Cast Iron Soil Pipe TLC

[hightower]

I have a cast iron soil pipe, which has a fibre t-piece connecting it to the upstairs toilet, whic itself has a plastic outlet pipe. I was rubbing down the pipe over the weekend, as the previous owners had used regular dulux paint on it and it was flaking pretty badly, when I noticed the fibre t-piece was really wet and mossy and upon a gentle prodding with a finger start to disintegrate :(

The soil pipe is in pretty good nick, just a little rust which I am intending to sort out, but what's the most practical and sensible way to replace the t-piece? The pipe consists of 3 sections, one of which sits above the t-piece and continues up through the roofline. It seems to be held on with a single bracket, with BIG nails in it, and basically puttied into the t-piece. I'm hoping to release the pipe from the wall, raise it up a few inches and remove the t-piece, replacing it with an angle-adjustable plastic one. How manageable would this be halfway up a ladder, and is it worth the effort or is it better to bite the bullet and swap the whole lot out for plastic (and would this entail 'regulations')?

Cheers

Rich

[Cicero]

================================== I'm in the process of doing a similar job myself (revised bathroom / toilet layout) so just to add to what another poster (John Stumbles ) said. First, the cast iron pipe. According to my rough calculations it weighs about 22 / 25Kg per metre so you might be trying to lift about 50Kg (1 cwt Imperial). That could be very dangerous on a ladder. Second the connectors mentioned. The rubber type with worm drive clips is readily available from proper plumbers' merchants but it's expensive - about 25 GB pounds for the 110mm size. The other type (plastic socket) is a bit hard to find but Toolstation -

stock them under 'drain connector - less than 6 pounds. Another brand is 'MacAlpine' part no: Drain connector - Spigot / socket / DC1-Gr (or Bl for black) - about 6 GB pounds.

In an emergency (and possibly permanently) you could use a standard straight toilet waste connector instead of the specific drain connectors mentioned but they're not as deeply socketed as the proper thing.

Cic.

[Cicero]

p.s. The rubber type has a trade name, 'Flexiseal'.

Cic.

[1970alr]

Which, if either, is better?

When our plumber added the downstairs loo he cut the cast iron off just above the ground, and used one of the rubber type to connect a section of PVC up to the next joint in the cast iron, leaving the top section untouched. The new soil pipe is branched into the new pvc section from the side. My only concern is the expected lifetime of the rubber component: it looks pretty tough but rubber does eventually degrade. Will it last as long as the cast iron pipe has already (about 100y)?

The pvc socket type looks longer lasting in that regard, but the seals are rubber too, though not exposed to the sun.

Andrew

[Cicero]

================================== My preference is for the solid PVC coupling but I'm not a professional so others may know better. I think the rubber looks and feels like a bodge although I don't doubt that they're fully approved.

As far as your particular situation is concerned I think I would have serious concerns about the weight of the cast iron bearing down on PVC, even if it's fixed with spikes into the wall. Cast iron isn't intended to be hung loose as it effectively is in your case as PVC could easily bend under the weight of the cast iron.

Maybe you should get a second opinion from a friendly BCO.

Cic.

[hightower]

Thanks for the further response. The top pipe must actually have a further extension bit above it, because I just noticed the single bracket holding it to the wall is below a collar such that the pipe rests with its main weight on the collar/bracket. The t-piece I need to change is fibre, which can't be much stronger than PVC so should be OK? I'll definitely ensure the thing is safe before proceeding.

Cheers

Rich

[Owain]

Probably not, few things do, but it'll probably last a couple of decades if not see you out.

Owain

[Cicero]

================================== I was actually referring to the situation described by another poster (1970alr) but of course the same advice applies to your situation. Check the condition of any fixings before doing any work. Cast iron is normally strongly fixed but the fixings and brickwork into which they're fixed deteriorate with time. If a section of cast iron comes loose you're in for a bad headache!

Cic.