Wednesday, December 5, 2012

DIY Plumbing

I was puzzled why the floor was wet after I had finished washing the dishes in the sink.

Upon checking beneath the sink, I found that one of the pipes had come loose. Gawd!

Spot the missing link!

At first glance, the first thing that came across my mind was thread tape.

I rummaged through the drawers and found none.

Dammit.
Had to drive out to buy some then.

My sister wanted a plumber to be called to REPAIR the damn thing immediately.



But what is there to repair, when I knew that this part could easily be replaced?
Or so I thought.

I was confident I could do this on my own, so I informed her I was heading down to the nearest ACE Hardware store to purchase it immediately.



On closer inspection, this pipe was sawed off to fit that section from the bottom of the sink to the horizontal pipe. (OK, I really do NOT know the anatomy of pipes and sinks and stuff, so do bear with me!)


The sawed off part required the elastic rubber band to hold the screw cap in place. 

I later realised (after wasting almost 2 hours driving to and fro hardware stores) that geez, it was the damn elastic rubber band's fault!


Never mind.
I added as much as thread tape as I could, tested the screw caps (can someone please tell me the right terminology? I sound ridiculously bimbotic not knowing!) to make sure they could lock on tight.

But it was the stupid rubber band's fault.

It refused to stay in place!


I forgot to buy masking tape, by the way.
Cellotape, anyone?

*laughs out loud*

I kill me!
Cellotape didn't work, silly!
It wasn't strong enough to keep the rubber band in place.

So I gave up.

I wrapped thread tape around it as much as I could, yet ensuring that the screw cap could still slide through it and lock in place.


Done!

For now.

I added more thread tape below the screw cap, just in case it's not secured enough. *nervous*

If look carefully at Picture 1 above, the horizontal pipe slants thereby creating pressure on to this little vertical pipe. I'm thinking of typing it up to lessen the pressure on the little vertical pipe, but do let me know what you think!

And just in case I was wrong, I purchased a set of pipes for RM18.

I thought I'd have to replace the entire system on my own!

Don't know what to do with them at the moment. In fact, I tested the rubber band on from this set, and it's worse than my original crappy one!
 

3 comments:

  1. Not a bad DIY job. The wife says I'm hopeless when it comes to DIY work at home and she's absolutely right ...hahaha!

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  2. I like your post,Plumbing is great tips for saving money.I am sure that people in plumbing have many opportunities and good products to us :)
    Thanks for sharing your post.

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  3. *applause* It looks pretty neat in the 'done' photo. A loose screw cap isn't really something you should call a plumber immediately for, though some do. And I honestly think that despite the lack of plumbing knowledge, you were still able act on it properly, particularly when you've had the sense to ensure that the cap is still movable amidst the layers of thread tape. :] -->Darryl

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