How to Replace a Plumbing Trap Primer

Traps are important plumbing fixtures that prevent waste gases from venting into a home or other building. In some cases, local building codes require the use of trap primers to ensure that the trap has an adequate amount of water to form a seal. If your trap primer is in need of replacement and you have a little plumbing knowledge, you can do the work yourself.

Instructions

1. Turn off the water supply. Trap primers are connected to water supply lines, so you need to turn off the water supply either at a local valve or at the main valve.

2. Locate the trap primer. You may have to tear down drywall or tile to get to it, so find the trap primer before you start.

3. Prepare to deal with any water leakage when you remove the old trap primer. At this point, it's a good idea to double-check that you've turned the water off. When you remove the trap primer, have a bucket or towels (or both) ready to collect any water drainage from the lines.

4. Remove the trap primer. Trap primers have connections to the cold water line and also have a connection to the trap.

5. Connect the new trap primer to the water line and to the drain to the trap. You need to solder the connection if you're using copper pipe, or you need primer and glue if you have CPVC pipe. If you had to cut the water line to get the old trap primer off, then you may need a length of additional pipe and a connector to make the new trap primer fit.

6. Ensure that you have a good seal around all the soldered or glued connections. If all looks good, you can turn the water supply back on.

7. Test the new trap primer by running water through the fixture supplied by the water line and by checking the trap. If everything seems to work well, you can then replace the drywall, tile or other wall material.