Keep Out Sewer Gases
A drink cup beats a pile of rags if you need to temporarily plug a plumbing drain pipe when replacing a toilet.
After removing a toilet, we need to keep the sewer gases from coming into the house. Most contractors simply plug the hole with rags, loose insulation, or whatever they have on hand. Those remedies are messy and marginally effective, and the rag can easily slip down the pipe. My solution is a plastic cup pushed into the hole. Cups are generally tapered, so they self-seal, and there’s no shortage of waste cups on most job sites.
—Brian Flynn, Overland Park, Kan.
Edited by Charles Miller
From Fine Homebuilding #286
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Depending on the time frame, I've hac rats push blockage out of the way. I use a test plug, tightened down real good.