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SJF
Junior Member
Joined: 28 Jul 2008
Posts: 8
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SJF
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Joined: 28 Jul 2008
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Hoovie
Devon DIYer
Joined: 27 Jul 2007
Posts: 8036
Location: East Devon
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 Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 12:13 pm Post subject: |
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You need to check if the leak is from the plastic joint or the copper solder joint.
The Solder joint looks a bit iffy to me and would be my main suspect.
I also wonder if there has been some solder allowed to run down the pipe and not cleaned up where the plastic fitting is 
BTW - nice pic of that drip - very arty 
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thescruff
Senior Member
Joined: 10 Mar 2008
Posts: 5665
Location: Bath
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 12:47 pm Post subject: |
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The O ring isn't sealing, Check the pipe is clean and free from solder and damage.
Did you cut the pipe with an hacksaw or cutters, as any burrs on the pipe will also damage the O ring.
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SJF
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Joined: 28 Jul 2008
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SJF
Junior Member
Joined: 28 Jul 2008
Posts: 8
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 12:53 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks thescruff (we cross-posted).
None of what you see is my own work - trust me, the leak would be MUCH worse if it was!
I'm not even sure I know how to take the pipe out of the O-ring. Closing the water supply off and draining the pipes as a first step, I know to do that (I think!). But after that my complete uselessness would come into play 
Last edited by SJF on Mon Jul 28, 2008 1:01 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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thescruff
Senior Member
Joined: 10 Mar 2008
Posts: 5665
Location: Bath
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 12:56 pm Post subject: |
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The joint is fine, the problem is with the Hep socket.
The Yorkshire fitting is an old type and the pipe maybe imperial, have you any ide of age
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SJF
Junior Member
Joined: 28 Jul 2008
Posts: 8
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 12:58 pm Post subject: |
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| The house was built c.1970 and I think it was the original bath until I had it replaced within the last year or two, so everything dates from either one of those two times.
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thescruff
Senior Member
Joined: 10 Mar 2008
Posts: 5665
Location: Bath
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 1:02 pm Post subject: |
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If you turn the water off and drain as much of the pipe as possible.
Undo the nut on the copper end and pull the fitting off, what you will have left is the nut and gripper ring which will not come off very easy, however you should be able to get at the O ring and inspect the pipe for damage.
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thescruff
Senior Member
Joined: 10 Mar 2008
Posts: 5665
Location: Bath
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 1:05 pm Post subject: |
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| SJF wrote: |
| The house was built c.1970 and I think it was the original bath until I had it replaced within the last year or two, so everything dates from either one of those two times. |
So that would be the problem ifs it's imperial pipe, push fit is no good.
It may be easier to cut the pipe back and replace using compression fittings.
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Steve the Gas
Senior Member
Joined: 30 May 2008
Posts: 795
Location: Notts/Derbys
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 4:41 am Post subject: |
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Hi SJF,
If you can reach try tightening the grey nut i.e. point B. If no luck then it is water off etc. as scruff says.
Regards
Steve
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SJF
Junior Member
Joined: 28 Jul 2008
Posts: 8
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 3:53 pm Post subject: |
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Well, to my utter amazement I have managed to fix it myself. With the help of you guys on here with regard to some basic understanding of the issues, and then with the help of an assistant at my local branch of a well-known DIY supplies chain, who basically gave me a complete solution to the problem for under a tenner 
After reading thescruff's suggestion of a compression joint, it seemed to me that that would be beyond me, especially in such a confined space. So I called a couple of plumbers but, getting answering machines, was only able to leave messages.
However, as one last gasp attempt at seeing if I could do it myself, I thought I'd take my photos (still viewable on my camera's LCD screen) down to the DIY supplies store and see if they had a plumbing expert. Meanwhile I had also noticed that to the left of the short segment of 22mm pipe (the old-looking bit with the dodgy-looking solder on it) there was a modern flexible pipe leading up to the tap (see new photo attached). I had started to wonder, why was that old bit of pipe in the middle even necessary?
Well the store did have an assistant that knew about plumbing. He looked at my photos, asked me to confirm the widths of the two bits of copper pipes because he couldn't be sure from my photos, and then gave me the following solution. It has worked - I've switched the water back on and the dripping has stopped!
1. Take out the old bit of pipe and the Hepworth joint / reducer. To take the Hepworth joint off the 15mm pipe (right-hand) end, I had to turn the grey ring. The man even had to explain to me (a complete ignoramus) that I'd have to turn it clockwise looking from my end, because to release is anti-clockwise if facing the relevant end. After the Hepworth reducer came off, there was still a plastic nut, a metal gripper and one or two other bits and bobs left on the 15mm pipe. The man told me this would happen and to remove them with a pair of pliers and then clean the pipe with wire wool or even just a kitchen scourer. Did all this.
To take the old bit of pipe out of the modern flexible section, the man told me to push the collar in and pull the pipe out. I found this too difficult with just fingers, but using the pliers to hold the collar pushed in did the trick.
2. Now here are the bits the man sold me, to replace the old 22mm pipe and Hepworth reducer. From left-to-right, this is how they were to fit together:
[Existing modern flexible section from tap]
22x15mm socket reducer
Short section of white plastic 15mm pipe, plus two 15mm pipe stiffeners, one inserted into each end of the pipe
15mm coupler
[Existing 15mm pipe to combi boiler]
I don't know if advertising is allowed on here so I'll just say everything here seemed to have the same brand, a 7-letter brand beginning with 'P', whose designers seem to have a penchant for white things.
The man at DIY store (it begins with 'B') told me that without a pipe cutter, my best bet for cutting the plastic pipe (they sold me a long section) to an appropriate length, without a pipe cutter but getting nice 'square' ends (call me stupid, but aren't the ends still circular?  ) would be a Stanley knife. In the event, however, I found that a hacksaw and then some sandpaper was better for this.
The man explained that I could assemble all of the components I'd bought together into one piece, BEFORE attempting to fit them under the bath. He also explained to me how I'd know when I'd pushed each component far enough into its adjacent component, using marks on the plastic pipe designed for this purpose.
When I got home, everything just pushed together - not only the components I'd bought, but after I'd assembled everyting, the reducer just pushed into the flexible segment leading to the tap, and the coupler just pushed onto the 15mm pipe leading to the boiler. I found I didn't have to push too hard and there is a satisfying definite 'stop' when you've pushed far enough. However, the main advantage for me of only having to push was that, in such an inaccessible location, I had been very concerned about whether I'd be able to use tools such as spanners. (I have to say in hindsight I think the most surprisingly useful tool in all of this was my little digital camera. I only bought it last year but as well as everything else I've used it for, it has certainly paid for itself again here.)
Someone on here is probably going to tell me that this is a cheap and nasty solution which will start leaking again before too long! But even if that's the case, what I have now is certainly better than what I had (because it's not leaking yet!), I've enjoyed the exercise, and hopefully gained the confidence to do things like this again.
Thanks again to all who replied, including Steve (I did try to tighten that nut a couple of times, but I couldn't get it to budge, and every time I tried, the frequency of the dripping just increased  )
Edit: converting this image to JPEG format seems to have broken up my blue lines and text a bit, but I think you can still just about see them OK.
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thescruff
Senior Member
Joined: 10 Mar 2008
Posts: 5665
Location: Bath
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 4:47 pm Post subject: |
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Excellent  so you have done away with the old imperial piece of pipe, and problem solved.
Did you have to Q long at the well know diy store
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Jaeger_S2k
Senior Member
Joined: 19 Nov 2006
Posts: 2786
Location: North West, England, United Kingdom
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 5:21 pm Post subject: |
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Nice work SJF, nothing to be ashamed of there.
The shame is on the ejit who fitted the bath in the first place.
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Jaeger.
"Does my bum look BIG in this?" Wit's a Ba' Hair in Metric? 
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EJJ150847
Senior Member
Joined: 04 Jan 2008
Posts: 1451
Location: Fareham, Hampshire
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 7:07 pm Post subject: |
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This is why this site exists, for idiots like us who sometimes have to call an expert to confirm our thoughts.
But in some cases all we get is 'TheScruff'
I'm now off to hide!
John
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Mebyon Kernow |
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