water pipe leak paranoia

When repairing pipes, how long does it take you to stop worrying about it leaking or bursting and trust it?

I just finished my first major PEX repair to some old galvanized/copper pipes that the previous owner cursed on me. One joint is in the attic, one is in the wall, one is the connection between the spout and the pipe. I'm worried as heck about it bursting, leaking, that sort of thing, but so far I haven't seen any indication of a leak.

If it isn't leaking by the first 2 minutes, is it safe to say it ain't gonna leak?

Is there something I can do to mitigate the danger of having a spout fitting right next to a 220 v plug? (washing machine hot water tap and the dryer plug basically) I'm thinking that if the water line bursts, spills water all over the 220 v outlet, I'm in a serious world of hurt.

Reply to
Eigenvector
Loading thread data ...

breaker should trip, try not to fret, theres a better chance a washing machine hose will burst. to be on the safe side turn main water valve OFF when no one is home.

Be sure your homeowners is paid up:)

Look a airliner could lose a engine on top of your home....

Cant prevent everything!

Reply to
hallerb

I guess, but damn its scary to have a bunch of replaced water lines then just "trust it".

BTW: All those who recommended that I switch to pipe dope instead of teflon tape - RIGHT ON! It works much better than the tape.

Reply to
Eigenvector

I would think your fine until a rat our mouse wants a taste.

Reply to
Sacramento Dave

We have the same .. in my panic, when the washer hose burst, I was standing in water and about to reach behind the washer to shut off the water. Thought better of and and ran out to shut off the main breaker, then tend to the flood :o)

Reply to
Norminn

In the past, I have always had good success with Teflon tape, and so always used it. I have just completed installing a 5 step filtration system and ran into a number of problems. First I found that the leadless solder is almost impossible to work with, especially if some of the fittings are a little loose. The solder would rather run out of the joint than fill the joint because of the very narrow temperature range of it being soft or slushy. Second, I was having seeping at all my tape joints. Replaced the tape with a good grade of dope and they all sealed tight. It is dope from now on.

Reply to
EXT

My dad who lives in phoenix went on vacation for a week:) Realtives got the call, water coming out the front door. My brother went over to check:(

Had trouble opening front door, 8 inches of water thru out home, on a slab.

A water filter under kitchen sink had burst,

insurance covered everything but 500 bucks

my dad appreciated the repainted house, and new carpeting, it was due to be replaced anyway, but with replacement insurance it was free

Reply to
hallerb

240V GFCI breaker, a metal or plastic hood over the outlets, and a kill switch/valve for either the water line or the circut, (or both) where you can reach it with a stick.
Reply to
Goedjn

I was thinking about using one of those plastic outlet covers for the plug, but do they sell GFI circuits for dryer plugs?

Anyway one of the reasons I'm so paranoid is because the system is completely non-grounded. Its a 1950's 100A no main breaker no ground bus fusebox and all my outlets are 2 prong. So until I can come up with the cash to have an electrician update the fusebox I'm skittish as all get out.

BTW: Where is the 3rd prong on the 220V socket going, I thought it was 3 wire but how is that handled on a non-grounded outlet?

Reply to
Eigenvector

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.