December 3, 2009
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Sorta Felt Like Princess Peach Waiting for Mario and Luigi …
Earlier this year the pipe that leads to the front hose bibb burst as if there was frozen water inside. I thought that was funny, in a not-so-funny way, since I always turn off the outside water to avoid situations like that one I had. Being the person that I am, I’ve already turned off the water to that hose bibb but every so often I’ll turn the bibb on to see if there’s any water sitting in the pipe.
And would you guess there is! I can’t figure that out since the turn-off valve is in the off position and I drained the pipe. So where is this extra water coming from? I traced the pipe as best as I could and could only come up with that there’s a leak in the ball socket portion of the turn-off valve. After using the Sharkbite system to fix my previous pipe issues I figured I could do the same since they make a replacement 1/2″ valve that I could use. I go to Home Depot get the parts that I need (basically the valve and another coupler since I want to replace about a foot of piping because of a previous pipe repair on the old pipe). Since this pipe is close to the water main shutoff I figure I gotta be prepared. I have my pencil, my tape measure, a towel to wipe down any water, pipe cutter, spare pipe and Sharkbite parts. I turn off the water main and start to drain the water in the house by turn on faucets. Water stops so I begin.
I cut above the old valve thinking that if it’s in the off position it’s better to start there. Water starts to gush out of the pipe I just cut. Not that much that the towel can’t suck up. I should have gotten my Shamwow. More water is gushing out. I need to find a bucket. I need to find a bucket FAST! This makes no sense to me. The valve is in the off position, at most if there’s a leak there shouldn’t be this much water. I find a bucket and it begins to fill at a slow pace. I then proceed to cut the bottom portion of the pipe that has the valve on it. As soon as that’s cut there’s more water coming out. The bucket is filling pretty fast. Faster than before. I may need a second bucket and then thoughts of Mickey Mouse and the bucket and mop scene from Fantasia comes to mind. I quickly just stick on the new valve. Whatcha know. The water stopped. I then proceed to replace the rest of the pipe and seemingly everything is OK now.
So what’s the lesson here? Hire a plumber? Maybe. Or remember a bucket next time you’re cutting water pipes? Maybe. What about our friend “Mr. Gravity”? Yes, Mr. Gravity. Even though I turned off the water main since this pipe was so close to the main and though I thought I drained all the water in the pipes it was only the water that pressure could bring to the faucets. Anything else will just sit in the pipes and when I made the second cut to the pipe all that water found a way out through our friend Mr. Gravity and the new hole I made. ooooh Mr. Gravity you are a tricky one.
Hopefully this fixes the leaking hose bibb problem and this repair works.
I really hate plumbing …
