What is it with plumbers & fibre washers in tap connectors?
Its actually rare to find one. Usual practice seems to be to wrap loads of PTFE tape around the bottom of the connector & hope for the best.
Helping my daughters bloke remove entire bathroom today prior to refurb, not one single tap connector had a washer, all bodged with PTFE.
Bearing in mind a bag of 100 is only £3 why don't people use them?
Last leak I had in my Alpha boiler was a failed fibre washer .I now have a guy coming on Tuesday for another leak at the Filling Loop connection .....will it be another washer failure ..time will tell.
Probably because the Readers' Digest Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual circa 1978 neglected to mention it...
I've had quite a few that have gone soggy and/or crumbled over a period of time - and then they leak!
One connector had failed due to the fibre washer. I made a few attempts with a couple of new fibre washers, and got nowhere. Substituted a rubber one and perfectly watertight first time.
NT
I've often wondered what is the difference/correct usage of fibre, rubber, nylon washers
dg
Easy, they often find that they are more trouble than they're worth - especially after the local "fixit and bodgeit" has been playing with them!
No, they don't "hope for the best" - they actually know how to use the stuff in a given situation!
*THAT* would have been a sight for sore eyes I bet?Really quite simple for those that know.
A Easier to carry a roll of PTFE tape than many different sizes and types of washers and O rings.
B Very often that's the only stuff that will stop a leak on damaged or deformed seatings & joints [1].
C A very often, that's the only thing that will work after the "fixit and bodgeit" brigade has been there!
A question Dave, is there actually one job that you have attended where you haven't bitched about something or someone on this group?
It would be interesting to here from someone who has gone to job that you have done, seen then work and then tell the world what faults or omissions that you have left there.
Ah well, I've dug you out of the bin as a result of reading a reply from yet another of your informative posts, took a little time to respond to -and then said sod-it, your still as egotistical and with nothing new to say and dumped you back in the bin.
[1] Other than the old putty, Bosswhite and horsehair methods of old - or even the bloody silicone mastic of today
... and hemp. Lovely to just carry a small hank and be able to make washers of any size required.
Remember - there is soluble fibre and insoluble fibre. And you need both to keep you healthy. But only one makes a good washer. :-)
Because they're a PITA to find when you need them! :-/
And only one makes a good spliff ;-)
The whole point of fibre is that it swells when wet & seals the joint.
Because they're =A33 for 4 and you have to find somewhere to store the other 96. ;-)
Until it crumbles - then it leaks!
got to b&q and they are £3 for 4 - problem solved! ;-)
Oh hello, its Tanner OP, Squared, Unbeliever - or whatever you call yourself this week. 'F****it' would seem to be appropriate.
Hint. Tap connectors are supplied with fibre washers, not a roll of PTFE.
Which clearly doesn't include you.
'Different sizes and types'? F****it. There are 2 sizes & 1 type.
Bollox it is. A fibre washer is the right way to do the job. Hint. Tap connectors are supplied with fibre washers, not a roll of PTFE.
Fibre washers work. Hint. Tap connectors are supplied with fibre washers, not a roll of PTFE.
Many. You are clearly too stupid to realise that I do 2 or 3 jobs a day, 6 days a week.
Post that again when sober. I think you are saying "It would be interesting to here [hear]from someone who has gone to [a] job that you have done, seen then [the] work and then tell the world what faults or omissions that you have left there".
Very good. Why don't you just FOAD and do us all a favour?
Still stuck in that 1950's time warp I see.
Still the same old failure put out to grass.
People nowadays either expect to buy a specific item (part number whatever) for a particular job, or are happy to botch a job with makeshift items such as PTFE tape, WD-40, car body filler (does anybody actually use CBF for filling car bodies?) - there's very little true utilisation of generic items (a.k.a. bodging!) (including washers!).
ISTR that fibre washers were used for hot-water systems and rubber for cold-water. This applied also to tap-washers. However, since synthetic rubber came about, (conventional) tap washers are more usually synthetic rubber, which is a bit more durable than fibre when in regular operation.
I have lots of them in different sizes. They were in a mixed kit of stuff from lidl. I only bought the kit for the key fobs and picture hooks but I have used a few fibre washers out of the kit.
The theory with fibre washers is that water leaks down the thread to them, they get wet, swell and seal the connection. The theory with PTFE tape is that water does not leak down the thread to begin with.
Colin Bignell
My last shower hose had fibre washers - no use, as the fittings can't be very tight, so rubber washers did the trick.
I've just used nylon washers between bib taps and upstands as that was a hard join (damned things needed some packing as they were >100 deg. out) for location and rigidity, with PTFE as the actual seal. Nylon will creep under load (so my bodge above might have limited life on the hot tap) so hard fibre washers could be better - and black would look better than white nylon (the thin black fibre washer between shroud and body is almost invisible against chromium).
I use both fibre washers and sealant; the sealant will protect the washer to some extent.
And lasts for decades in glands and is adjustable, unlike those damned O-rings.
Don't use porridge!
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