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

[gasmarc]

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

Always cover any glass with vinyl on the inside rear doors , a very easy cheap deterant against getting robbed.
If you have rear doors make a shelf about 18 inches high. This is ideal for keeping expensive tools hidden ,even if someone pops a rear window they cannot get to the expensive drills etc ,unless they can unlock the back doors.
buy a leatherman TTI or gerber and you can avoid carrying a tool case at all
buy a pretzel head torch, get a wickes wet and dry perfect for airlocks.
Use pipe lagging to get rid of air locks ,charge more work less lol

 

[franz]

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

Hello GASMARC can you explain the last bit about lagging to get rid of airlocks,
regards

 

[PlumbBobBob]

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

i think he means to use it to make a seal between the wet & dry and the pipe.

 

[WHPES]

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

Tutorial - How to remove an immersion element which has been stuck in with jointing compound:

Time - Approx 1/2 hour from draining.

1, drain to below level of element

2, remove all cover, thermostat, wires etc

3, make a saw cut across top with hacksaw as in the first picture, down to the gasket but be careful not to cut through the gasket or you will damage the face which the gasket seals onto. Make another saw cut at about 45 degrees to the first.

4, with a 3mm drill, drill a series of holes across the face of the element joining the saw cuts and going round the thermostat hole and element terminals.

5, use a 5mm drill to enlarge the holes so that a continuous gap is created across the face.

6, next we need to cut through the vertical sides of the element cap where the threaded section is (first picture). Work a hacksaw blade along the gaps to clear out and parts between the drill holes. Next cut into the threaded part, being careful not to cut beyond the thread or you will cut deep into the cylinder thread and risk damaging the cylinder.

7. with a pair of grips, try to pry out the 45 degree segment. Once you have cut through enough thread you should be able to remove this (second picture). Once removed, you should be able to squash the remaining sides of the element top together to free from the cylinder and unscrew.

8, With a wire brush and miniature screwdriver, clean out the threads on the cylinder and clean any jointing compound from the mating face.

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

Buy a wet vac, they can be used to remove airlocks, clean dirty F & E tanks, and catch water when it's too awkward to have a deep bowl or bucket.

I use one to drain rads if customer wants to decorate behind them it's much cleaner then using a small tub & bucket under the valve to drain it off. ( dont forget to turn both sides of the rad off ) have the wet vac on & ready to go,crack the rad valve nut then just put the hose right on the rad tail then suck it all out,this method works well on small rad(s) with 3/4 union nuts.

Use a water proof dust sheet at all times when working on rads in this way because there is always the risk of you dripping dirty rad water on a customers carpet! & you dont want that!

 

[tamz]

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

Easier just to pull carpet back a few inches wrap 2 old towels (supplied by cust) round the pipes, split the nuts fingers over the ends and out the door. Watch you don't burn your face if it has been on. You should be able to do a 700 x 1200K2 or smaller on your own. 5 minutes max😛

 

[tamz]

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

Here is one i did for the first time today as never really thought of it.

Doing a combi swap. Cust didn't want a pwr flush and the water was pure brown. Prv had been running for 3 or 4 months topping up once a day🙄
Bungalow with all drop feed rads so there was i thinking it will take ages to drain all this 10 times then the idea came to me. Probably been done a hundred times but here it is.

Fitted new boiler and sentinel system filter on return. Filled towel rail with X800 and left closed off.
Filled system and left fill loop open but let it drain through filter at the same rate. Left it that way for 10 minutes or so then fired it up with it still draining for another 20 mins or so.
Water running clearer, closed drain opened towel rail to let X800 in and left for an hour or so while i filled out the logbook and other stuff, chatted to my mate for a bit then flushed it through as above once more until clear.
Final drain and X100 in. Paid and out the door.
Took around 1hr 50 mins to flush it but got all the tests done and paperwork filled in while it was happening.

Btw for all the trouble of doing this it was the easiest swap i have done for a while. Back in the house for half 2.

 

[Guest123]

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

When using JG Speedfit, use only the standard inserts in compression fittings and not the Superseal ones (the ones with the rubber O rings). Also don't use them with compression fittings that have a short slip or with cheap ball type valves on mains supplies as they will blow off!!!

 

[fuzzy]

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

my biggest tip and secret is to work within yourself, speed doesnt mean good, be prepared, get everyhing ready, dont put yourself under pressure, jobs done wen its done, get the right tools and equip

also, people dont know the difference between good plumbing or bad very often but do know if you were polite or rude, be polite, put dust sheets down, clean up after yourself, and your on a winner

 

[Plum Bob 66]

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

Absolutely spot on !!.

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

Clean up after yourself!

Absolutely!!


Even if the customer says "dont worry I'll do it" that has come back on me many times over the years! Anyone will do anything to get money off the bill! or even try to get out of paying it all together! So yes! always clean up after yourself!🙂

Question.... Why cant sparkys do this?😡

 

[GQuigley67]

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

Absolutely!!


Even if the customer says "dont worry I'll do it" that has come back on me many times over the years! Anyone will do anything to get money off the bill! or even try to get out of paying it all together! So yes! always clean up after yourself!🙂

Question.... Why cant sparkys do this?😡

not just sparks alot of people don't do it ! when I got sky fitted came back from work to find my room in a complete mess ! was really ****ed off and made me hate them now lol ..

the customers who say "dont worry i'll do it" usually are just sick of you and want you out the house 😛 but I usually try to insist on tidying up as its part of my job.

 

[gas57]

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

if you do file crome off pipe

 

[REDSAW]

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

no chatting on this thread.

if you dont have a tip then dont post////

 

[franz]

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

I always put a 5pence piece and a washer in a open end of a ballafix if i leave a job for a while and there are others on site
blank off a 22mm pipe the same with a 10p piece and washer

 

[fuzzy]

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

just to add to my previous post.

A property is probably the single most highest investment anyone will ever make, its their own little private castle. to let a virtual stranger inside is daunting for many, if you are aware of this and conduct yourself in a respectful manner it will make them feel at ease. many people would prefer somebody they feel at ease with to come into their home and often this is secondry to what you do!

 

[fuzzy]

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

ps, this is how ive made a living because im cr.@p at plumbing! lol

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

Not sure if posted before,but I'll post it anyway.

Most new heating system are now pressurized,but the only down side to this type of system is that it wont top itself up if you vent/bleed or even drain down so you have to do it manually,which can be a pain at times.

This tip is mainly for larger systems & if you are working alone.

There is nothing worse then filling up a large pressurized HS on your own,as you are back & fourth to the filler every time you vent/bleed a few rads just to keep the water lever at 1 or maybe 2bar depending on the size of the system.

If you have a 15mm pressure reducing valve spare,then fit it to the filling loop & set it to the holding pressure of you choice & leave the main feed on,that way the system will just keep filling as you bleed/vent the rads & will stay at the set pressure,this cuts out going back & fourth to the filler to top up. Once the system is filled vented/bled/heat tested remove the pressure reducing. Job done🙂

 

[Avatar]

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

a wet vac is an essential piece of kit - if water spills on the custards carpet, even it is dirty rad water, dont mop it up just get your wet vac on it, 95% of it will get removed, even if dirty as long as you dont rub it first.

get a selection of small plastic food boxes to use to drain down pipes under the floor. Stick yuour wet vac in the tray to cope with any excess of water on the drain down.

get a load of old towels for the van, as absorvant as possible, as they are the ideal first measure when you have a leak, and will even soak up water from the floor as well. Very handy as well if you need to do some live workk, just wedge them in the right places!!

 

[Plum Bob 66]

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

Right on my,wet vac one of my my first purchase on recomendation £35 from screwfix, used most days and nevere let me down yet.Makes light work of draining rads too!

Bob🙂

 

[SPC]

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

if you ever struggle trying to solder a pipe with water in it buy a laser fluid extractor from screwfix or similar, cut the hose that comes with it and the clear plastic pipe remaining connects straight to 10mm speedfit so reduce/enlarge it to any size you want and suck the fluid out of the pipe making it easy too solder!! also good for priming oil lines if there below ground level.

Cordless Angle Grinder with 1mm metal blade for ease of cutting flu's and any bolts/screws etc which require a slight trim

Can vouch for the Armeg drop jaw wrench for tightening bath / basin taps. has helped out in alot of situations.

and as said before spend as much money on kit as you can afford, if you cant buy the decent stuff first time round keep saving, alot of the cheap stuff is just tat, granted some of it is ok. i try to have every bit of equipment/tool on me to make my job as easy as possible.

Be presentable where possible and polite 100% of the time, manners cost nothing. i also beleive there is no room for messy tradesmen who never clean up after themselves.

1 last piece of advice, when setting up pipework for radiators etc if its gotta be 1290 centres make sure it is 1290, not 1280 and that will do, and make sure its fixed well ie saddle clips so there not going too move not just nail on clips. plasterers are ruthless so if they start off a little bit out and or inadequately clipped and end up too far out and looking poo or you end up chopping more plaster out.

not sure if thats gonna help anyone or i just wanted too rant but hope everyone is well 😀

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

if you ever struggle trying to solder a pipe with water in it

Never heard of the old plumbers bread trick? If you can push a small peace of bread ( depending on size of pipe ) into the pipe you want to solder,the bread will hold back the water enough for you to solder. I've have tired this on 15mm & 22mm works fine,not tried 28mm though.when finished turn water back on.The bread is so soft it will just break down when water is back on.

What is wrong with fitting pushfit to chrome pipe?

Chrome pipe has a very smooth finish,push will just slid off it.

Tip,you can buy a scoring tool to mark the pipe to let the push fit grab ring hold tight,or you can just file off the chrome enough for the fitting to go on.

 

[GQuigley67]

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

little tip much quicker using compression on chrome try filing alot of chrome pipes got that as a job once as a boy

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

Found a pic of the multi pipe size scoring tool for chrome pipe..😎

 

[Bartdude]

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

There's a material called PVA that's used in carp fishing. You can buy little bags made of it. The idea is to put all your bait in it and cast out and it dissolves in water over a couple of minutes. I've not used it but it could work for the old bread trick. I was thinking of it yesterday when trying to solder a 28mm pipe that was dripping. I just turned the mapp torch up full!

If you're cutting into a pipe and you're not sure if it's isolated at the right valve,don't dive in with your pipeslice,make a small cut with a hacksaw,if when you break the surface you've still got full pressure you can wrap some duct tape around the pipe and look for the right valve without water spraying everywhere.

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

indeed i have heard of the old bread trick and personally think its gotta be one of the roughest approaches ever. people pay hundreds of pounds protecting central heating systems from sludge and debris with things like magnacleans, spirotechs etc for people such as yourselves to introduce bread into the system. me thinks its not going too be very good for them heat exchangers, or even if its on hot / cold pipework its gonna get stuck in a filter somewhere. but thats just my tuppence worth. im all for having the correct tool for the job.

I was taught by an old school plumber,so from time to time I use old school methods.I was talking small amounts of bread & for smaller pipe.The bread when soaked through will just dissolve.

Tip: dont go pushing a french stick up a pipe that wont dissolve!🙄

 

[Guest123]

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

I always put a 5pence piece and a washer in a open end of a ballafix if i leave a job for a while and there are others on site
blank off a 22mm pipe the same with a 10p piece and washer

I always fit a screw on end cap to blank off open ended valves. Cheaper than using your hard earned cash in a fitting.

 

[dontknowitall]

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

If you're unsure when you cut through a pipe about the amount of water involved that might come out, keep a couple of Speedfit push fit stop ends (2 in case you drop/lose one in your panic and put them a good foot or two from each other in case you lose them both at the same time).

 

[tamz]

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

A true plumber should NEVER panic even when it is all coming down around him😛

 

[breg]

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

i made a little something for my bending guides to keep them in good condition, consists of 2no 2" coupler (solvent) 2no 2"access plugs short piece of 2" pipe, glue together and you have yourself a nice place to keep your guides safe 🙂

 

[Zorro]

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

Replace 3ports one wire at a time!!!!

 

[dontknowitall]

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

When hanging radiators use two spirit levels. Attach first bracket, then measure distance to next bracket. Put long spirit level on top of both and use small one to make the next bracket vertical. If one hole goes wrong when drilling, make another hole. (For the less experienced, short side out for double rads and long side out for singles.)

When using spirit levels there's no need to paint a Tony Hart sketch all over the wall. Just one small (maybe 2) pencil marks.

 

[Bartdude]

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

Buy a mechanics magnetic dish for servicing and repairs on boilers,fires,etc. Put all the screws,bolts and nuts in it,saves a lot of hassle trying to find bits that have fallen into the dustsheet!

 

[fagsanbooz]

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

sometimes use a household mop to 'plunge' the trap/water seal on a wc pan for releasing some blockages. Take the bucket as well though, doesn't drip on the carpet then!!!!

 

[PLUMB-KING]

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

A true plumber should NEVER panic even when it is all coming down around him😛

That's my boss for you! he never panics.

Many years ago I cut through a 28mm mains feed pipe with a skill saw!
( I didn't know the pipe was there ) anyway,you can imagine the mess this must of made,water poring through the kitchen ceiling below!who walks in right at this moment,my boss...😱 he says & I quote " what happened?" so I told him,he say's "oh,water off?" told him it was off, he said "ok,good,did you fill the kettle before you turned it off?" I said kettle was full,he said "good lad make me a coffee!" & that was it! & he's never changed!😀

So there's another tip for you "always make sure kettle is full before you turn any water off,no matter the situation!"