember the last time I looked for a factory part for this washer/gasket.

Get a universal one and give it a try.

No, I have not had an experience where drain cleaners damage washers to any measurable significance.

I do not recommend drain cleaners as a general rule, but if used, damage to these components doesn't enter the picture.

Don't even think I've ran into a commercial grade drain cleaner situation where it had enough contact time in the drain system to give washer/seal issue.