How To Retrieve Items Lost Down The Drain

Have you lost a small item down the plughole?

Maybe something valuable like your ring or treasured set of earrings?

Don’t Panic

Here’s how you can retrieve your lost items without the need for a Plumber.

Turn Off The Water

Not at the mains supply but first of all turn off the tap or shower, don’t allow any more water to run down the drain.

Running water down the drain might push your valuable item into the sewer in which case you’ll have no chance of ever retrieving it.

Turn off the water and tell everyone in the house not to run any water into the drain where you’ve lost the item.

Can You Get Into The Waste?

To start, you may have to take the sink/basin/shower waste apart from the top, so you reach into the drain. How to do this will depend on the type of waste you have. Usually a flat head screwdrivers all that’s needed.

Is Your Item Metal?

If the small item dropped down the drain is metal you’ll be able to retrieve it with a magnet, please note this won’t work with silver or gold earrings they’re not magnetic.

Not everyone carries magnets at home. If you don’t have one think carefully, your child might have a toy with a magnetic part? Your phone case? There might be a magnet on your kitchen cupboard? If there’s a magnet anywhere in your home, it can be utilised.

Get a screwdriver long enough to put down the drain. Rub the tip of the screwdriver with a magnet a few times.

The screwdrivers now magnetised push it down the plughole and see if you can pick your item up with the magnetic screwdriver.

If the screwdrivers not long enough, you can try putting a magnet on a piece of string or wire. Lower into the bottom of the drain to pick your item up.

Hardware stores sell magnetic pickup tools if the above methods fail.

Another tool is a grabbing mechanism inside a spring which can grab your item.

Remove The Trap

If the quick and easy methods listed above don’t work, then you have no other choice but to remove the trap below the sink.

You can do this yourself or if you’re unsure call a qualified plumber.

Wear gloves this is a dirty job. Unscrew the u-bend below the sink empty any water in the bend into a bucket.

Can you see your item?

If not, then it’s probably stuck within the debris in the trap. Empty everything out and go through the debris carefully.

Install A Sink Strainer

You’ve likely spent some time and energy retrieving your lost item from the plughole. The job is pretty dirty and unpleasant to stop this happening in the future, install a sink strainer to prevent any items going down the drain again. Sink strainers are cheap and easily obtainable from DIY stores