Ask A Plumber!

[Robb]

No, seriously! :D I have some skills, not the least of which is nearly becoming a third-generation plumber.

So I'm here to answer all your plumbing-related questions with the pithy comments and unabashed double-entendre you've all come to expect. :silly:

Let's lay some pipe! :D

[redqueen]

1. Oh, man...

I've got a handle that falls off... won't seem to tighten... do I have to replace the whole faucet set now?

[Robb]

6. Probably just the stem

It's the thing that screws up and down letting the water go through when you turn the handle. First thing, try tightening (slightly) the phillips head screw under the faucet's cap (you may or may not have to pop a cap off; on some the screw is just visible).

Plan B: With the valve under the sink turned off, unscrew the thing all the way and remove it. It's going to look a little like a big bolt with some plastic stuff on it. Take it to home depot and say "GIVE ME ONE OF THESE!!! NOW!!!!"

Replace. :D

[DrDebug]

2. What did you take during Watergate? n/t

[Robb]

15. Asprin. n/t

[Lisa0825]

3. My tub doesn't drain well...

Usually, if I use the Liquid Plumber Foaming Pipe Snake once every 4 months or so, it drains very well. But lately, it will drian well if the water is not on high, but if it fills up a little bit, it slows to barely a trickle. Drain cleaners aren't helping.

Any thoughts?

And another thing.... is it true that it's better to call a plumber than the gas company if you sense a leak, because plumbers can work on gas lines too, and tend to be less expensive?

[Robb]

8. The idea of a plumber being less expensive than anyone is pretty funny

...but maybe so. :)

Regardless, it's an option. Plumbers work with gas lines all the time.

Tubs are tough because usually you can't get to the p-trap (the little s-shaped part of the pipe that keeps the poop smell from entering the house with a little bit of trapped water).

A good purchase is an actual plumber's snake, a long flexible thingy that attaches to a drill and goes down in there. Also consider a new drain filter that might catch more hair before it gets down in there. :)

[Lisa0825]

40. glad I amused you:-)

I know plumbers aren't cheap, but I hear if the gas company makes emergency repairs, they are outrageously expensive, and that plumbers are cheaper in comparison.

[oneighty]

26. Around here

if you have a gas leak and call the gas company they will shut you off until repairs are made. You be setting yourself up for lot a trouble. But do not let 'just anybody' mess with your gas plumbing.

180

[Lisa0825]

43. I was told that I had to have a new meter installed

because my house is quite old, and it's the original meter. They want to inspect the gas system when they do this, so I was thinking that if plumbers are less expensive, maybe I'd have the plumber take a look first, since I need plumbing work done anyway.

[mcscajun]

4. Okay...Mr. Plumber.

:silly:

Here's a straight question; feel free to answer as you see fit. :)

I have minor but liveable problems with every piece of plumbing in my bathroom: tub faucet leaks, showerhead needs replacing with something that will give me a half-way decent spray, toilet flush mechanism has a cheap silly chain inside it that breaks all the time so the tank top remains off the tank most of the time (so I can flush the damned thing), and the rod that's supposed to control the plug in my sink has come apart from whatever other part it is that opens/closes the drain.

Should I get a handyman (I'm not all That Handy) or a plumber? Would the plumbing company just laugh me off as that's something too small for them to handle?

[Robb]

11. Call a plumber

Nothing's too small. Remember it's going to be at least $100 for anything they do; but describe your laundry list so they can bring parts. Oddly enough they're usually cheaper from out of their truck.

[ghostsofgiants]

5. Is plumbing really as glamourous as pornos make it out to be?

[Robb]

13. Yes.

...Although pizza delivery is where the big action is. ;)

[jswordy]

7. Do you like to lay pipe????

[Robb]

16. No sweat. n/t

[bridgit]

44. of course you mean...

unless a 'sweat joint' is required :rofl:

[MrScorpio]

9. When I was single, this girl asked me if I wanted to lay some pipe...

But she was mad when I showed up at her door with some 14 inch PVC.

Where did I go wrong?

[Robb]

12. You came off as cheap

Next time, bring copper. :evilgrin:

[northzax]

45. you forgor the Gerbil, of course.

[BrklynLiberal]

10. Is it true that baking soda and vinegar will clear a drain?

[Robb]

14. Sometimes

A half cup of baking soda down a drain, followed by a cup of vinegar, wait a few minutes and follow with a whole bunch of boiling water. It works by breaking down fatty acids; not the best for hair, however.

[BrklynLiberal]

38. Thank you very much

[yewberry]

17. What's your funniest plumbing story?

I am the designated family plumber, not actually in the trade.

Mine:
I was working a lot last winter and my husband was helping to pick up the slack around the house, making sure I had a nice oatmeal breakfast most mornings, doing laundry, dishes, you know. Good husband, he is.

He noticed that the kitchen sink wasn't draining well. Tried drain cleaner to no avail. The plunger didn't help either. We couldn't even use the garbage disposal after a time. Then the dishwasher stopped draining.

I got fed up and took apart the pipes. Okay, nothing in trap. A little slimy, but no blockage. A little farther in, just about at the drain line, I found resistance. Yuck. Digging in, I pulled out oatmeal.

Swollen, coffee-ground-infested oatmeal. You know, the Irish steel-cut variety. About two and a half inches thick.

He'd been pouring leftover oatmeal down the drain. Woooh.

I sure do love him.

[Robb]

18. The time I paid for one myself

I was working full-time, and couldn't deal with a project that needed doing right away.

We had just put a new washing machine in the basement; trouble was, it was a european model that didn't have a strong enough pump to send the waste water up to the house's main waste pipe (maybe five feet up). So I wanted to put a little collector and an ejector pump in, and I did, but I didn't have time to cut into the (now overhead) waste pipe and splice into the line.

So I called a plumber to come do it. And it was the best $200 I ever spent.

I'm getting ready to leave and I hear him start with the reciprocating saw, cutting into the big black PVC pipe over his head. Then I hear this "AWWW, CRAAAP!!!"

I'm not yet completely late for work, so I go downstairs. Turned out the waste pipe wasn't completely strapped up to the beams; instead of a nice slope out to the main sewer, it had... a sag in it. The lowest point of which was right where the poor SOB had to cut.

You can imagine how well things got thrown around as he cut into the pipe at full speed. I smiled and left. When I came home, the splice was in and everything was cleaned up. :thumbsup:

[Maddy McCall]

19. Will you come fix the hardware on my bathtub?

The faucets drip horribly and the spigot won't divert water to the shower.

If you'll come fix them, I'll make you the best southern meal you ever had.

Please? :D

[Robb]

22. You might have a quick fix...

on the diverter valve: is it the kind where you just raise up a little pull thingy on the tub spout? Looks like a choke on a motorcycle?

'Cause that can be replaced easy-like. Take a big screwdriver and wrap it in a washcloth (this is to keep from scratching things). Jam it inside the tub spout and use the leverage to unscrew the whole spout (counter clockwise).

With the spout off, diagnose the problem by blocking the pipe with your hand; if the water heads to the shower, you've got a diverter valve problem. Look for calcification or other crap in the way of the valve -- a little soak in lime-away or similar toxic stuff might take care of things. Otherwise, replace the valve at the Home Despot! Fear not, it's just plumbing! :D

[Maddy McCall]

39. I'll give it a shot.

Thanks for the advice. :D

[purr]

20. What is up with my hot water tank?

Some reason I keep burning up the thermostats. Every year I replace the stupid thing and it'll burn up the next. The tank is only 5 years old.

First symptoms - our morning shower is cut down to about 10-15 min. If he gets up and showers w/o me I have to wait until afternoon to get a warm shower.

Worsening - I have the temperature thing in the shower all the way to the left (hot) towards the end of the shower.

Toasted thermostat - Cold shower.

[Robb]

23. Gas or electric? n/t

[Robb]

27. Dur...

Anyhow.

It sounds more like a bad element -- if it's a two-element heater. The way it works is you don't stop getting hot water all together when one element craps out; you just get a diminished capacity, which causes the creeping hot water handle bit when you shower. A new thermostat can "convince" an element to overwork for a little while, but my bet would be you're flying a two-engine plane on one engine.

If the top element's dead, you'll have hot water until the thermostat calls for it to go on, and it won't. If the bottom one's gone, you'll be down to diminished capacity.

[purr]

30. So wheres the 2nd element?

I'm normally changing the one with the temperature dial on it. Would they really crap out after 5 years?

I know theres 2 blue boxes and I only take the bottom one off. Maybe I should check the top blue box and see whats behind it.

[Robb]

35. 5 years is a little soon....

...although at 10, it's an automatic "replace" rather than "repair."

Here's a purty pitcher ('lectric on the left):

[purr]

28. Electric n/t

[Tsiyu]

21. I have a leak in my pump ( shallow jet well)

I fixed one on the pressure valve, but there is one coming off the pressure regulator.

Should I:

A) Find a wrench and see if tightening helps?

B) Take the pipe off and start over?

Also, how difficult would it be to install a part-time hand pump ( for power outages)?

And thanks for your advice! :hi:

[Robb]

29. Try tightening, carefully

Remember to use two wrenches, one to counter the other (on the other side of the fitting), so you're not stressing anything but where you're tightening.

As to the hand-pump, if you wanted to be really sweet you could install a diverter valve, so you could shut off water to one pump and send it to the other, all in line, when you wanted to.

That would be slick. :)

[Tsiyu]

31. So that can be done?

Cool!

Eventually I'm switching to a submersible with a solar panel, probably in a better location (lots of water pockets here, fortunately) but I'd love some sort of backup system for when the power goes out.

I will now do a google search for "diverter"

If you have any good plumbing websites you can pass along, me would so love this.

Thanks, Robb the Plumber! :)

[Mizmoon]

24. I had my whole bathroom redone

and the new toilet gets clogged like once every other week. And we're not throwing anything unusual down there.

Why do the new toilets suck?

[Robb]

33. Most use less water

That's about it. The more water the tank releases, the better they flush.

Sometimes you can rig the tank to fill a little higher between flushes, that can help. If there's any room, you can adjust the floater to, well, need more water to float high enough to turn off the water.

[Mizmoon]

37. Thanks, Plumberman!

Who was that masked plumber?

It was Robb!

[arwalden]

25. What's The Deal With Plumber's V.A.C.*?

*Visible Ass Crack

[Robb]

36. Trade secret. n/t

[Old_Fart]

32. If a turd is gigantic will it get stuck and cause your toilet to overflow?

:shrug:

[samplegirl]

34. Have no fear when my Kirby is near

I just change the hose to exhaust put the drain attachment on
and blow blow blow it open. If this fails....ask a guy friend
and if that dont work....call a plumber!

[Hugin]

41. Huge leak in valve...

It's the manual shut off to my automatic sprinkler system. Top nut on valve is cracked. Cheap junk, it's only two years old!

What's the easiest way to replace it?

Is there a decent brand of hand valve to replace it
with?

[Debbi801]

42. Do you say "Do it To it" like that plumber on HGTV and DIY?

[Kingofalldems]

46. I want to replace my outside spigot

It's a no-frost spigot. I think it's the screw-on type. My question is can an amateur do it and is a home center a good place for a replacement?

[Hugin]

53. I'd think so...

Whatever idiot built my house, put in brazed-on spigots. I've been
slowly replacing them with the screwed on type. Which entails cutting
off the old POS and brazing on a threaded fitting. Then screwing on
a new spigot.

I'd say given a monkey wrench, plumber's tape, and a new spigot. You
could replace yours.

1. Turn off main water valve.
2. Take off old spigot with monkey wrench.
3. Take old spigot to hardware store and obtain new spigot
of the same dimensions.
4. Apply plumber's tape to threads on pipe. Two times around.
5. Screw on new spigot and tighten with monkey wrench.
6. Turn on main water valve.
7. Check for leaks.
8. If no leaks... GOOD JOB!
9. If leaks repeat steps 5. and 6. being careful to not tighten too
much. If you do... You'll strip the threads. (Aux 10. Call plumber.)

Or not.... My suggestion.

[northzax]

47. ok, I have a slow draining sink

I live in a rental, and the wall sink in my bathroom is very slow draining. It has a pop-up drain stopper (I dunno what they're really called) that I can't remove. Drano doesn't help, the only thing that sometimes works is snaking a metal hanger (unwound) down past the drain stopper. I need it to drain, it's the place I brush my teeth, wash my face and shave. Any suggestions?

[Hugin]

51. Since Robb is a little slow to answer...

They have these really neat little "sink snakes" at the
hardware stores. Very inexpensive.

They're slightly larger than a hanger and they have a bit
on the end similar to one of the full sized snakes.

Wonderful invention! I didn't know what I didn't have until
I bought one.

My sweetheart has very thick hair and our sink was constantly
clogging up and it was moving back and forth between our bathroom
sinks. I went after it with a sink snake and voila!

Also, those compressed CLR? pressure cans are good to keep
it clear.

My suggestion... Take it for what it's worth.

;)

[northzax]

52. thanks for the suggestion.

my problem is that, since the pop-up drain leaves barely enough room for the hanger, and no room for the compressed stuff. but I'll try it.

[Hugin]

54. Hmm... Most of those pop-outs release some way or another.

I mean... How'd they get them together in the first place, right?

I've seen some which screw into an armature right under the sink on
the drain pipe.

I've also seen some which pull out and it's like a tourist trap wire puzzle trying to get them back in place. Those are tricky, but, I've
done it.

Investigate is my best advice. See if you can figure out how it works.

Those sink snakes come in a variety of sizes. There are really small
types for use in evaporative coolers. If you can find one like that, it'd be perfect.

[northzax]

55. ooh, a swamp cooler snake? I like that idea

very clever. frankly, I think it probably used to pop uot, but that was 45 years ago.

[AngryAmish]

48. What do you think of those electric "endless' water heaters?

To me at least it seems much more efficient that keeping a tank hot all day.

[ragin_acadian]

58. the Rinnai systems that use natural gas are ok, but they only have

1/2" outlets, so water pressure is reduced and they are really expensive - if you go with a tankless electric like seisco/microtherm, the heating units will pick up copper/metallic particles in your piping, and deposit them in the heating chambers, turning the whole unit into a giant lightning rod.

your best bet for conserving energy is to just get an AO Smith, or Bradford White point of use water heater, depending on what applications you are using.

[Blue Diadem]

49. Problem with old cast iron soil/vent stack

We believe it may be plugged or possibly leaking sewer gas(although we smell nothing and everything drains fine). Hubby's going to flush it out, however, if it should be leaking, should we look for joints behind walls and not just at floor levels? Do those pipes ever crack? Would we be better off installing new plastic vent pipe?

The reason we think it's leaking or plugged is the town did a smoke test on sewers and we had smoke show up in the attic.

[RedstDem]

61. The Smoke In Your Attic Is Evidence Of A Leak

Unfortunately, It's an Outdated Method, I Think Its Almost Impossible To Find The Leak Without Doing Another Test. Cast Iron Pipe Does Crack, So Going With PVC For Any Repairs Is Recommended. You Can Also Have Smoke After A Test If They're Any Fixtures In Your House That You Rarely Use, The Water In The Trap Evaporates After A While. These Days We Test With Water, By Capping A Portion Of The Piping System And Filling It Up.

[SarahB]

50. Why is my washing machine leaking just a little bit?

The hose? I hope. :scared:

[RedstDem]

60. I'm Not Trying To Hijack Robbs Thread, He's Probably Clearing A Drain

@ The Moment, It's Most Likely The Hose, Turn The Water Off To The Washing Machine & Replace The Little Rubber Ring Inside The Hose End Fitting....Available At Any Hardware Store

[gulfcoastliberal]

56. What brand of toilet do you recommend?

I'm currently remodeling and need to install 2 new toilets. Nothing fancy, but something effective and not too fugly. Also, what do you think of the Whirlpool electric water heaters with the lifetime warranties. They have electronic boxes on the top.

[RedstDem]

59. Not Sure How Robb Would Vote But..

I'm Partial To Kohler, They Have They're Selections Available On Their Website Too. They Have Top End & Affordable Stuff Too. American Standard Is Pretty Nice Stuff Also....

Just Don't Buy From Home Depot...They SUCK!

I'm Also A Plumber (Union Local 5 Wash DC)

[Ernesto]

57. Do you have a UNION card?