Hot Water Tank Leak

We have been plagued by problems of minor (thankfully) leaks in our airing cupboard which is a spaghetti of pipework around the how water cylinder. The main culprit was the essex flange and this was replaced and, despite needing tightening recently, is now watertight. The exacerbating factor has also been that we were running the water much too hot with the therrmostat on the element turned up full (80deg) - lovely hot baths but lethal and I can't imagine it's done much for all the joints etc.

Anyway we now find there is a slow but steady drip coming thru the boards on which the tank sits but I cannot see the source of the leak itself. I can see only four joints that could leak - the element, the inlet, the main outlet and the essex shower outlet - all of these appear to be sound and dry.

Is it possible that the tank itself (copper with that dry foam insulation stuck all over it and about 20 years old I imagine) has some kind split/hole in it?

Is there anything we could use like radweld (?) to seal it up? The thought of having to replace the tank (meaning getting a plumber in to do it) is a bit of a nightmare cost-wise!

Thnaks, RB

Reply to
rburr49
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You can get into a bathful of water at 80C?

Do It Yourself.

It's not difficult.

Mary

Reply to
Mary Fisher

Yes. As you mention tighting a union, suspect that area first. The threaded bosses on the tank can be stress areas and can develop small "cracks" / splits when tightened.

It is possible to repair these with solder- drain tank, check area is dry, clean, flux, and use a deciet heat source.

I'd not even consider anything like "radweld"- if it later leaks when you aren't around (eg on holiday) the results don't want thinking about.

Brian

Reply to
Brian Reay

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember "rburr49" saying something like:

Old tanks sometimes develop leaks from the bottom where the metal is stretched thin during the stamping process.

Not much. I've tried this before (solder or fibreglass) and quite frankly it's not worth the hassle - it always leaks again. Replace with new.

Reply to
Grimly Curmudgeon

In article , Grimly Curmudgeon writes

Take my advice and bite the bullet on this one!. I've had the same situation as you with regard to the hot water cylinder in my daughters flat. The immersion heather gave up the ghost, changed that the next one lasted 8 months and slaughtered the heating element, something about the water there!.

Course doing up and undoing the immersion heather that developed a crack that you couldn't quite solder and decided to take it out to solder it better and discovered that in places its wafer thin and when doing the top output connector, that tore off cos the metal was so thin.

When it was all drained it weighed a ton because of all the limescale in the thing as it was run too hot!.

All in all new 900x450 cyl from Screwfix for 94 odd plus the VAT end of story all fixed and fine:))

Take a bit of time and care and its well within the DIY scope. Just use PTFE tape and a dab of sealant on the connectors and its difficult to make it leak!...

Reply to
tony sayer

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