How to fix a PVC drain pipe broken flush against the wall
When a PVC pipe breaks completely flush with or recessed inside an exterior wall, standard couplings cannot be glued onto the outside. Using a rotary tool to slightly widen the inside diameter of the remaining pipe allows you to slide and glue a smaller fitting directly on the inside. This lets you complete the repair from the outside without having to tear open the wall.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- This comes up 14.4× more often in r/Plumbing than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Using a rotary tool or file to clean up and slightly widen the inner edge of the recessed PVC pipe to slip a smaller fitting inside.Did this help you?
- 2Using a repair coupling that slides all the way on if there is enough play in the line.Did this help you?
- 3Replacing the drain when installing a new HVAC system.Did this help you?
- 4Covering up the hole with garbage bags taped to the remaining panelsDid this help you?
- 5Calling a contractor or handyman to seal up the openingDid this help you?
- 6Cutting through the exterior stucco with a grinder or sawzall to access the pipe from the outsideDid this help you?
- 7Trying to access and attack the pipe from the inside through kitchen cabinets and a lazy SusanDid this help you?
- 8Adding more hose clampsDid this help you?
- 9Cutting a hole in the cabinet yourself to save on plumber labor costsDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I recently bought a house and discovered that the previous owners’ Rottweiler apparently chewed the exterior A/C condensate drain pipe off almost completely flush with the exterior wall.”source ↗
“The remaining PVC is recessed enough that there doesn’t seem to be enough sticking out to simply glue on a normal coupling.”source ↗
“I had similar problem with a chewed pvc pipe last year and used a dremel with sanding drum to widen the inside just a tiny bit, then primed and glued a smaller fitting inside.”source ↗
“It’s on a slab, I would have loved for there to have been a crawl space”source ↗
“Kind of a bitch of a spot, I’d blow open the stucco and chase that crack.”source ↗
“Of course the back one is leaking behind the wall.”source ↗
“I'm a weekend warrior type of diyer so this looks like some bullshit I probably don't want to deal with.”source ↗
“To access the piping, he cut a hole in the back of the storage panel and it exposed the insulation behind.”source ↗
“Is this okay to keep? I was going to cover up the hole with garbage bags taped up to the remaining panels, but am unsure if I'll need a permanent solution at some point.”source ↗
“Leaking behind the wall means that the primary connection to the drain stack or main drain line is likely busted.”source ↗