Plumber's tips and tricks

Plumbing tips - a few ideas for your plumbing project.

  • Might seem obvious, but still - before cutting or dismantling any plumbing installation run the corresponding outlet to check that you have stopped the water successfully and relieve any pressure remaining in the pipes.
  • When opening a stopcock go all the way and then a quarter of a turn back - this helps prevent it from sticking.
  • If you need to drain a radiator and find that no drain-off has been installed, use a new rubble sack and position it around the radiator pipe so when you unscrew the valve, the water that comes out flows into the plastic bag.
  • It is amazing how much water can seep through a badly sealed gap between the bath and the wall, especially if there is a shower on top. In my experience, it is the most common cause of wet stains on ceilings.
  • If you have a leak on a waste pipes that you want to patch up, use LSX rather than ordinary silicone glue. It is designed for the purpose.
  • When glueing together waste pipes assemble the bits first to see they fit. As they are assembled, mark them with a pencil across and along each joint to be solvent welded. Thus when you add the solvent and have a few seconds to get the right position the mark across will tell you how far in to push, and the mark along - how to rotate.