previous thread - [forums.macresource.com]

(note: shower has proper orientation despite image above)

the "pinhole" leak at the bottom is more like a pinhole flood - this makes me wonder if i'd be better off replacing the joint than trying to patch it. i'm handy but have little experience with plumbing so i'd like the easiest solution.

I stopped by the hardware store prior to my updated info above and picked up some Pro Poxy 20 - [www.menards.com]

I'm not sure if its worth using.

any plumbers in the forum??

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/29/2012 08:52AM by mattkime.

I think Plumbking is the resident expert, but based on what I have done before I can say that you are probably looking at a couple hours of work given your experience level with soldering pipes. First thing you will need to figure out is where the shutoff for both hot and cold lines are outside the shower, then you will have to drain the water from the existing pipe as soldering a pipe full of water will take FOREVER.

Where exactly are the holes? Looks like just at the T-connector from what I can see. You might want to consider getting an actual mixing valve and discarding the two old valves.

one problem that might not be obvious from the image is that the shower head pipe is poorly supported. moving the shower head transmits stress all the way down to the junction with the faucets.

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"the "pinhole" leak at the bottom" ???????

Bottom of what? Poor picture. How old is this plumbing? If its old (think decades) it may well need to be replaced; especially if you have bad water. Yes, it is possible that a poor quality pipe was used but I think that would be unlikely. If a pinhole leak has presented in one place, I'd expect others to be waiting until you put the tools away before they present.

As already mentioned, you probably have some soldering ahead of you. Drain all pipes you need to heat up, dry fit all connections first, make sure all connections are shiny bright, use the appropriate flux and solder and finally, work from the bottom up (heat rises).

Is the rag on the knob on the right there to stop a leak from after the valve or before it ? Or from the valve itself ? Simply cutting the pipe and screwing on a flexible hand shower gizmo may do the trick much more easily.. those glue on fitting thingy will allow you to avoid soldering (getting a torch, fire in an enclosed fiberglass enclosure, etc..)

Ed: Because using a torch on a fiberglass surface like that I GUARANTEE you will start a nice smoldery chemical fire unless you are very thorough about taping a fire blanket behind the pipe.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/29/2012 10:05AM by cbelt3.

if soldering is involved then i'll need to look into hiring a plumber. i need to draw the line somewhere - this is my place of employment.

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mattkime


the "pinhole" leak at the bottom is more like a pinhole flood - this makes me wonder if i'd be better off replacing the joint than trying to patch it.

So is it leaking at a solder joint or is it a pinhole leak in the middle of the pipe ?

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its at the joint. its difficult to say how old the shower is but i doubt it more than a couple of years.

Since it is a joint and not supported well then it has likely broken the solder joint. If you have access to a torch it might be as easy as reheating the joint and flowing some fresh solder in. A real plumber (you out there PlumbKing?) would probably advise unsoldering the whole thing and cleaning up the old joint with emery cloth and the reflux and fresh solder. I'm assuming you do not want to do this - so reflow is a good attempt at a fix. If you do try it you will need to heat shield the fiberglass surround.

Option 2 for a DIY fix would be to cut out the old section and using a SharkBite type connector to join the two ends.

SharkBite (push on connector) [www.homedepot.com]

Mini Cutter [www.google.com]

Whatever you do it would be wise to add some blocking and a pipe strap behind that joint to support it better.

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That is the ugliest piece of @#$%& I have seen in a long time. I guarantee you it was not originally done by a plumber.

Assuming it only leaks when the valves are on:

1) Do nothing. Just additional water going down the drain.
2) Split rubber hose and pipe clamp. Fast easy and cheap.
3) DO NOT attempt to solder that joint. It needs to be replaced. That is why it leaks in the first place.

I'm sorry I just looked at that picture again. There are some many things wrong. Do yourself a favor and walk away.

replace those gate valves with ball valves while you're at it.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/29/2012 11:36AM by Bill in NC.

If it's leaking at the joint I'd hazard a guess that the joint was improperly soldered in the first place. It would be quite tricky to solder that joint properly without burning the fiberglass shower wall, even with a decent heat shield, so it's likely that the person doing the original soldering didn't get the joint hot enough. It was really a dumb move to make the plumbing run on the outside of the shower wall for this reason. I think you'll have the same problem if you try to have the joint resoldered, and a plumber may look at it and tell you that he won't work on it in that configuration.

Your best bet is probably to get a few plumbing repair clamps like this [www.pipemanproducts.com] and see if you can get the clamps over the leaks. Be wary though, those joint are probably very badly joined so you might break them completely when tightening the clamps.

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"So be proud to be a decent American instead of just a w'anker whipping up fear!" - Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland

......any PLUMBERS....with PLUMBERS crack.....sold separately.......???

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____________________________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!

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Plumbking
That is the ugliest piece of @#$%& I have seen in a long time. I guarantee you it was not originally done by a plumber.

Assuming it only leaks when the valves are on:

1) Do nothing. Just additional water going down the drain.
2) Split rubber hose and pipe clamp. Fast easy and cheap.
3) DO NOT attempt to solder that joint. It needs to be replaced. That is why it leaks in the first place.

I'm sorry I just looked at that picture again. There are some many things wrong. Do yourself a favor and walk away.

LOL

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Plumbking

2) Split rubber hose and pipe clamp. Fast easy and cheap.

Good application for all those old bicycle inner tubes you didn't know what to do with.

Return the Pro-Poxy unopened if possible.

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Black

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Plumbking

2) Split rubber hose and pipe clamp. Fast easy and cheap.

Good application for all those old bicycle inner tubes you didn't know what to do with.

Return the Pro-Poxy unopened if possible.

yup, thats my current plan of action.

the drips aren't a problem if their distance is decreased. i think i'm going to use a bike tube and some zip ties to hold it in place. hm, maybe i'll get around to the pipe clamps.

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mattkime

Quote
Black

Quote
Plumbking

2) Split rubber hose and pipe clamp. Fast easy and cheap.

Good application for all those old bicycle inner tubes you didn't know what to do with.

Return the Pro-Poxy unopened if possible.

yup, thats my current plan of action.

the drips aren't a problem if their distance is decreased. i think i'm going to use a bike tube and some zip ties to hold it in place. hm, maybe i'll get around to the pipe clamps.

Hose clamps. Would go with 1.5" or so. Zip ties will just plain not work.

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....so taking a LEAK....outside....??

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____________________________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!

Please post pictures of your repair with inner tubes and zip ties.

This will go viral in the plumbing community.

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Plumbking
Please post pictures of your repair with inner tubes and zip ties.

This will go viral in the plumbing community.

now that you told him, of course he won't do it, or at least he won't post pictures. Yous should have lured him in about 2-3 weeks with a follow up and ask for suggest some pics

Rescue tape.

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That's a lot of pesto.

apparently if i touch the thing i become every bit the fool as the guy that built it.

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mattkime
apparently if i touch the thing i become every bit the fool as the guy that built it.

Ding ding ding ding !!!!!!!

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MR/F Guestmap: [www.mapservices.org]

I think it would be interesting to see how much more of a kludge this could become. You goal is now to make it onto [www.thereifixedit.com]