Since my Jenn-Air was about 5 years old, every few years I have to clean permagum out of the freezer drain below the evaporator. The permagum is now completely gone from around the "bulb" in the freon line where it originally was.

I can buy new permagum and put it around the same area, but I have a couple of questions:

1. The original permagum had a clear plastic film around it. This looked like it was meant to keep the permagum "contained," but it obviously failed. It was open at the bottom and there was no way to close it back up. Does permagum usually require some kind of plastic film to prevent it from disintegrating and falling down into the drain?

2. What is to prevent this from happening again? Will the permagum start to disintegrate with the freeze/thaw cycle and end up back in the drain?

3. An HVAC person recommended wrapping the area with cork tape. Would this be a viable alternative to the permagum? Or would it, too, eventually disintegrate into the drain?

Thanks in advance!