A plug in

sanitation Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation systems ...

is an object that is used to close a

drainage Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of a surface's water and sub-surface water from an area with excess of water. The internal drainage of most agricultural soils is good enough to prevent severe waterlogging (anaerobic conditio ...

outlet firmly. The insertion of a plug into a drainage outlet allows the container to be filled with water or other fluids. In contrast to screw on caps, plugs are pushed into the hole and are not put over the hole. Plugs are most commonly encountered in the bathroom or kitchen, for use in

bathtub A bathtub, also known simply as a bath or tub, is a container for holding water in which a person or animal may bathe. Most modern bathtubs are made of thermoformed acrylic, porcelain-enameled steel or cast iron, or fiberglass-reinforced poly ...

wash basin A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture for washing hands, dishwashing, and other purposes. Sinks have Tap (valve), a tap (faucet) that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing. They also include ...

s or

sink A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture for washing hands, dishwashing, and other purposes. Sinks have a tap (faucet) that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing. They also include a drain to ...

Traditional plugs

Typically plugs are made from a soft material, such as

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...

, or have a soft outer rim, so that they can be fitted to holes slightly smaller than their diameter; this ensures a tight seal. They are often connected by a ball chain which ensures the plug may be pulled from the drain with relative ease.

Pop-up plugs

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Some modern plugholes dispense with the need for a separate plug, having instead a built-in 'pop-up plug' operated by a handle on the sink, that can move up or down to open or close the plughole.

Traditional plugs

Pop-up plugs

See also