If necessary, place buckets underneath water dripping through the ceiling, and contact a certified restoration company. Check for signs of damage to the ceiling and any fixtures directly below the bathroom. When you finish mopping up, head downstairs. This helps head off structural water damage and potential mold growth. It’s important to minimize the volume of water seeping into the ceiling below the bathroom. Pull the plug, and start soaking up water on the floor by throwing down extra towels. The overflow should level off just inside the bathtub edge. You don’t want to slip and fall on the wet floor.

If the overflow happened while you were soaking, get out and grab a towel. If the water is still running, turn off the bathtub faucet. What Should I Do If I Overflow the Bath?įollow your first impulse.

However, the sooner you can pinpoint the source, the less water damage you will have to deal with. In addition to the repeated water leaks, you may notice rust form in the holes or cracks. Turn off the faucet and pay close attention to determine the areas where water seems to be coming from. To find any holes or cracks in your tub, fill your bathtub with water. If you notice a lot of leaking, you will need to investigate. Cracks can be tiny and as fine as a strand of hair. One cause that may seem obvious but can easily go missed is a crack in your bathtub. Maybe your bathtub hasn’t overflowed, but it may as well have because of the severe leaking you notice every time it’s used. Why Is Water Flowing from Underneath My Tub? Deep Tub Soaks – Relaxing, deep baths submerge the overflow plate and eventually compromise the drain’s capacity. Misdirected Shower Water – Overflow drain problems occur when shower water continually runs over the cover plate.Ħ. Leaving the Tub Running – A continual flow of faucet water overflows the tub and overwhelms the drain.ĥ. Damaged Overflow Gasket – A cracked or deteriorated overflow gasket allows water to escape the overflow drain.Ĥ. Leaky Overflow Tube – Leaks in the overflow drain tube seep outside the tub drain and through the bathroom floor.ģ. Clogged Overflow Drain – Over time, every day use clogs the drain with debris and soap scum.Ģ. However, these six problems problems can compromise its operation and result in overflow drain leaks:ġ. When bath water reaches a set level, a properly working overflow drain prevents the tub from leaking through the ceiling. When water in the bathtub reaches the small hole in the overflow cover plate, the overflow drain channels the excess back down into the tub’s main drain pipe. The rubber or neoprene washer forms a seal between the backside of the tub wall and the overflow drain opening. The bathtub overflow gasket is an important part of this contained system. This simple safety feature is located behind the bathtub overflow cover plate on the front wall of the tub. How Does the Bathtub Overflow Drain Work? The overflow drain is designed to prevent a bathtub overflow that leaks downstairs. This type of bathroom flooding creates a mess that soaks the ceiling below. It doesn’t take long for the upstairs tub to fill and spill over. You start running a bath, but something distracts you for just a minute. Why Is My Bath Leaking Through the Ceiling? Let’s take a closer look at this overlooked fixture. Faulty overflow drains are often the source of the problem.

Our teams restore water-damaged ceilings in Chicago homes every week. Most homeowners are surprised by how much trouble this bathtub part can cause. Have you checked the tub overflow drain? When the small component goes bad, it creates big problems. Sometimes, it’s hard to figure out what to do when the bathtub overflows and leaks downstairs. The drain isn’t clogged, pipe connections are tight, and the caulk looks good. The ceiling leak is coming from the tub upstairs, but you can’t pinpoint the problem.

Bathtub overflow cover fell off