Frank Stadnyk shows the bathtub tool he invented that he hopes will become a commonplace tool item. (Keith Lacey photo)
An Osoyoos motel manager is confident a bathroom tool he has invented will become as commonplace in toolboxes around the world as hammers, hacksaws and screwdrivers.
Frank Stadnyk and his wife Cindy, who are originally from Moose Jaw, Sask., have been managing the Poplars Motel on Cottonwood Drive in Osoyoos for the past 19 years.
When you’re in the hotel and motel business, a common problem is bathtub drains become clogged, said Stadnyk.
More than four years ago, he called in a local plumber from Osoyoos to help unclog a bathtub drain.
“I was calling him over on a regular basis to come over and replace the tub drains … and realized one day that if the tool he was using didn’t fit perfectly into the star at the bottom of the drain, it would break and there would be quite a mess,” he said. “I did some research and realized there was no tool that would perfectly remove these drains.
“Eventually, my plumber friend would have to use a hacksaw, chisel and hammer to finally get the tub drain removed.”
Stadnyk asked the plumber if there were any other tools on the market that could more easily remove a tub drain and the plumber commented there was nothing he knew of anywhere.
So back in 2011, Stadnyk came up with the idea of developing a tool that would more easily remove tub drains.
“What happened was I took my idea to the owner of a mechanical shop in Penticton and told him what I wanted to try,” he said.
It took several attempts with various designs to come up with a final prototype that worked, said Stadnyk.
Eventually, the shop designed a two-and-three-quarter inch stainless steel, cone-shaped tool that, when attached to a half-inch ratchet, can burrow down inside a tub drain and easily remove the drain by rotating the ratchet counter clockwise.
“I used the tool to remove every tub drain in the hotel and it worked perfectly every time,” said Stadnyk.
Knowing he had come up with a good idea, Stadnyk applied for a professional patent back in 2011 and in the fall of 2014, the director of the U.S. Patent Trademark Office issued a patent that gives Stadnyk exclusive ownership and marketing rights for the device officially trademarked as a Tub Drain Remover for Canada, the United States and Mexico.
“As currently designed, the tool is good to use on about 20 drains,” he said. “My plan is to use forged steel in the future and then it would last a lifetime.”
Stadnyk has hired a Toronto-based company that specializes in selling new inventions and says there has been significant interest in his Tub Drain Remover.
“My plan is to sell the rights to the tool,” he said. “I’m waiting for the right offer or, as they say, an offer I can’t refuse.
“I honestly believe this is a tool that every plumber in the world would want to own and I see no reason why every homeowner wouldn’t want to have one because it works so well.”
Stadnyk estimates he has spent close to $30,000 of his own money to develop, manufacture and get the patent for the Tub Drain Remover.
“There are currently four companies that are considering bids, according to the company I have hired in Toronto,” he said. “I’ve put a lot of time and work into this thing and I have proven it works, so I just have to be patient and wait for what I feel is a fair offer.”
The Tub Drain Remover works so well it takes less than 10 minutes to remove an old tub drain and replace it with a new one, he said.
“I can see the tool being needed in restaurants, hotels, hospitals … anywhere where drains regularly get clogged up,” he said. “I honestly believe this tool has the potential to get worldwide distribution. It works like a charm.”
Meanwhile, Stadnyk continues to use his spare time to dabble with other inventions.
“I’m working on two other tools at the moment,” he said. “One is a medical device that would help monitor insulin injections for people with diabetes and the other is another household device I’m just starting to work on.”
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
