Doping a pipe for a minor leak

[JHZR2]

Hi,

installed a whole house filter last weekend, wow, we have a lot of brown sediment in our water...

One side I used a bushing and swaged a fitting on the inlet side, but since I wanted to minimize brass (some has lead). On the other side I soldered a 1" copper fitting on.

I didn't want to overtighten the fitting, figuring I could crack the plastic housing... And now I'm in a situation where I wish I had gone a turn more...

I Teflon taped, but there is a really slow drip that is still there after a week. It is slower than a drip a minute, maybe a drip in five. But it is always wet.

Any suggestion to stop it? It would be a big deal to unmount and tighten another turn, as I nailed the support inbetween the floor joists.

Is there anything recommended to stop it, can I paint a bit of pipe dope in the spot where I see the water seeping through? What about valve packing or teflon tape just pulled tight around the threads?

Any thoughts?

 

[chad8]

j-b weld

http://www.jbweld.net/products/marine.php

 

[posty]

A leak that small, will in time be plugged by minerals in the water.

 

[ddrumman2004]

The late Billy Mays touted 'Mighty Putty" for leak. Though it failed most tests in this video, it did pass a leak test and the towing test!

http://www.wreg.com/news/onyourside/doesitwork/

And the leak in this video appears to be a lot worse than your!

You have to click on the button on the row of videos under the main video and advance to videos 61-66. It's #64.

 

[Bob Woods]

You are worried about lead and you used solder?

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: posty
A leak that small, will in time be plugged by minerals in the water.


I was hoping after a week it would... I don't think a sediment and carbon filter will take them out.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Bob Woods
Your worried about lead and you used solder?


I used "lead free" solder to do the job, fwiw. The exposed solder in a good joint is far smaller surface than the exposed brass in a fitting and bushing.

Not sure my brass even has lead, I've just read that lead makes brass easier to machine, and is often in there.

 

[oilboy123]

Do you know how much psi you are seeing? 40, 80?

 

[JHZR2]

I kind of assumed we had 60psi service, but no guarantees that is right.

 

[MoparDak05]

Originally Posted By: chad8
j-b weld

http://www.jbweld.net/products/marine.php


This was my first thought. I used this stuff to patch a puncture wound in my old Civic's transmission and it hasn't leaked a drop in 30k miles.

 

[eljefino]

Can you cut the water off while it cures?

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Take it apart and fix it right.

 

[ddrumman2004]

This was my first thought...take it apart and redo it.

But in that video of Mighty Putty, that stuff stopped a spraying leak on a water line under a kitchen sink. Pretty good "temporary fix" I say.

But I have found that it's always best to redo the connection if one leaks because my experience has been that no matter how small a leak is, it will get bigger over time. Or that has just been my luck.

 

[Gary Allan]

Lesson- use a liquid pipe dope where plastic is going to limit the torque you're going to put on a threaded joint ..or don't skimp on the tape ..pre-thread it (using the knife edged portion of the tape dispenser to run the threads so that the threads don't "cut" the tape).

I've had the opposite experience with those slower leaks on otherwise new joints, even with plastic and Teflon. They stop eventually. It's not like a corrosive action started it. Eventually that rusty sediment will manage what your lack of "umph" allowed.

 

[Papa Bear]

Cut the pipe, screw the fitting tight and put a coupling in the pipe. Done.

 

[andyd]

I would take it apart and re- tape the threads. Use plenty of the tape. I stopped exactly replacing my bodged together well tank plumbing and put in a bladder tank. I put in couplings and ball valve shut offs with bleeders. Money is always an issue, but ball valves require way less maintenance. All MY plumbing and wiring is done with regards to ease of maintenance and access. I can swap my water filter cartridge in less than 5 minutes.

 

[JHZR2]

I did the ball valves with bleeders and everything else. The leak is on the out side, so there is at least less sediment to clog it. I always do two full wraps with Teflon, perhaps my mistake was also using standard 1/2" tape on a 1" fitting.

The drip is so slow that it is almost not worth it to think about, though my OCD wants it right. Problem is I nailed the support crossmember to the joists, so removal of everyhing is a pain. I'll give it another week to dry up, then see if I need to disassemble.

I figured if painting a bit of pipe dope might help it, I'd give it a try; I'm not really interested in semi-permanent stick-on putty type fixes...

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Papa Bear
Cut the pipe, screw the fitting tight and put a coupling in the pipe. Done.


apparently too much heat for the plastic housing... They actually wanted swaged fittings on each side, I didn't so I wouldn't have a length of brass on my outlet.

 

[Gary Allan]

Quote:
he drip is so slow that it is almost not worth it to think about, though my OCD wants it right. Problem is I nailed the support crossmember to the joists, so removal of everyhing is a pain. I'll give it another week to dry up, then see if I need to disassemble.


I feel your pain. There's nothing worse than a defect at step #4 when you're done and it's all tucked away for a 10 year installation. Doing it all over again (virtually) when you're time rationing just doesn't seem right for the effort exerted. Doing 200% the work for .1% in "rightness" just doesn't work ..but neither does the annoying drip.

Such conflicts can drive you crazy ....I've had many such events

 

[Bob Woods]

Time to remove my foot from my mouth, I just plain forgot about lead free solder.