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Beer
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Oh dear god, BEES!
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The 1960s
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Marko Haavisto & Poutahaukat
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Index »
Radio Paradise/General »
General Discussion »
Home repair, maintenance, and other headaches
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Page: 1, 2, 3 ... 11, 12, 13 Next |
pigtail
Location: Southern California Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 3:53pm |
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cc_rider wrote: Sounds like a real weirdo.
c.
Or at least a lil OCD.....perhaps that is why it appeals to me
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cc_rider
Location: Bastrop Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 2:29pm |
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islander wrote: cc_rider wrote: See what happens when you take advice from perfect strange... err, 'trusted sources'?
c.
He liked Neil Young and the Velvet Underground... Shenanigans! Sounds like a real weirdo. c.
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islander
Location: West coast somewhere Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 2:15pm |
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cc_rider wrote: See what happens when you take advice from perfect strange... err, 'trusted sources'?
c.
He liked Neil Young and the Velvet Underground... Shenanigans!
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cc_rider
Location: Bastrop Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 2:08pm |
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islander wrote: cc_rider wrote: Yeouch, that sounds painful.
Copper is susceptible to the minerals (ions) in hard water, it's a big problem in Austin where the bedrock is limestone. East of Austin where we are now, the water is very alkaline, and causes other issues, particularly on fixtures.
PEX is good stuff. A quick Wiki read says it's high-density polyethylene, with cross-links to make it a thermoset (does not melt). Normally HDPE is a thermoplastic (melts), like milk jugs and such. HDPE was first cross-linked in the 30's, using radiation (!?), far too expensive for widespread use.
The hot new(ish) plumbing design is a 'home run' system, with a central manifold and individual lines going to each fixture. Besides saving some water on the hot side (less piping to heat up), it greatly reduces the number of connections, i.e. failure points. Also the tubing itself is cheap, but the fittings are $$. You may have a lot more actual pipe length, but less overall cost. You can even use the manifold like a circuit breaker, to turn off the water to individual fixtures for repairs or whatever. Pretty slick. c. Some nutjob turned me on to that idea years ago when we did our house. This is before it was cleaned up and then sealed in the wall: "> See what happens when you take advice from perfect strange... err, 'trusted sources'? c.
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islander
Location: West coast somewhere Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 1:42pm |
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cc_rider wrote: Yeouch, that sounds painful.
Copper is susceptible to the minerals (ions) in hard water, it's a big problem in Austin where the bedrock is limestone. East of Austin where we are now, the water is very alkaline, and causes other issues, particularly on fixtures.
PEX is good stuff. A quick Wiki read says it's high-density polyethylene, with cross-links to make it a thermoset (does not melt). Normally HDPE is a thermoplastic (melts), like milk jugs and such. HDPE was first cross-linked in the 30's, using radiation (!?), far too expensive for widespread use.
The hot new(ish) plumbing design is a 'home run' system, with a central manifold and individual lines going to each fixture. Besides saving some water on the hot side (less piping to heat up), it greatly reduces the number of connections, i.e. failure points. Also the tubing itself is cheap, but the fittings are $$. You may have a lot more actual pipe length, but less overall cost. You can even use the manifold like a circuit breaker, to turn off the water to individual fixtures for repairs or whatever. Pretty slick. c.
Some nutjob turned me on to that idea years ago when we did our house. This is before it was cleaned up and then sealed in the wall: ">
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ScottFromWyoming
Location: Powell Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 11:34am |
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cc_rider wrote: Yeouch, that sounds painful.
Copper is susceptible to the minerals (ions) in hard water,
Also, putting it in contact with concrete will corrode it too, right?
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pigtail
Location: Southern California Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 11:00am |
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cc_rider wrote: Yeouch, that sounds painful.
Copper is susceptible to the minerals (ions) in hard water, it's a big problem in Austin where the bedrock is limestone. East of Austin where we are now, the water is very alkaline, and causes other issues, particularly on fixtures.
PEX is good stuff. A quick Wiki read says it's high-density polyethylene, with cross-links to make it a thermoset (does not melt). Normally HDPE is a thermoplastic (melts), like milk jugs and such. HDPE was first cross-linked in the 30's, using radiation (!?), far too expensive for widespread use.
The hot new(ish) plumbing design is a 'home run' system, with a central manifold and individual lines going to each fixture. Besides saving some water on the hot side (less piping to heat up), it greatly reduces the number of connections, i.e. failure points. Also the tubing itself is cheap, but the fittings are $$. You may have a lot more actual pipe length, but less overall cost. You can even use the manifold like a circuit breaker, to turn off the water to individual fixtures for repairs or whatever. Pretty slick. c.
yeah I guess its the hot new thing for mobile homes and RVS too. Much better than that old crap that you could actually taste in the past.
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cc_rider
Location: Bastrop Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 10:29am |
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pigtail wrote: Our cracker box, built in 1994 had 3 leaks in the last 24 years. Leaks in the walls, under sinks, the slab. The last was an actual slab leak that nearly sank our entire front yard before we discovered it. The most extensive and expensive since our home owner insurance would not cover a slab leak. Finally we had to repipe the entire house. Personally I feel that it should've been done after the first leak when the plumber wrote in his repair record that the copper was thin and not up to current building codes. I went round and round with the insurance but ended up paying out of pocket over 7k. At least now I know it will never happen again but it still hurts to think about. And yes, my point to this story is pex was the winner and has served us well thus far.
Yeouch, that sounds painful. Copper is susceptible to the minerals (ions) in hard water, it's a big problem in Austin where the bedrock is limestone. East of Austin where we are now, the water is very alkaline, and causes other issues, particularly on fixtures. PEX is good stuff. A quick Wiki read says it's high-density polyethylene, with cross-links to make it a thermoset (does not melt). Normally HDPE is a thermoplastic (melts), like milk jugs and such. HDPE was first cross-linked in the 30's, using radiation (!?), far too expensive for widespread use. The hot new(ish) plumbing design is a 'home run' system, with a central manifold and individual lines going to each fixture. Besides saving some water on the hot side (less piping to heat up), it greatly reduces the number of connections, i.e. failure points. Also the tubing itself is cheap, but the fittings are $$. You may have a lot more actual pipe length, but less overall cost. You can even use the manifold like a circuit breaker, to turn off the water to individual fixtures for repairs or whatever. Pretty slick. c.
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pigtail
Location: Southern California Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 10:04am |
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islander wrote: Remember to support pex better than copper. I did at least every 2 feet. Because it flexes more, it is susceptible to water hammer, and other nuisance movements.
Our cracker box, built in 1994 had 3 leaks in the last 24 years. Leaks in the walls, under sinks, the slab. The last was an actual slab leak that nearly sank our entire front yard before we discovered it. The most extensive and expensive since our home owner insurance would not cover a slab leak. Finally we had to repipe the entire house. Personally I feel that it should've been done after the first leak when the plumber wrote in his repair record that the copper was thin and not up to current building codes. I went round and round with the insurance but ended up paying out of pocket over 7k. At least now I know it will never happen again but it still hurts to think about. And yes, my point to this story is pex was the winner and has served us well thus far.
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islander
Location: West coast somewhere Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 8:06am |
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cc_rider wrote: You can solder it, and it'll stop leaking for a little while. But it's better to replace the whole section if possible, or at least cut the leaky bit out and solder in a sleeve.
If it's in a fairly long length of pipe, I would consider replacing it with a length of PEX. The stuff is cheap, and with Sharkbites it's easy to work with.
Otherwise you're looking at ongoing problems, and eventually a $100-200 repair bill.
Good luck! c.
Remember to support pex better than copper. I did at least every 2 feet. Because it flexes more, it is susceptible to water hammer, and other nuisance movements.
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cc_rider
Location: Bastrop Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 7:17am |
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buzz wrote: I used a stretchy repair tape and it seems to be holding. can I solder a hole like this?
You can solder it, and it'll stop leaking for a little while. But it's better to replace the whole section if possible, or at least cut the leaky bit out and solder in a sleeve. If it's in a fairly long length of pipe, I would consider replacing it with a length of PEX. The stuff is cheap, and with Sharkbites it's easy to work with. Otherwise you're looking at ongoing problems, and eventually a $100-200 repair bill. Good luck! c.
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ptooey
Location: right behind you. no, over there. Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 7:16am |
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buzz wrote: I used a stretchy repair tape and it seems to be holding. can I solder a hole like this?
If you can do sweat fittings, you'd be better off to cut out the section with the hole in it and put a coupler in there. Edit: Those shark bite things really do work well, if you're not feeling like taking your chances with a torch.
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buzz
Location: up the boohai
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 7:06am |
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cc_rider wrote: Yep. Copper isn't as corrosion-resistant as you would think, especially if the water supply isn't great. If you can move the pipes enough, those push-on 'Sharkbite' connectors work well. I just used a couple on some PEX but they work on copper too. Expensive, but for a little repair like that, way cheaper than a plumber.
c.
I used a stretchy repair tape and it seems to be holding. can I solder a hole like this?
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ScottFromWyoming
Location: Powell Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 7:06am |
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cc_rider wrote: Yep. Copper isn't as corrosion-resistant as you would think, especially if the water supply isn't great. If you can move the pipes enough, those push-on 'Sharkbite' connectors work well. I just used a couple on some PEX but they work on copper too. Expensive, but for a little repair like that, way cheaper than a plumber.
c.
Sharkbites seem really dodgy but I've never managed to screw one up. They're rated as being okay to put inside walls, so that sort of means something.
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cc_rider
Location: Bastrop Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 7:03am |
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Coaxial wrote: The corrosion inside the pipe finally made its way through.
Yep. Copper isn't as corrosion-resistant as you would think, especially if the water supply isn't great. If you can move the pipes enough, those push-on 'Sharkbite' connectors work well. I just used a couple on some PEX but they work on copper too. Expensive, but for a little repair like that, way cheaper than a plumber. c.
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buzz
Location: up the boohai
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 7:02am |
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Coaxial wrote: The corrosion inside the pipe finally made its way through.
please make it stop. I aint got time for this.
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Coaxial
Location: Comfortably numb in So Texas Gender:
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 6:59am |
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buzz wrote:How does one get a pinhole leak in a copper pipe without having poked said pipe with a pin?
The corrosion inside the pipe finally made its way through.
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buzz
Location: up the boohai
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Posted:
Oct 2, 2018 - 6:43am |
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How does one get a pinhole leak in a copper pipe without having poked said pipe with a pin?
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Alexandra
Location: PNW Gender:
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Posted:
Jul 14, 2018 - 9:03am |
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Red_Dragon wrote: Maybe a bit of fiberboard and some weatherstripping?
aha - great idea - thanks
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Red_Dragon
Location: Dumbf*ckistan
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Posted:
Jul 14, 2018 - 8:34am |
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Alexandra wrote:I have a small door in the upstairs hallway of my townhome that goes to a crawlspace. Management sometimes accesses it to get electrical work done for the neighboring unit. But this is the source of a LOT of heat seeping into my upstairs and making it impossible for my portable a/c to work efficiently (especially during this 90 degree weather). Is there anything better I could seal that up with besides heavy plastic and duct tape? There's a Home Depot right down the road - is there some square of insular material (just plain old foam rubber?) that would be even better, as well as a duct tape that won't destroy paint beneath it? Just wondering before I go do this today. Th anks. Maybe a bit of fiberboard and some weatherstripping?
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