Any plumbers? Need a little advice..

[tflnemesis]

Hi,

Our toilet has developed a leak in the pipework leading to the cistern. Atm I have stripped out the toilet so I can get to the pipework and give everything a chance to dry out (we have a toilet outside so isn't an issue).

The problem I have is that whoever fitted the compression joint originally overtightened the joint and has deformed the pipe around where the olive sits. I have so far tried just nipping it up, replacing the olives and completely replacing the compression fitting all to no avail, the joints still seep, a vast improvement on the original but still not watertight.

The pipes are very close to the floor so I have limited choices about re-piping it, without ripping up the floorboards, which will mean taking out the partition wall between the bathroom and toilet as the joists run the wrong way for me to be able to cut the boards and secure em back again.

I have a feeling that I need to get soldered joints in, but the soldered joints aren't big enough to take the place of the compression joint, so I will need to extend the pipes using small pieces of pipe and joiners.

The circled parts are where i have seepage.
Is this going to be possible? What issues will I have with so many joints being so close together?
Is there any way I could repair the compression joint without resorting to soldering? I have tried some ptfe tape around the olives and that improved it but not by much and I don't trust the ptfe repair.
The measurements in the drawing are of how much pipe is showing once the compression joint is removed. This all 15mm copper piping btw.

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

Plumb centre used to do a mandrel to push, tap down the deformed pipe and make it round again.
I only saw it Plumb Centre, but I guess others may of made it.

There is a host of sealants, other than PTFE to seal a weeping joint. I a pinch I used a 15g tube of sealant, what I got from a plumbers merchant until I was able to do a permanent fix. I am still planning on doing it, it only bean 6 years.

pop along and seek their advise.

 

[mike os]

ptfe paste... dry and apply to the outside of the olive generously and reassemble

 

[Wedg1e]

It's always difficult working with short bits... I'd be tempted to rejig it as shown but that depends how much clearance you have above the original T-piece... might give you a bit more ease to 'spring' the bits into place.

You should be able to solder that close to wall and floor as long as you use a couple of heat mats (mine are slit so they can be fitted around a pipe protruding from a wall).

 

[eSCHEn]

^^^^ what the wedgemeister said.

 

[tflnemesis]

Thanks for the replies, Wedg1e's solution seems the best way of solving it so far, I am going to have a run out to my local plumb centre first as advised by mr Vark see what they might suggest, but if their suggestion seems like a snake oil cure I will go with Wedg1e's solution.

 

[eSCHEn]

Have you got heat mats? If not then grab one or two from the merchants. That'll help reduce collateral damage

 

[123hotchef]

also if space is tight get the solder ring fittings then u aint gotta squeeze solder in there too

 

[dobbslc]

Also make sure the bottom vertical pipe is dry before you start otherwise it won't heat up properly.

 

[pedrobedro]

Put a stop valve in where it comes up through the floor. I had one like this and I had to put a grip on the pipe to stop it falling into the floor then cut off below the olive with a 15mm pipe slice, the small round ones that click in place and turn a few times, really good tools. I made the rest up in new pipe and dropped it into the stop valve and tightened it.

 

[bonepyro]

Have you looked at John Guest speedfit push fittings. They are quite happy on copper pipe and seal with a rubber O-ring which might get past your issue?

http://www.screwfix.com/p/jg-speedf...tracking url&gclid=CLLAo4aw_c0CFUa4GwodC94PMw

 

[WorkshopChris]

I would go with Wedg1e's solution, however if your tight on space have a look at street elbows might allow you to do a similar thing but in a smaller space.

Edit. if your tight on space you can always run a scraper around the socket (coupler) to remove the ridge in the middle so you can slip it right down get your other pipe in place then slip it back into position again.

 

[hunter27]

If I was doing it I would cut back the pipes and fit end-feed sockets then add a short bit of pipe to an end-feed tee. If the pipe hasn't drained itself blow or suck the water out to well below the joint or it will expand and bubble up when you heat to the joint and stop the joint heating up enough to solder correctly.
Forget the socket former in this case, they are a really handy tool when used on lose lengths of pipe but hammering it in would cause an awful shock to your existing pipework and may cause more leaks elsewhere even if you have do the length to insert it fully.
Thankfully I am out of all this now.
Pete

 

[Parm]

Boss White pipe jointing compound

 

[tflnemesis]

I have just soldered it all up as Wedg1e advised, went well, no detectable leaks from any of the joins, but I could hear water running...

Frantic half hour later I have a new hole in the kitchen ceiling, one of the elbow compression joints under the floor had worked loose and I mean it was barely finger tight!
Lightish nip up with the spanner and no more leak for now. Just gonna let ceiling void air out and then I will bang a new piece of board in there and skim it, something i am confident about tackling

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

Well done, glad it all went semi well.
Ish. only a 5 minute job he said.
5 hours later.

 

[Parm]

People me don't Understand how compression fittings work. They need to be nipped up then a tiny bit more. That doesn't mean a 36" Stilson with scaff tube

 

[tflnemesis]

Just had telling off from SWMBO, she just finished clearing up all the dross and I decided the hole needed to be bigger to air it out faster.... Not happening till tomorrow ....

 

[Wedg1e]

Good effort. Could be the first time anyone ever took my advice