# Dirty little copper repair



## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

Nothing fancy but I took pictures so I might as well post them up. This was in a hose bib line below a water heater stand/box. I found the leak with my Microexplorer from the garage side and then went outside to do the repair. Just a little 25 year old type M copper. 






















































Paul


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Question, do you repair the wall?


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## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

Tommy plumber said:


> Question, do you repair the wall?


 
I repair it with plastic and staples/tape. I don't do stucco, drywall, paint, etc. I explain this all to the customer beforehand and let them decide how they want me to tackle the repair. In this case, to do the repair from inside would have taken so much longer it was worth it to go through the stucco.






Paul


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## DUNBAR PLUMBING (Sep 11, 2008)

For the 1st time in a long time, I f'd up and my sawzall shot a knick into the opposite wall doing a shower valve replacement yesterday.


Told them as soon as it happened, told them I'd offer a money discount or come back and make the repair. All that happened was the paper tore on the drywall, nothing else.

They took the $20 discount off the bill. All was good.


Like rocksteady I purposely will not make repairs to walls/structure we tear apart, it's not our forte or specialty and they should know that. Says plumber on the side of the truck.


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## UnclogNH (Mar 28, 2009)

Paul, Those pictures look so odd to me with the lack of insulation in the walls compared to my area.


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## U666A (Dec 11, 2010)

Nice, clean work Paul :thumbsup:...

HO wanted old hosebibb reinstalled?


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## bartnc37 (Feb 24, 2009)

Don't you guys need a vac breaker on your hose bibs?


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## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

U666A said:


> Nice, clean work Paul :thumbsup:...
> 
> HO wanted old hosebibb reinstalled?


Yes, that's why the hose bib and crusty ball valve were re-used. The ball valve is much newer than it looks and works fine but I'd have rather replaced it to make it look better. I know it's only another $30 or so but she was pinching those pennies hard.



bartnc37 said:


> Don't you guys need a vac breaker on your hose bibs?


Yeah, we need them. :blink:








Paul


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## DUNBAR PLUMBING (Sep 11, 2008)

rocksteady said:


> Yes, that's why the hose bib and crusty ball valve were re-used. The ball valve is much newer than it looks and works fine but I'd have rather replaced it to make it look better.



Muriatic acid in a spray bottle, small wire bristle brush, safety glasses and have a spray bottle of water to dilute the acid and that valve will look brand new in a minute.

It'll have a red sheen to it but it'll look better than rust.


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)

How long tell that PVC male snaps? Good job security I guess:laughing:


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Is the 3/4" pvc the service for the house? If it's the service, I'm curious why the line reduces to 1/2". Or is the 3/4" pvc a sprinkler feed coming from the house?

If the pvc is a service, then it's like south Florida, the services are outside of the buildings. We rarely get freezing tempertures down here.


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## Epox (Sep 19, 2010)

New work or full blown inspected remods require vac brkrs. Otherwise they don't give a rip.


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## plumb nutz (Jan 28, 2011)

Really? Way I was taught if its required by code, like a vacuum breaker, and ones not there I'm legally bound to put one on to bring it up to code, even if I'm just replacing a washer.
Code being short for codified law...


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## Epox (Sep 19, 2010)

Agrees, but here at least they don't chase us around to see if we installed a vac breaker cill cock. Whats odd to me is only one our suppliers started offering cillcocks with VBs built on them. We have 4 suppliers here including fergisons, and Winnelson and neither of them offer it. Before now we would have to buy the VB attachment seperatly if we wanted one.


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## no drip (May 31, 2009)

I would have put a new ball valve in and a new hose bib.:whistling2:


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## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

no drip said:


> I would have put a new ball valve in and a new hose bib.:whistling2:


 


rocksteady said:


> Yes, that's why the hose bib and crusty ball valve were re-used. The ball valve is much newer than it looks and works fine but I'd have rather replaced it to make it look better. I know it's only another $30 or so but she was pinching those pennies hard.
> 
> 
> 
> Paul


I would have liked to but I already heard about how expensive I was. A buddy of mine has worked at this house after I did this repair and she still complains about the $325 I charged to do this AND install a new prv. I don't think I also need to doneate material. :no:

Tommy - this is a line leaving the house under the water heater stand. It feeds a few automatic sprinker valves.






Paul


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## hroark2112 (Apr 16, 2011)

Any time someone complains about pricing, I tell them I'm not United Way, I'm not a non-profit organization!

I only "donate" parts if I'm donating the job.


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

What caused the leak?


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## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

Protech said:


> What caused the leak?


Time, turbulence and type M copper. The house is about 25 years old, the copper is thin and this was just after an elbow feeding the irrigation. The buddy of mine I mentioned earlier, that has been to the house after this repair, has already repaired 3 pin holes in the water service. I think he replaced 10-15 feet of copper and she was, of course, unhappy with the price. The house needs a repipe. With vaulted ceilings and no crawl space it wouldn't be easy or cheap but I don't have to worry about it since she'll never agree to the price.












Paul


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

If turbulence was the cause, what caused the leaks on the water service?

Are you SURE it's not aggressive water and/or flux corrosion?


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## rocksteady (Oct 8, 2008)

It probably has something to do with semi-aggressive water but it falls right in line with what's expected in this area. Our water is hard (22-25 gpg) but not acidic. It doesn't matter if it's buried or not, type M copper will not last 30 years here. I didn't see the water service leaks but I think 2 of the 3 were on the vertical riser, just below the main shut off. The third one was on the horizontal. If that's actually the case, that makes 3 of 4 that could have been caused in part by turbulence. Either way, she's in for some more pin hole leaks inside the house soon. 






Paul


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## rvaughnp (Nov 19, 2009)

just a comment for future readers. 
vac breakers are required regardless of who might be looking or watching. Its code to stop the backflow of potential hazardous water like a hose lying on the ground while watering a tree after the yard got fertilized and ant killer spread around. At the same time the main gets shut off for any reason and they bleed that main down causing a back siphonage to occur causing that splendid tasting chemical mixture to get sucked up into the house passed a tee where someone’s child will take a drink out of a faucet each night before bed, and drinks from said faucet after the water is turned back on. But what are the chances of all that happening?
Go put a vac brkr on the next time you’re in the area... for free.


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