Pipes leaking

Officer999

Hi all, I’m looking for some advice on a leaking issue we’ve been having.

So last year we had a leak coming from our living room ceiling. Took some of the ceiling out and found some quite bad mould. There was a lot of dampness and water build up. Noticed a leak from one of nuts at the elbow joint of the pipe. Called a plumber and he came out and just tightened the nut and said it’s wear and tear. It is an old house. So got a plasterer in to fill in new plasterboard etc. Thought job done.

About a month ago we had another leak in another part of the living room ceiling. Tore part of it down and spotted water dripping again from a nut on one of the pipes. Called out same plumber and again all he did was just tighten the nut and again put it down to wear and tear. Old pipes he said. So dried it out, plastered it up, painted ceiling etc.

So now we have a leak coming from the kitchen ceiling. I’ve cut off part of it and again notice water coming out of a nut at the corner joint of the pipe.

At this stage, I’m not calling the same plumber. Surely as this stage three separate leaks from three separate pipes is a major issue. I don’t think we can keep putting it down to wear and tear. Has anyone any advice on the next step?

hurikane

Officer999 wrote: »

Has anyone any advice on the next step?

Tighten the nut

Officer999

hurikane wrote: »

Tighten the nut

I have. But do you think there is a more serious issue here that just nuts needing to be tightened?

148multi

hurikane wrote: »

Tighten the nut

Tighten all the fittings

Stihl waters

What did the plumber do wrong that you're not bringing him back a third time after doing a good job the previous 2 times, unless you take down all the ceilings and replace all the pipework what do you think he can do

Vestiapx

Officer999 wrote: »

I have. But do you think there is a more serious issue here that just nuts needing to be tightened?

How old is the house, can I see a pic of the leaking join

Vestiapx

Stihl waters wrote: »

What did the plumber do wrong that you're not bringing him back a third time after doing a good job the previous 2 times, unless you take down all the ceilings and replace all the pipework what do you think he can do

This is the issue op either you pay a plumber to check all your joints and then a plasterer to make good all the nessicary inspection holes or you fix them as they arise.
If you are fixing as they arise then either keep paying the plumber or learn to tighten them up your self and patch the access holes.

ongarite

If its an old house it more than likely has gun barrel pipes.
These can rust as they get older & leak as you have seen.
Tightening up the nuts is probably only going to be a temporary fix.

Officer999

Vestiapx wrote: »

This is the issue op either you pay a plumber to check all your joints and then a plasterer to make good all the nessicary inspection holes or you fix them as they arise.
If you are fixing as they arise then either keep paying the plumber or learn to tighten them up your self and patch the access holes.

Hi, I understand that leaks happen, but three different leaks in less than a year seems a lot. I was thinking is there a serious underlying problem with pressure etc?

Officer999

ongarite wrote: »

If its an old house it more than likely has gun barrel pipes.
These can rust as they get older & leak as you have seen.
Tightening up the nuts is probably only going to be a temporary fix.

Hi they are not gun barrel pipes. They seem to be the standard copper pipes. Though that’s my worry regarding the leaks, that tightening up the nuts is just a temporary fix.

Idioteque

Officer999 wrote: »

Hi, I understand that leaks happen, but three different leaks in less than a year seems a lot. I was thinking is there a serious underlying problem with pressure etc?

There's another way to think about it. After x amount of years, due to wear and tare (and however they were installed), some joints may start to leak. The fact they are all failing around the same time makes it more likely the case given they were most likely installed at the same time.

In saying all of that, how old is the house?

Also, were all 3 leaks on pipes from the same feed do you know?

...Ghost...

OP, I know how you feel. I've had leaks in the living room and kitchen in recent times, but it sounds like the plumber is right. If tightening the nut solved the problem on the join, he did his job and is not responsible for the rest of the pipework unless you pay him for a full service.

The annoying part is having to rip apart the ceiling and patch it up each time. You should take some comfort that the leaks are happening relatively close to each other in time and perhaps take it as a sign to have the pipework refurbished or even replaced. After some procrastination and lots of leaks, I had to do this to the bath waste pipe which meant ripping out tiles and replacing the pipe which it had turned out to have dislodged from a support and started to bow down, causing regular back-ups leaks. Take the pain now and don't think about it for another 50 years.

Officer999

Idioteque wrote: »

There's another way to think about it. After x amount of years, due to wear and tare (and however they were installed), some joints may start to leak. The fact they are all failing around the same time makes it more likely the case given they were most likely installed at the same time.

In saying all of that, how old is the house?

Also, were all 3 leaks on pipes from the same feed do you know?

The house is about 50 years old. I’m pretty sure it’s the same feed yeah, the hot water pipes.

Officer999

...Ghost... wrote: »

OP, I know how you feel. I've had leaks in the living room and kitchen in recent times, but it sounds like the plumber is right. If tightening the nut solved the problem on the join, he did his job and is not responsible for the rest of the pipework unless you pay him for a full service.

The annoying part is having to rip apart the ceiling and patch it up each time. You should take some comfort that the leaks are happening relatively close to each other in time and perhaps take it as a sign to have the pipework refurbished or even replaced. After some procrastination and lots of leaks, I had to do this to the bath waste pipe which meant ripping out tiles and replacing the pipe which it had turned out to have dislodged from a support and started to bow down, causing regular back-ups leaks. Take the pain now and don't think about it for another 50 years.

Yep your right! If it was just the leak that would be fine, it’s the tearing down the ceiling and repairing it again which is the hassle! Not bearing in mind the cost too.

I guess regarding refurbishing or replacing the pipes there lies the problem. If the plumber comes in for a third time and is saying wear and tear then there’s nothing else I can do. Or do I get a second plumber in for have a second evaluation. Because how do you know if it’s just wear or tear, or it needs replacing totally?

...Ghost...

Officer999 wrote: »

Yep your right! If it was just the leak that would be fine, it’s the tearing down the ceiling and repairing it again which is the hassle! Not bearing in mind the cost too.

I guess regarding refurbishing or replacing the pipes there lies the problem. If the plumber comes in for a third time and is saying wear and tear then there’s nothing else I can do. Or do I get a second plumber in for have a second evaluation. Because how do you know if it’s just wear or tear, or it needs replacing totally?

It should be an easy decision to make if it's all on the one line and you have to take down parts of the ceiling. I would look to replace the whole pipe and any other pipes I could access while doing the job. You could just replace the joins, but the cost difference would be minimal, so may as well go the whole hog. It would rule out any wear and tear problems on the replaced parts and the entire line for a long time.

I'm not a plumber, but i've tackled a few of these issues over the years and I say new is usually always better.