Slow leak at joint (picture)

BQ1001

Slow drip (every 2-3 min). Should I have the whole thing cut out and replaced.

Left pipe is main, Rt to single outside spigot, middle to house.

Any advice appreciated.

jonny88

drip

easiest fix would be to cut left and right side.heat of bull of tee where drip is clean and reassemble with new clean fittings,good luck.remember to drain water first...

bob young

LEAK

CALL A LIC. PLUMBER.

ChrisJ

Comment

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bob young

LEAK

So chris, you would prefer i walk a do-it-yourselfer through a repair procedure cutting out & condemning existing pipe & fittings & replacing with new & possibly  burning down his house using a torch.  no thanx. some jobs should be done by a pro. thats the way it is. i  have always given solid advice when its appropriate but i also am aware of liability issues. are you ?  at one time this was strictly a forum for professionals , that has evolved,  for better or worse. which are you,  a tradesman or a handyman ?  bob nyc lic. plbr. 

Unknown

Bob is tolally

Bob is totally correct about calling a licensed plumber to do the job properly... there are many on this forums I won't even help due to the risks involved.

ChrisJ

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Rich_49

Chris

Advice was asked for and advice was given (sound advice at that) . What would possess you to make an adversarial comment about another's opinion ? Best off just giving your advice and calling it a day . Unless of course the advice given endangered the OP or his property .  Just my .02 . By the way OP , call a licensed plumber !

ChrisJ

Perhaps

you're right Rich.



I was just surprised to see such a post on this forum. Maybe I need to venture out of the steam area more often.



Bob, please accept my apologies.

bob young

COPPER REPAIR

Chris, apology accepted. that was a simple i hour repair job. start to finish. shut water ,drain,cut out, repipe , solder,restore water service,test. submit invoice, go to next job.   alternate scenario for a amatuer that has not mastered pipefitting & soldering. all day torturous  job, water still off, call plumber to cut out mistakes & do job over. to each his own. if you gotta ask how to attack a little simple job like that , yeah, you should probably leave it to an expert.....if you value your property ,that is . case closed. sometimes a little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing. i respect my craft very seriously.

Talldutch

slow leak

I would advise a licensed plumber for this    the ability to solder in tight quarters is something that is learned   an older home can go up in smoke very easily and embers can last for hours before they ignite

icesailor

Leaks:

Whomever installed those fittings in the first place was a hackaroo. If they had held the pipe riser or squeezed the tube, it wouldn't have moved. If the joints had been wiped with a rag, the installer would have known that the fitting either wasn't soldered properly of it moved. More likely, it wasn't completely heated enough for a proper solder job.

The Hackaroo probably heated the joints from the "tee" and then did the St. 90 last. Using a rag would have shown that the last fitting to be soldered, the bottom of the Street Ell wouldn't be hot.  Or, if it moves. A leak. When you pull it apart, if the end of the tube isn't completely soldered, it wasn't hot enough. If it is completely soldered but part of the solder is a dull grey, it moved.

So many "plumbers" today use a Bernzomatic Blow Torch that burns the wall 12" away. A Air/Acetylene "Prestolite" type with a #3 tip always gets the fitting just right and you can reach behind it with the tip of the flame. I always am extra careful when I use my Blow Torch because it is so hard to feel when the back side of the fittings that you can't reach.

And pasting both the pipe and fittings goes a long way. It almost looks like it leaked and someone red" the pipe to stop the leak.



Seen that before. There's the right way. And the "other" way.

bob young

LEAK

Sailorman, in the time it took for you to explain the ins & outs of sweating joints, i could have repiped the whole house. plumbing should actually done by plumbers . its not a hobby .the p[lumber protects the health of the nation. this a fact.

ChrisJ

Depends

A licensed plumber almost killed me and my family after telling me our boiler was properly serviced and venting properly. Luckily we have multiple CO detectors and when they all go off you know its not a false alarm.



Since then I have done all of my own work, with the appropriate permits and inspections by the town of course. I also own my own manometer now as well.



icesailor is a good man and often gives good advise and personally I always welcome his opinion.

Unknown

your licensed plumber

Wasn't a boiler man to begins with...

bill_105

The way I see it is...

With a thread that's 7 weeks old and the original guy hasn't been heard from, it's fixed:) But the drama continues.

ChrisJ

Oh yes

He most certainly was. He is a licensed plumbing and heating contractor.

In fact he claimed he specialized in steam heat and oil burner service.



I'm done with this thread, as Bill said its dead and the drama should end as well.



I wish all the best and happy holidays.

SWEI

Licensed or not

is a discussion worth having here IF we all agree to follow Rule #1.



Perhaps a new thread might be in order?

icesailor

Piping:

I've been a Licensed Massachusetts Journeyman Plumber since 1976 and a Licensed Massachusetts Master Plumber since 1974. I've soldered more than one pipe before.

What I wrote obviously wasn't for an experienced piper like you. It's for someone that might like a pointer or two.

My old Boss had a thing about Street fittings. They cost more than an ell. Only use a Street Ell when there was no other way. Plan your piping around not using them. Later I figured out (through experience) that there was another reason. It was easy to overheat and/or under heat a Street fitting and get a leak where that one is leaking.

Be careful making empirical statements about how fast you can pipe something. You might find out that you can't do something as fast as you think.

JohnNY

Elbows

There's no tee in that picture, for what it's worth.

ChrisJ

tee?

Looked like a 3/4 x 3/4 x 1/2 tee with a 3/4" street ell into it to me.

billtwocase

Chris is right

Tee with either a street 90, or a very short piece of pipe and a 90

icesailor

Tee's

We're all right that it is a tee.

Closer look might show it to be a 1" X 1" X 3/4" tee though. 1/2: has a much higher neck down.

If it's a 1" soldered tee though, it takes a little more finesse for the rookies to solder them properly.



A rag to wipe the grapes and snots off the soldered fitting will go a long way to tell you if you got it hot enough and looks right spiffy when done.

bill_105

The way I see it is this...

I think we all should fly into this guys town, be picked up, and go over and fix it. All expense paid Of course RFB!

Zman

Umm...

This guy is a "one post wonder" from 2 1/2 months ago

This problem was solved months ago with some sharkbites and a scrap piece of garden hose.

Maybe you guys should debate something more productive.

How about cheerios vs corn flakes?

Carl