Rant - I HATE Plumbing

My old vet was making money hand over fist by simply being an honest low cost provider. He had a large cattle vaccine, medicine and wormer bussiness going. His salesmen hated to see him quit he was their biggest customer. He pulled a good dog and cat bussines in from the next big town too.

Nope not a crushed pipe, some type of air lock in the system - must have sucked in enough air last time DW ran the tank dry. Don't get me going on this - There is a gauge on the tank visibile from 150 feet away. Why can't women look at the gauge BEFORE deciding to water using up 2000 gallons of water that may or may not be in the tank. Why does one need to water at all except maybe in the greenhouse after getting 6+ inches of rain last week?? The sleeve for the pipe under the road is done with 4 inch double wall corrugated pipe dropped about 16 inches under the road surface with 1 inch PVC with only two bell housing joints (the kind on the end of 20 foot long lengths of pipe) situated such that each joint is close to each end of the sleeve. Our local water company was PO'ed when the county ran the sleeve for me last time they paved the road. The water company lost 2 customers when I could get access to my own water. Since they charge about $49.00 per month hookup fee PLUS $3.00 per thousand gallons (as long as you use less than 15,000 gallons - price goes up if you use more than that) they lose out on about $200 a month. On a system with only about 30 customers that hurts I guess.

Anyway I cut the system open in 2 places released the air lock and viola WATER.

OK, glad you got it figured out. Maybe something so the next time it happens you turn a couple of valves (without any digging) to do that?

I have a feeling that a lot of people are going to get unpleasant surprises as water costs continue to rise.

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Sounds like you have a high spot in the line between the tank and booster pump that is trapping air. Or, some serious elevation changes from the booster pump to the highest discharge point.

Did you install a bleeder valve in the line while you had it open?

Not a problem, all you need, is to add the thread adapters to either end of your cut and use unions to put in your new check valve.. this way if it goes bad again you can replace it easily. But I'm guessing you already knew this... So this is more for others..

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Two changes to your game will eliminate all your headaches.

When I transitioned from copper to PEX, a few years back, my supplier told me that his company was still sticking with the old style compression bands, individual tools for each size and gauges. He recommended that I start with Oetiker clamps and a tool from a competitor. Simply put, they are great. The tool is stocked at Lowe's for $38. The clamps are 15-25 cents each at my local supply house, or a similar amount online. I have never had a leak I didn't cause by forgetting to pinch a clamp, or some other dumb move. I've used thousands of them and wouldn't switch if you gave me an old style tool and free rings.

As for drain fittings, I have zero issues with glued shedule 40 PVC fittings. It's all about square, clean cuts (I use a cheap 10" miter saw) then clear primer, and glue while the primer is still wet. If you are talking about drain fittings under sinks well.......... that's a whole other issue. They are all poorly made garbage, supply house, home depot, it doesn't matter. The first thing I do if I find the inevitable drip under the sink is to tighten all the fittings by hand, again. But this time I run HOT water down the drain for a few minutes first. This will really expand all that cheap plastic crap and allow you to tighten the snot out of it. If this fails, it's time to grab the plumber's putty. Take the leaky connection apart and massage a bit of putty into the treads, you just need a bit. Now reassemble, and hand tighten. Between hot water and a light application of putty, I haven't lost too many battles under the sink. Occasionally, a brand new part will be so poorly made that it needs to be replaced, as no amount of fiddling is going to cure it. Our local code enforcement requires pressure testing on all drain and supply lines, so I know what it's like to have leaks take you to the edge of sanity. Good luck.

Thanks for the advice. I use the Lowe's tool, and it works great- now that I have a good gauge.

As for the drain fittings- They are molded plastic, and have significant molding flaws, with a prominent ridge on each side. Since I am a moldmaker by trade, I understand what causes this, although it doesn't help my problem. I'll try the plumbers putty. I just can't imagine professional plumbers putting up with this- maybe that's why they charge so much!

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"What one generation tolerates, the next generation embraces." -John Wesley

Shift gears.

For example, I shifted gears and started playing with my automotive stuff for plumbing. In particular, permatex gasket sealant. Run a bead of that around the fittings at the bottom of the sink, screw it together, and *not* have it leak.

I guess I don't write as clear as I think, LOL. Google "Oetiker stainless steel PEX clamp" for a pic. of the type of clamp I'm referring to. This system has one tool for any size PEX ( 3/8" 1/2" 3/4" and 1") it is far more compact to use, doesn't require any gauge to check your work, and is a lot easier and more reliable. I guarantee that if you switch, the old tools and clamps will be on the table at the next yard sale, it's that much of an improvement!

You are correct about the under sink drain parts. I often take the time to scrape the flash of of the tubing in the area when the compression ring will be. Once you learn all the tricks, it really goes pretty quick, and tightening by hand, after a good hot water soak eliminates about 90% of the problems. You have more experience than I do with producing parts, but I think the reason plumber's putty does the job is that it actually fills voids and compensates for some of the horrible lack of tolerances in the joints.

I know PVC is inexpensive and pex is easy to use. I still use 200 lb NSF approved black polyethylene pipe along with brass compression fittings and SS inserts. It's one and done. The stuff won't rot. And it won't leak. Using anything else is creating an opportunity for Murphy to schedule use of your time and money in the future.

Black plastic pipe fittings....??

These are typical fittings. Except for the stainless steel insert to stiffen the polyethylene pipe, nothing goes inside the pipe to obstruct flow or corrode. Just make sure to buy CTS fittings for CTS pipe and IPS fittings for IPS pipe. The size difference is obvious but checking the label or marking may save you a wasted trip to the store.

Note that these fittings are universal and can connect PVC and copper as long as the external diameter, CTS or IPS matches.