Q–My daughter accidentally dropped a jeweled earring down the bathroom sink drain. A friend said it would be easy to retrieve this earring since it was undoubtedly at the bottom of the U-shaped trap under the sink. He said that all I had to do was remove the threaded plug at the bottom of the trap under the sink and the earring would come out with the water that was trapped there.
I found that there is no threaded plug at the bottom of the chrome trap. Is there another way to retrieve the earring without doing a lot of plumbing work?
A– You don’t have to “tear anything apart” or do any major plumbing work to get at the contents of that sink trap. All you have to do is remove the trap completely, then empty its contents–which should include that piece of jewelry –into a bucket.
The sink trap is held in place by two threaded nuts or collars–one at each end of the U-shaped trap. After you loosen both collars, slide them up out of the way, then gently pull off the trap and empty it into the bucket.
Be careful when you replace the trap because some of these threaded collars have very fine threads and if you don’t screw them on properly when you replace the trap it is easy to accidentally strip or cross-thread them.
Q–I have a beautiful, multipaned, arched window right above the combination bathtub and Jacuzzi in our bathroom. I don’t want to cover this window with blinds or curtains. Is there something I can apply that will give a frosted effect to the existing clear glass?
A–Some paint and hardware stores, as well as some home centers, sell an adhesive-backed, translucent plastic material that’s similar to Contac-type plastic material for shelves. When applied, this material will let light through, yet you can’t see through it. There is also a translucent paint that will create a similar effect when applied to clear glass windows.
Q–I have been told that one of the steps involved when installing a hardwood floor is to fill gaps that may occur between the boards and then sand the floor. If this is true, why would one spend extra money to install pre-finished hardwood flooring because you would end up sanding part of it?
A–There is some confusion here. First, when unfinished hardwood flooring is installed, there should be no gaps to fill between the boards–unless the flooring was improperly installed. Second, when you buy and install pre-finished hardwood flooring, there are no gaps to fill and there definitely is no sanding required.
———-
Have a question about home repair problems? Write to Bernard Gladstone in care of Your Place, Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611. Questions of general interest will be answered in future columns. Sorry, letters cannot be answered personally.
