Shower leak help...

2,035 Views | 19 Replies | Last: 6 yr ago by YellAg2004
bam02
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AG


I'm seeking advice on the leak in the picture above. The cold water side apparently was crimped/welded instead of capping or just using a proper elbow fitting. Now it's leaking profusely. I have zero experience messing with copper plumbing but I'm always willing to try most stuff around the house.

Should I attempt to to remove this fitting and put in an elbow? Should I just see if I can pull the small crimped length of pipe and replace it and cap it properly?

My biggest concern is starting it and not being able to turn my water back on if I completely fail.
The Fife
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Ouch... there's a lot going wrong here.

If I were just trying to replace the defective fitting (that T looks like 3/4" x 3/4" x 1/2", another sign of someone being cheap and taking a shortcut), I would cut the pipe running horizontally at the T and also an inch or two below it. A replacement section could be put in using a new elbow and repair coupling.

The other big thing I see that was done wrong is that there is no waterproofing behind that tile. That'll cause big problems down the road, which may or may not matter depending on how long it's been like that and how long you plan on staying there. Since there's already a hole in the wall I'd have a peek and see what everything looks down below. If the crimped piece was leaking for a long time there may already be rot at the bottom anyway.
bam02
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AG
Ugggh. This all started because the base boards on the back side of the shower started showing water damage. I'm embarrassed to say it started a couple of months ago very slowly and I just now got this far.

Guess I kept my head in the sand in it hoping it was very minimal leaking and damage, but I see now it's a constant flow from that crimped pipe.

I'm no Fife so tearing out that entire wall and redoing the entire shower is pretty daunting. It's also a little exciting for me to be prompted to do this, though. We do not want to stay in this house much longer so I won't plan to take out the useless garden tub next to this shower, but I'd like to expand the shower a little bit, change up the tile, and change up the glass.

Guess I'll be spending lots more time in the HI forum.
Kenneth_2003
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AG
Fife knows his stuff, and there are several others of us here that have stumbled into the shoes your wearing. Grab your hammer and start swinging. Sweating Cu isn't terribly difficult. Coat both surfaces in flux, set the two pieces together, and heat the opposite side from the solder. When its hot enough, the solder will fill in quickly, filling the gap.

Go ahead and cut in from the other side, cut the hot and cold, and sweat on caps or 1/4 turn valves. If you use valves, you might consider threaded valves till you get quick enough with your soldering to not damage the seats.


oh, and close the door to the bedroom. The dust is going to go everywhere.
The Fife
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Thanks for the kind words! For this type of emergency where I need to isolate just one thing while work is going on or to stop the bleeding while allowing the water to be turned back on until it can be addressed I keep a couple of those push-on endcaps lying around. Not sure if they make them in 3/4" but that may be an option here if the crimped pipe can be cut back to a section where it's still round but at the same time still has enough length for the fitting to grab on to.

They look like this and are easy to come by at your nearest friendly Lowes/HD.

bam02
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AG
Yeah my FIL told me a out the shark bite fittings, but I really doubt there's enough round pipe left there to get one on.
sts7049
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AG
i'd probably ask a plumber to do what fife suggested, there doesn't look like a lot of wiggle room there to fix any newbie mistakes if you try it yourself.

once you fix the leak you could do a little exploring on the back side wall where you saw the water damage and see how bad things really are to decide if you want to go much further.
bam02
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AG
Kenneth_2003 said:



Go ahead and cut in from the other side, cut the hot and cold, and sweat on caps or 1/4 turn valves. If you use valves, you might consider threaded valves till you get quick enough with your soldering to not damage the seats.


Thanks for the reply... I may be in trouble, though, because I'm already a little confused. Do you mean cut in from the back side of the wall? Also, what are the caps or 1/4 turn valves for? Is that to stop water flow during the project?
bam02
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AG
Probably good advice for me. My wife would say so!
Aggiemike96
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AG
Where are you located? If you don't mind a random TexAger swinging by, someone on here my come by and help you sweat some connections to band-aid it until you have a chance to explore completely.
bam02
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AG
Mike I'm in North Central SA. That would be awesome and greatly appreciated if it was convenient for someone.
Whitetail
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AG
bam02 said:

Mike I'm in North Central SA. That would be awesome and greatly appreciated if it was convenient for someone.
I used CL Construction to remodel my shower after a similar leak. They did a good job.
bam02
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AG
Good to know. I want to explace the DIY route but there's a good chance I say screw it and getc a contractor.
The Fife
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Since you plan on moving anyway, if you don't want to try and remove the fitting on your own I would just call a plumber to do it. Not having removed things that are sweated on this looks like it has a high pain in the ass factor. After that you can deal with the wall and missing/broken tile. The ROI on redoing the shower or entire bathroom is most likely not worth it unless you plan on doing the job on your own.

There's a time for getting into big projects, but this doesn't sound like one of them.
AgEngineer72
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AG
Let me suggest that you get a plumber or contractor to do the repair. I would definitely agree to an FYI fix if this was a simple sweat fitting repair that was out in the open. But this one is not as simple as it may look. Without the right kind of torch and the right experience you risk over heating that assembly and causing other joints to leak. You would find youself going joint to joint trying to stop leaks and maybe not fix the original leak. And it's even harder to fix if there's any water left in the pipes, even a little. You would also risk overheating the back of the wall and the valve and diverter. I'm a big DIY believer but this isn't a good candidate for first time learning experience.

While you're at it you might think about replacing the valve set. Don't know how old your house is but the valves get old and hard to find parts for. You're already in the wall.
Kenneth_2003
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AG
bam02 said:

Kenneth_2003 said:



Go ahead and cut in from the other side, cut the hot and cold, and sweat on caps or 1/4 turn valves. If you use valves, you might consider threaded valves till you get quick enough with your soldering to not damage the seats.


Thanks for the reply... I may be in trouble, though, because I'm already a little confused. Do you mean cut in from the back side of the wall? Also, what are the caps or 1/4 turn valves for? Is that to stop water flow during the project?


Yes sir!
I realize you might be moving soon, sooo that might not be your preferred route, but you're already going to be in there, there is likely water damage back there that needs to be addressed, and this owning will let you dry things out. You could always freaks it back up with a wooden access door if you don't want to do the sheetrock repair.
The Fife
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Kenneth_2003 said:

freaks it back up
Freaking it up is always a solid plan.
Kenneth_2003
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AG
Frame it back up...
I should avoid mobile posting after I've gone to bed...
bam02
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AG
Ouch! $866 to repair the plumbing. He's gonna cut in and put in a new fitting and he said he recommends a new cartridge because the work often leads to particles damaging the cartridge.
Gary79Ag
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AG
bam02 said:

Ouch! $866 to repair the plumbing. He's gonna cut in and put in a new fitting and he said he recommends a new cartridge because the work often leads to particles damaging the cartridge.
Highway robbery...get another bid from another plumber that knows what he's doing!
YellAg2004
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AG
Yeah, definitely need to get another quote. That's ridiculous.
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