Leaking soil pipe (non-plastic)

[Tom]

Hi,

I have a small leak in my soil pipe (it's not plastic so i guess it must be ceramic) but don't want to go through the hassle at the moment of cutting and replacing the soil pipe. The leak is outside and drips slowly onto the edge of my patio. it isn't major but is certainly a drawback when having bbq's!!

I've been told that for a short term solution i can clean up the pipe, put loads of silicone around the hole, wrap it in bandages, add more silicone and then simply paint it black so it looks the same as the rest of the pipe.

can anyone tell me if this is a viable solution or should i get off my lazy backside and go about replacing the soil pipe that is leaking? or can anyone suggest a better way to fix a leaking soil pipe.

any help would be greatly appreciated,

tom.

[Peter Taylor]

Tom wrote

Could it be cast iron? Is the leak at the bottom junction to the drain or higher up?

Not really, it's a bodge. If it's the bottom joint leaking this is usually sealed with cement into a ceramic drain collar. You *might* be able to carefully break out the cement and remake the joint, but normally the collar has fractured. The easiest way to repair this is carefully break off the collar and fit a Timesaver cast iron clamp or (if you can move the pipe) a Flex-Seal rubber coupling with 2 Jubilee clips.

the leak is higher up, the pipe might be cracked (usually at the back) in which case it's a renewal job. But if it's a joint leaking these are usually done with molten lead and rammed into the collar using a hammer and chisel. You might be able to hammer the lead in tighter to seal the joint. Be very careful with the hammer as cast iron is extremely brittle.

Peter

[The Natural Philosopher]

I think this is a case for car body filler.

Your biggest problem is achieving a dry pipe.

If possible, flush the loo and use the old inflated polythene bag to push all the atwer out past the U bend. Open teh windows, cos it will stink.

Then carefully dry and clean the pipe. Especially where the crack is.

Use lots of tow part bodyfiller and bandage to compress the filler into the crack. Smooth off as best you can whilst still soft, and sand quickly whilst rubbery, cos once it sets its rock hard.

A nice final finish can be achieved by slopping on another later, and then using a bit of cardbioard, metal or whatever, wrapped around to form a smooth moulded surface. If you line that with clingfilm, it will come off once set.

Then paint it.

You should never need to touch it again.

>

[Harry Bloomfield]

On 22/01/2004 Tom opined:-

Your first job, is too find out were the leak is actually coming from. Is it the pipe or a joint in the pipe? Likely the pipework will be cast iron, which is very very brittle and easily damaged.

The joints I think were sealed using lead hammered down into them. If the leak is from here it should be possible to hammer the lead back in, but do it gently.

Cast iron pipe can also split. A good temporary repair would be some highly greasy tape by the name of Densil Tape (I think)..... Horrible stuff to handle. Wind this tightly round the pipe as a bandage and it should hold it for a good while, there should be no actual pressure in the pipe.

[Niall]

Vertical or near vertical joints only leak if the pipe is choked or partially choked. It's amazing how long a choked drain can go with a slight weep from a joint the only symptom.

Dry off pipe with blowlamp or heat gun, apply Flashband patch, heat patch gently, smooth into place. Can be painted over.

[Tom]

Thanks everyone for the responses.

it's definitely not a joint that's leaking and must be a crack in the pipe. i know it's a bit of a bodge-job not to replace but i have loads of work to do on the house and to be honest changing the soil pipe is low down on my list of priorities as long as i can stop the leak for now i can think about changing it at a later date!!

Harry mentioned something called Densil Tape. what is this and where can i get some from? and Niall mentioned something called a Flashband patch...again, what is this and where can i get it from? (i think even i can figure out where to get car body filler from!)

thanks again for your help. this newsgroup is fantastic. thanks to all who contribute and to those of you who keep it running.

tom :)

[Harry Bloomfield]

On 22/01/2004 Tom opined:-

I'm certainly not sure of the name, I have checked the Internet and not found it, however as said earlier...

It is an horribly sticky, greasy khaki coloured roll of sacking type material, good practical hardware shops would sell it. You will be cursing me when you try to put it on the pipe ;-)

[Soup]

Try Denzo.

[Peter Taylor]

Tom wrote

It's actually called Denso tape. It's an old fashioned product and I'm really surprised if it's still around. It was used for wrapping steel pipes to stop rust, mainly underground. It's basically a bandage impregnated with thick heavy grease type stuff - it's horrible to use and looks b****y awful. Seriously - don't bother with this. There are better alternatives.

Flashband is a cheap alternative to lead flashing, often used for reparing splits in lead but not permanently. It's a thickish aluminiuim foil with black bitumen sticky gunge stuff on the back which sticks to everything it touches. You can get it from any Builders Merchant. Not sure about sheds - probably.

Metal from B&Q would do it, or you could even use exhaust repair bandage. Much better than Denso tape.

If you don't want to replace the soil pipe, why not cut out the cracked section with an angle grinder and put in a new section using two Timesaver joints like I mentioned earlier. That WOULD be a permanent repair.

The crack will get worse quite quickly due to frost. Once the wall starts getting wet it's time to replace the pipe - don't leave it or you could end up with really nasty rot or damp.

Peter

[Peter Taylor]

[Harry Bloomfield]

Peter Taylor wrote on Thursday (22/01/2004) :

Yes you can get the Flashband from the sheds. At least I got a couple of rolls of it last year, about £10 a roll. I had not thought of that, but that would work and be a much cleaner job to apply. Good idea!

[Colin]

You may want to check why the pipe has split. I had a similar problem. I found that the pipe was blocked and suspect that water in the pipe froze and split it...

Colin