Leaky tap.

Vadakin

The cold tap in my bathroom sink is leaking...ok I say leaking, it's running as if the tap was open. I don't have access to the attic to turn the water off and because of the weather it could be a couple of days before the plumber can get out to me.

Let me also state that I know absolutely nothing about plumbing, hence the thread. While letting the water run for a few day may not be so bad, it's annoying as hell (I couldn't sleep last night due to the sound of the water running through the pipes) and I was thinking of doing a MacGuyver and finding a way to block the water from coming out at the tap, my thinking being that if the water is stopped from coming out, water won't need to run through the pipes and will settle down.

But I'm concerned that by manually backing up the water like that it could cause the pipes to burst. Can anyone help? Would it be safe to block the spout or should I get some ear plugs?

Davy

It could be a simple fix, post a pic of the tap, it will be easier to give advice on how to stop it that way.

FUNKY LOVER

towel in the sink-simples;)

Vadakin

I'll go look for my camera. But I know it's a fairly old tap, in fact I've never really seen one like it. The handle (or whatever you call it) is directly over the spout rather than back behind a long spout like most taps.

Vadakin

FUNKY LOVER wrote: »

towel in the sink-simples;)

?? Wrapped around the tap? Again I know nothing about anything :P

FUNKY LOVER

Vadakin wrote: »

?? Wrapped around the tap? Again I know nothing about anything :P

no i just mean to stop the noise annoying you while you wait to get it fixed etc,put a towel in the sink and it will stop the drip drop noise:)

FUNKY LOVER

oh i see its the noise going through the pipes towel wont work so,post a pic, if you can.

Vadakin

The house is a bit of a construction site at the moment (the heating isn't even in yet so yes, I'm slightly cold) and the taps will be replaced (in fact pretty much everything will be) but I really just need a stop-gap measure that will do me until I can get the plumber in. But I don't want to risk bursting the pipes by preventing the water from coming out.

Sparkpea

its probably a new washer that the tap just needs

if you put a towel in the sink to stop the drip drip noise then theres a chance the sink will fill and overflow so its not recommended.

if you block it up then no it wont burst a pipe because thats just doing the same sort of job that a washer is

I dont think you should block it up and if you cant get into the attic to turn the water off at night from annoying you then my best advice is to just put up with it until the plumber gets out.

you've already said a few times you know nothing about plumbing so please don't touch things you know nothing about as it only makes life harder for the plumber coming behind.

i've seen people wrap loads and loads and loads of clingfilm around pipes etc to stop a leak but its not ideal and its a real pain in the arse to get off afterwards.

FUNKY LOVER

Sparkpea wrote: »

its probably a new washer that the tap just needs

if you put a towel in the sink to stop the drip drip noise then theres a chance the sink will fill and overflow so its not recommended.

if you block it up then no it wont burst a pipe because thats just doing the same sort of job that a washer is

I dont think you should block it up and if you cant get into the attic to turn the water off at night from annoying you then my best advice is to just put up with it until the plumber gets out.

you've already said a few times you know nothing about plumbing so please don't touch things you know nothing about as it only makes life harder for the plumber coming behind.

i've seen people wrap loads and loads and loads of clingfilm around pipes etc to stop a leak but its not ideal and its a real pain in the arse to get off afterwards.

ah now a perfectly positioned towel does the job trust me;)

Sparkpea

FUNKY LOVER wrote: »

ah now a perfectly positioned towel does the job trust me;)

face cloth or sponge maybe but not a towel, anyway hes talking about water running down pipes so it could be the waste pipe water thats annoying him which will still do that even with the towel.

either way - OP do so at your own risk

FUNKY LOVER

Sparkpea wrote: »

face cloth or sponge maybe but not a towel, anyway hes talking about water running down pipes so it could be the waste pipe water thats annoying him which will still do that even with the towel.

either way - OP do so at your own risk

ah i only posted it as a joke,all's good!!

Vadakin

So...wrapping clingfilm or something around the tap to stop the water will basically do the job of the washer and not burst any pipes, at least until I can get the plumber out?

I guess the big problem is that with the weather it could be a while before the plumber gets up to me and I'm worried about leaving the house with the tap running.

Sparkpea

I'd rather leave the tap running, water flowing, tank filling in etc. less chance of anything bursting from frost in this weather

aujopimur

Those 50 's taps are obselete, I think replacement is your only choice.