Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with plumbing and pipes

Diagnose my leaky pipe!

tumples — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 12:44:54 -0800

Can you help me to understand what the problem with my sink and washing machine pipes is? A heavy load of draining water spills out from near the U-bend. Since having the washing machine fitted a couple of months ago, we have had a problem with the U bend underneath the sink. There is a spare outlet pipe hole at the top of the U-bend, and when there is a heavy load of water draining out of the sink the majority of it spills out of two slanted holes near the top of this cap. The volume of water is not extraordinary, just a full sink. Before we call an expensive plumber, I was hoping someone might be able to point out what the problem is that stops all of the water from draining down the pipes and instead pushing out of these holes. The problem occurs whether or not the washing machine is on.

Here are some pictures: Imgur The second picture shows the connection between washing machine and sink just to the left of the other pictures.

Here is a video of the spill in action: Youtube

Thanks!

How to deal with a clogged foundation drain?

zvs — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:44:24 -0800

How to deal with a clogged foundation drain that's flooding my alley? I live in a rowhouse; it has a walk-in basement that leads out to a below-grade alley.

I diagrammed my drainage situation.

Whenever it rains, the alley fills up with water. There's a drain in the middle of the alley, under which is a shallow pit. I've never seen into it as it's always at least a little bit full of water. (The drain filter is clean.)

In my basement, there's a trap door leading to an excavated part of the foundation, at the bottom of which is a valve. I assume that in my diagram there's a pipe running right to left that eventually reaches the sewer.

How do I fix this stuck drain? I assume the valve in my basement is for cleaning it out, but can I just snake it from the alley? (As an added annoyance, the valve does not want to come open, and the pit it sits in is very narrow and hard to fit a wrench into.)

It's my sink and I'll move it if I want to.

bondcliff — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:50:17 -0800

I have a sink in my basement I would like to relocate. I would like to do this with a minimum amount of plumbing. I shall explain my intentions with a few pictures and way too many words inside. First off, I am aware of the potential dangers of DIY plumbing or otherwise mucking about with pipes and water and whatnot. Should I at any time feel like I'm in over my head I will call a professional. I'm pretty sure I can pull this one off though.

This is the sink in question. I would like to move it around the corner to the left of that lally column.

I know the absolute right way to do this would be to re-route the supply pipes along the ceiling and then have them drop neatly down the wall behind the sink, much like they are now.

The problem is, there are shutoff valves behind the sink, as shown here. If I re-plumb anything before those valves (like I would have to do if I do this the right way) I would have to shut off the water to the entire house as the next nearest shutoffs are where the cold water comes into the house, with another one right before the hot water heater. As the suggested curing time for PVC glue is 24 hours, this would be sorta inconvenient for me and my family.

So, to keep this simple, because I'm only moving the sink a few feet, I would like to re-plumb only from those valves.

Question 1: See those flexible supply lines going from the valve to the faucet? Is there any reason I can't, say, find a couple longer ones (3-4 feet) and just use those instead of piping it with CPVC?

Question 2: If the answer to 1 is "no, that would be stupid", then I have to pipe it with CPVC. Would all the correct threaded fittings be readily available at Home Depot or would I need to go to a plumbing supply store?

Question 3: Are those flexible supply lines sold as-is (with fittings on either end) in different lengths or do I need to build them myself with a length of hose and some sort of crimpy thingies and specialized crimping tools?

Question 4: Is there another way to do this that I haven't thought of?

A couple of things:

I've done a small bit of PEX (in another house), and I liked it, but I needed a specialized tube spreader thingy to install it and I'd prefer not to buy or rent anything special. I would if that's the best way.

I'm not so worried about the drain, as that's not under pressure and it's just a matter of extending and re-routing the pipe. I'll leave the pump where it is so I don't have to re-route the drain and vent.

The shut off valves will no longer be protected by the sink. I'll build something to protect them so they don't get knocked around.

There is storage space behind that wall. I can route any pipes through there.

This is a rarely-used sink, it is not used for laundry, and I can live without it for a while if I need to.

Oh, and I'm the idiot who told the builders to put it where it currently is. Don't ask.

What's up with my pipes?

something something — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 07:40:49 -0800

My pipes have become loud and groany. Should I be worried about this? I live in a 25 year old townhouse. We bought it five years ago and it was clear that nobody had bothered with any sort of proper maintenance for many years. However, everything seemed to be in good shape at the time. Over the past year or so, though, the pipes have started groaning when one certain toilet is flushed. It started out minor but the noises seem to be growing louder and lasting longer.

Is this something I should be worried about? And if so, is there some way to fix it ourselves or do I need to call a professional?

Why is there "sand" in the pipes?

ennui.bz — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:55:08 -0800

Plumbing puzzle: my neighbor has what looks like find sand which collects in her *hot water* eventually clogging metal screens on faucets, etc. The obvious answer is that this is some sort of mineral precipitate as the system has been flushed several times and a filter installed on the water coming into the house. What is causing this precipitate in the hot water and why doesn't this happen with my hot water which is the same town water on the same street (same pipes) that is going into her house? Also, the water heater is from tank heated by a closed loop off the hot water furnace. The problem was occuring before this water heater was installed.

My shower vibrates loudly.

reductiondesign — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:39:23 -0800

How can I stop my vibrating shower pipes… in a college dorm? My shower here at college will vibrate really loudly, seemingly at random. Sometimes if I turn the water all the way to hot or all the way to cold, it stops. This isn't a daily thing, and it does eventually go away on its own—that can take anywhere from five seconds to five minutes.

The building is brand-new this year, so I don't think it's a matter of old plumbing. No one else has this problem. It's a shower/tub combination, with a level to pull up on the faucet to activate the shower.

What might be causing this? Might I be able to fix it on my own, or will I have to submit a work order?

How can A and B be connected if there's nothing to connect them?

pokeedog — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 17:58:21 -0800

When our pool equipment runs, it triggers the sound of a leaky pipe in a wall adjacent to our hot water heater. By triggering the valve on the hot water heater when the water to the house is off, I can stop the noise. How can I fix this? This is a very odd situation. So here's the detail:
1. House is slab foundation.
2. Pool equipment is outside kind of far from the hot water heater. No house plumbing connects to the pool equipment. The only common link between the pool equipment and rest of the house workings I can find is electricity, via a fuse box.
3. When the pool equipment goes on, it triggers the sound of a leaky pipe in the wall where the hot water heater is adjacent to. Minimal water appears on the floor after several hours on the hot water heater side of the wall, but no other water indicates any kind of leak.
4. If you turn off the water to the house at the street, the sound in the wall stops.
5. If you fiddle with the pressure release valve on the hot water heater while the water to the house is off, you stop the noise in the wall. Pool equipment must be off.
6. If you fiddle with the pressure release valve on the hot water heater while the water to the house is on, the noise doesn't stop.

We've had a plumber out, it's driving us a little crazy. These two things just don't seem connected. Am I grasping at straws? What other things should I check? It seems to coincidental to me, since the water system of the house isn't connected to the pool equipment.

Why do I shiver upstairs?

tomwheeler — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 13:11:56 -0800

Why does my upstairs shower run out of hot water long before the one downstairs? I only have one water heater... For the past 4-5 months, the upstairs shower cools down to lukewarm after just a few minutes. It used to stay piping hot for as long as I might want to use it, just like the downstairs one still does. My water heater is only two years old and hasn't been adjusted since it was (professionally) installed.

Can anyone explain this phenomenon? Is it something I can fix myself?

How do I ground copper water pipes to old iron water pipes?

kuujjuarapik — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 11:29:08 -0800

How do I ground copper water pipes to old iron water pipes? I have an old house where the oldest plumbing is iron, and the newer plumbing is copper. I want to fit in a water filter on the iron pipe, but use copper fittings. I have heard that if they aren't ground properly they corrode. Unfortunately, replaceing the iron pipes is not an option.

Bonus question: can you solder copper fittings directly to iron pipe?