Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

[GQuigley67]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

If you need to replace a gasket on a boiler, say around the burner, cos the old one disentegrates once removed (which happens) and your supplier wont have them for a day or 2 go to your nearest garage/car workshop and buy a sheet of gasket fibre and make your own using the old one as a template. It does the same job! Same applies to oil fire burner gaskets.

have done this type of thing before on plumbing, wouldnt entertain it though on boilers

 

[stevie t]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

have done this type of thing before on plumbing, wouldnt entertain it though on boilers

I got this tip off a htg engr a few years back, I know of others who have done the same over time, just make sure the depth of the gasket is enough to ensure its tightness.

 

[WHPES]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Never try and use a brass olive reducing set in an Oventrop TRV or lockshield as the fittings aren't deep enough to accomodate them. Use a copper reducing solder fitting instead.

 

[WHPES]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Pipe splicers are handy for cutting copper pipe however if theres water in the pipework theres no going back. Alternatively a hacksaw slightly cuts into the pipe at first. When in doubt use a hacksaw!

Even better drill a small hole in it and if its still full screw a self tapping screw in wrapped with PTFE to stop the water.

 

[stevie t]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Nice one. As we live we learn

 

[tweakyboy]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Or just put a small slice in the pipe with a hacksaw and if there is still water in it wrap some insulation tape around the pipe. Saves fiddling about with a screw and no doubt you will end up loosing it in the insulation!

 

[WHPES]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Quick fix for a perforated pipe - jubilee clip and a square of car innertube. For some houses round here with private water supplies (the water can be quite corrosive) you find pipe covered with such repairs.

 

[Phil]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Flimsy bath panels?

You know when fitting a bath panel you ALWAYS need to slice 20mm off one end to get it in and it leaves one end mis shapen and flaping about?

What I did today on a micron thin Homebase bath panel (slightly curved) was silicone the cut off back on the end of the panel.(front face of cut off glued to back of panel) This gives you the shape and strength back on that side, and a return.

You'll have to give yourself say 2 - 3 hours for the Dow Corning to set so glue it early in the day but apart from that it worked a treat.

 

[REDSAW]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

for gluing up bath panels, invest in a set of acrylic superglue sold at your local pvc merchant for around £8.
sets in 15 seconds.

 

[WaterTight]

re: Hints, tips & secrets of plumbing - No Banter please!

Pipe splicers are handy for cutting copper pipe however if theres water in the pipework theres no going back. Alternatively a hacksaw slightly cuts into the pipe at first. When in doubt use a hacksaw!

Even better drill a small hole in it and if its still full screw a self tapping screw in wrapped with PTFE to stop the water.

Or just put a small slice in the pipe with a hacksaw and if there is still water in it wrap some insulation tape around the pipe. Saves fiddling about with a screw and no doubt you will end up loosing it in the insulation!

If worried about whether there's water in a 15mm pipe - especially during freezing it - best thing is to put on a a self-cutting isolation valve.



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