New Sink - PVC Maze Assistance Needed! :)

[BDP]

Ok, I'm back. Bad news, we have a leak.

It's RIGHT at the base where the reducer meets the pipe coming up out of the floor. Worst possible spot as I can't see a way of getting this out without cutting right at the base pipe which is going to not only make me have to start totally over (and buy all new pieces), but also possibly not even leave enough pipe exposed coming up out of the floor to put a new reducer cap on there.

Is there ANYTHING I can do under the lip of the reducer cap, where the arrow is, to stop this leak? A bead of silicone sealant perhaps??? I hope there might be something I can do...Even though I realize it's not the ideal solution, starting over just makes me kinda ill. What a bummer.

See the photo below. If there's something I can do, please let me know. If not, can you let me know where the smartest place to cut will be to allow me to get the sink back out (above inside the cabinet or right below the cap there?). What worries me about cutting below the cap is that it doesn't leave a lot of exposed pipe coming up out of the floor anymore.

I'd already tried putting more cement around the seam but with no luck, leak was still there -- Also did some Google research this morning and read a post from someone saying that extra PVC glue was just a temporary fix, maybe for a few months, and that I'd see the leak come back again. Is that true?

Two other fixes I saw mentioned, both of which were only temporary -- One guy recommended an industrial glue called GOOP - He said to slather it around the joint and that it would last a few months. Another guy suggested epoxy cement, but also said that due to its bonding properties it would eventually expand and allow water through. They all mentioned that the PVC cement was a bonding agent but it wouldn't serve as a leak stopper.

Help???

 

[Jimbo]

PVC cement is not a glue at all. It is a solvent. The solvent melts the plastic so that when two pieces are forced together in the socket, the molten plastic fuses together into one solid....welded...piece. Duct tape or many other techniqes mentioned will all be partly or temporarily succesful. Eventually it will leak, and the water will attach the floor under that tile. Why not cut it apart and make it right, once and for all.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Dunbar Plumbing]

I have to ask

How many hours have you invested in this project, including trips to and from to the store(s) including cost of materials and materials junked?

Usually when one leaks there are others that follow. Let us know how you was making up those solvent weld connections; I'm thinking you are either skipping a crucial step or using old glue....which is causing all of these leaks.

 

[BDP]

I'd rather not think of the cost and time to do this...it's my first experience with PVC and plumbing on this level (running new pipe) so it's all a learning experience. I'll be able to do better next time. Still, wish I'd have had more success.

At any rate, I don't mind starting over to make it right -- My only question is, then, where to make the cut? If I cut the PVC inside the vanity, I'll be able to lift the vanity get it out, but then I still have the PVC stub stuck inside that cap and reducer coming out of the floor. I need a way to get back to the bare pipe coming up out of the floor again, but I'm not sure how to get that cap and reducer out of there now that I just glued it all in there a week ago...

 

[Markts30]

Cut the coupling in the middle (across) and remove the upper pipe...
Take a dremel tool or equivalent and make some vertical cuts through the coupling only (not the pipe) and use some screwdrivers to peel the coupling off the pipe...
It will be difficult and awkward but doable...
Then use some new couplings and a reducer to repair the piping...

 

[BDP]

Hey thanks, great advice. Starting over was the best approach. I managed to get the whole works apart and back to this state:

So now, the problem is that I noticed what MAY be causing the leaks. This bare pipe that comes up through the cement floor (base of the house) has some damage. There are some slivers missing on the sides of it (likely a side effect from removing the last coupler that was on there before I started).

So, before I start doing anything, is there anything I can/should do to this pipe before I attach/glue ANYTHING to it? I can try and get a photo of the damage if that would help. It's a little messy back there right now. I just want to do this RIGHT this time. I cannot get underneath this pipe as this is the base/ground floor of my home (no basement). This is about as bare as it gets.

Help/suggestions? THANK YOU ALL!

Brad

 

[BDP]

Also, just to make sure I am STARTING with the right 2 pieces, this is what I bought to start with on this bare pipe. The coupler on the right with the reducer glued into it (on the left) both placed on top of this bare pipe. Are these the proper parts? Also, does it matter if I glue the reducer into the coupler first, or glue the coupler onto the bare pipe first? The last time I did this, the reducer didn't fit in there too well by hand, so I rubber malleted it in there once I applied the primer and glue to get as flush a fit as possible.

Thanks!

 

[Rancher]

Since your stub up has be re-used several times, I would use lots of the solvent and quickly press it on, with a hose clamp on the outside and then torque that hose clamp as tight as you can...

Rancher

 

[BDP]

Ok, so a hose clamp can actually press on those things huh? Any you mean just glob on a ton of PVC cement, right???

 

[Rancher]

glob on a ton of PVC cement, right???

Yes the cement, the pros here call it solvent, I made the mistake at the plumber's warehouse supply place of calling the purple stuff solvent, and was quickly corrected that it was primer, and the cement was the solvent... re-do the primer also, get it as smooth as possible before you do. The hose clamp will squeeze it down a little, but not much, good luck.

Rancher

 

[Jadnashua]

The reducer seems to be a tight fit. THe last one I did, I installed it first, and pushed it home by pushing the fitting against a flat surface. Having it set that way also prevents the solvent and stuff from running down onto the otherside of the fitting.

 

[Kordts]

Why do so many people think I am a jerk? I am going to offer this DIYer helpful advice. Number one, take plumbers mesh or gritcloth and sand off that riser. Number two, use a reducing coupling, instead of a coupling and bushing. Number three, that riser is out of plumb. Either the baldy out of the floor is crooked, or the the hole in the bottom is off center and it's putting the riser in a bind. I would make the hole a little bigger so there is no strain on the pipe. After mechanically cleaning that baldy, prime the baldy and the reducer coupling, while the primer is still wet, apply glue(solvent cement.) Push it and give it a 1/4 turn while driving it home. Keep pressure on it for about 15 seconds. Then you go from there.

 

[Cass]

At this point with your track record I would use a banded coupling and go from there. This way you don't have to worry about it not bonding / solvent welding well and leaking.

 

[BDP]

Ok...Is this the piece I need or do you mean something else? This would go overtop the exposed bare pipe in the photo above then I would just run the PVC down into it from the vanity glue-free, right? The only issue I see here I think the pipe in the photo is only 2" wide and these seem way wider.

http://www.fernco.com/QS.asp

 

[Cass]

No use the 3000-150 found here

http://www.fernco.com/proflex.asp

You can find them or similar at Low*s

The pipe in the photo should be 1.5" if it is 2" you need the 2" coupling with a 2" X 1.5" bushing then your pipe.

 

[Markts30]

No use the 3000-150 found here

http://www.fernco.com/proflex.asp

The 3000-215 takes 2" pipe and adapts it to 1-1/2"
3000-215 2" CI, PL. or ST. to 1-1/2" PL. or ST. (Mission band no CP-215 )

 

[Cass]

The 3000-215 takes 2" pipe and adapts it to 1-1/2"
3000-215 2" CI, PL. or ST. to 1-1/2" PL. or ST. (Mission band no CP-215 )

Yes, but may be harder to find at a big box store.

 

[Markts30]

True enough - hadn't thought of that ...LOL

 

[Racer814]

At this point with your track record I would use a banded coupling and go from there. This way you don't have to worry about it not bonding / solvent welding well and leaking.

I think thats an excellent idea in this case...

 

[BDP]

How does this look? I assume since there is a band at the bottom and the top I don't need to use any glue at all when inserting the PVC into the top, just insert, get it to the proper location and tighten? I should have done this right from the start -- It allows me to pull out the sink/vanity if I ever need to without having to cut through pipe.