Removing plumber’s epoxy

zvalve

Anyone know how to soften and remove plumber’s epoxy. I tried acetone and goof off but the epoxy is sill  hard as a rock

mattmia2

You probably will have to scrape it off with something like an old chisel or a knife,

EdTheHeaterMan

It ain’t coming off with chemistry.  Think of it as a rock or block of hardwood that’s part of whatever it is attached to.  Chisel or hand grinder or other mechanical abrasive. 

ChrisJ

If it's actually an epoxy I'd expect acetone (nail polish remover) to soften it.
You need to soak it in acetone using a wet rag or other means for a while.

Please read the precautions on using acetone, I'd recommend plenty of ventilation and fresh air.

SlamDunk

Channel locks and a good twist. My dad used a lot of it and is the only person I know who used it successfully. We're still finding that stuff.

Kickstand55

I had to chuckle when I read the title. Real Plumbers don't use epoxy putty or the black gooey spray that seals a boat hull, as seen on TV.
I would call it Hacks Putty or Homeowners quick fix to keep the Plumber away. The Husband puts it on and the Wife calls us Monday morning. Funny how that goes.

KC_Jones

If it's plumbers putty that stuff does get like a rock when it's old. Only thing I've had success with is mechanical removal, plastic scrappers etc. Most of the time I've encountered it was near finished surfaces so I try and avoid metal tools so I don't destroy any nearby finishes.

A lot of patience is required.

If it's actually some kind of epoxy....even more patience will be required.

Pictures of what you are doing would help identify what's going on.

zvalve

photo: tried to seal pinhole leak but didn’t turn water off and drain so fix failed. Notice many spots with corrosion further on down the line. Probably should replace with pex or what should I do since many potential pinhole leaks are forming. 

Larry Weingarten

Hi @zvalve , Looking at the pipe, I agree that replacing with PEX is a good way to go. I might use Uponor or a system that doesn't use insert fittings, so you maintain good flow. Do you have access to a water quality test? I'm curious about the water.

Yours, Larry

mattmia2

Normally I don't recommend sharkbites, but they would be a lot better than epoxy.

ChrisJ

mattmia2 said:

Normally I don't recommend sharkbites, but they would be a lot better than epoxy.

Speaking of sharkbites a while back a contractor posted on FB that he thought it was funny all the professionals do nothing but bad mouth sharkbites and yet the supply house he goes to sells tons and tons and no DIY or homeowners go there.

HomerJSmith

Try a heat gun and knife or scraper.

zvalve

mattmia2 why don’t you recommend shark bites? Don’t’ you have to solder a fitting to the copper pipe to use the Uponor fitting as well as the purchase of a $250 expansion tool?

PC7060

zvalve said:

mattmia2 why don’t you recommend shark bites? Don’t’ you have to solder a fitting to the copper pipe to use the Uponor fitting as well as the purchase of a $250 expansion tool?

I personally don’t believe shark bites rise to the level of a professional job except for quick one-off repairs.  In my experience most pros use ProPress type tools for these situation if they don’t want to solder. 

zvalve

PC7060 maybe so, I’m no pro but what do you recommend for a lowly DIYer  who can only afford $40 Harbor Freight tools?

ChrisJ

zvalve said:

PC7060 maybe so, I’m no pro but what do you recommend for a lowly DIYer  who can only afford $40 Harbor Freight tools?

Either learn to solder or sharkbites. It'll likely be fine as long as it's in a place that's accessible.
You need to do something and I'd try to get as much of that copper replaced as possible.

For what it's worth I consider my self pretty good at sweating pipe and I've found Uponor brass fittings to be less than easy to solder for whatever reason. I got the work done, and they were quality joints, but it wasn't as easy as normal fittings.

SlamDunk

ChrisJ said:

zvalve said:

PC7060 maybe so, I’m no pro but what do you recommend for a lowly DIYer  who can only afford $40 Harbor Freight tools?

Either learn to solder or sharkbites. It'll likely be fine as long as it's in a place that's accessible.
You need to do something and I'd try to get as much of that copper replaced as possible.

For what it's worth I consider my self pretty good at sweating pipe and I've found Uponor brass fittings to be less than easy to solder for whatever reason. I got the work done, and they were quality joints, but it wasn't as easy as normal fittings.

I agree. But my new experience with pro-press relegated sweating to "only if out of viega pro press fittings" and shark bites to "in case of emergency"

mattmia2

You can get a knockoff expansion tool for around $50. I would use soldered copper because it is by far the cheapest option, but there is also compression and flare.

DJD775

ChrisJ said:

zvalve said:

PC7060 maybe so, I’m no pro but what do you recommend for a lowly DIYer  who can only afford $40 Harbor Freight tools?

Either learn to solder or sharkbites. It'll likely be fine as long as it's in a place that's accessible.
You need to do something and I'd try to get as much of that copper replaced as possible.

For what it's worth I consider my self pretty good at sweating pipe and I've found Uponor brass fittings to be less than easy to solder for whatever reason. I got the work done, and they were quality joints, but it wasn't as easy as normal fittings.

@ChrisJ Were the Uponer fittings you were using lead free? If so they will not transfer heat as well as a normal brass fitting. Or maybe Uponor just uses an alloy that does not solder as well. Just a few thoughts.

ChrisJ

DJD775 said:

PC7060 maybe so, I’m no pro but what do you recommend for a lowly DIYer  who can only afford $40 Harbor Freight tools?

Either learn to solder or sharkbites. It'll likely be fine as long as it's in a place that's accessible. You need to do something and I'd try to get as much of that copper replaced as possible. For what it's worth I consider my self pretty good at sweating pipe and I've found Uponor brass fittings to be less than easy to solder for whatever reason. I got the work done, and they were quality joints, but it wasn't as easy as normal fittings.

@ChrisJ Were the Uponer fittings you were using lead free? If so they will not transfer heat as well as a normal brass fitting. Or maybe Uponor just uses an alloy that does not solder as well. Just a few thoughts.

They are lead free but so are all of the valves I've used for the past few years.  I think?

The Uponor ones seem different, like you need to be extra extra careful especially with cleaning.  I ended up using Bridgit solder and tinning flux on all of the lead free brass including the Uponor.

mattmia2

They are really heavy so they take a lot of heat. I switched to using npt-propex adapters npt copper adapters because I would rather be able to easily reuse or reconfigure the like $6 propex adapter. The propex fittings are so expensive that copper tube is usually cheaper overall.

delcrossv

N/A

ChrisJ

delcrossv said:

N/A

Naturally Aspirated?
Not Applicable?
North America?
Nurse Associate?
Noob Alert?

zvalve

I got pretty good at sweating fresh unused copper pipes with leaded solder but that was 20 years ago and when I recently tried to sweat some joints with pipe that held water I had a hard time getting the pipes dry and my joints failed or were cold soldered. I may have used lead free solder as well so I bailed with shark bites. Seems as if there is more of a learning curve with lead free solder and the pro press joining methods as opposed to shark bites. In any case thanks all for your input and help and found that heat and a razor blade scraper were the best tools for removing plumber’s epoxy

and don’t use the stuff to fix pinhole leaking pipes but an old piece of rubber garden hose and a hose clamp works in an emergency.

Instead, do the job right with sweating on new pipe, or shark bites with pex B or Uponor and pex A or pro press fittings. Didn’t realize there were so many new joining methods for copper pipe and that there was a pex A or B. I was old school and thought sweating joints with lead solder or barb fittings with hose clamps around polyethylene pipe was all there was. 

DJD775

If you can't keep the water out it's nearly impossible to properly solder the joint. Common trick is to stuff some white bread in the pipe prior to joint assembly. This trick usually buys you enough time to properly solder the joint.

ChrisJ

DJD775 said:

If you can't keep the water out it's nearly impossible to properly solder the joint. Common trick is to stuff some white bread in the pipe prior to joint assembly. This trick usually buys you enough time to properly solder the joint.

I also run the torch around the pipe before I flux it to cook any water or moisture out.

HomerJSmith

You can do a lot of cooking.

delcrossv

ChrisJ said:

delcrossv said:

N/A

Naturally Aspirated?
Not Applicable?
North America?
Nurse Associate?
Noob Alert?

I was going to say just solder in a new section, but thought better of it if he's getting pinholes. Pex would be a better bet here.😲
Since I needed a body to the post I put Not Applicable.

Erin Holohan Haskell

delcrossv said:

ChrisJ said:

delcrossv said:

N/A
Since I needed a body to the post I put Not Applicable.

@delcrossv in the future, you can just write Delete and I'll remove it. Thanks!

jumper

There are situations where epoxy is realistic solution. Beware of crappy epoxy.