Moved Into a new house 6 mos. ago, this past weekend, Up the flooring ripped By The kitchen sink to find a 5′x6 ‘wet, rotten floor area Of The Which I’m cutting Currently Out and Replacing. Want to make sure The Leak IS taken care of (still do not know where) so I’m Replacing The Pipes From The crawl space up to the Sink. I’ve Noticed The Pipes I’ve taken out are 1 / 2 “copper with 5 / 8″ comp. nuts / fittings. Would this cause a leak? Was aussi No Teflon Anything On The gold threading. Also, When I Had The Water Turned Off To The House, There Was Still a steady drip, Enough to fill a 5 gal. in 8 hrs, From The fittings I removed from The Pipes. Could I Have too much water pressure? Fixing The Floor isn’t a problem, need to figure out Where the leak from SI so It Does not Happen Again. Thanks
April 3rd, 2011 on 10:35 pm
Compression fittings do not need any type of pipe dope compound on them. The ferrel under the nut makes the seal. If not tightened properly, they will leak. Usually the leak is in the form of a fine mist and sometimes can go unnoticed. Maximum water pressure in a house is 80 pounds. You can get a gauge at Home Centers that screws onto an outside faucet to find the pressure. If higher than 80, you need a pressure reducing valve installed in the line coming into your house.
April 3rd, 2011 on 11:15 pm
i personally prefer soldered joints….always..
but the need of teflon tape is not present for compression fittings……the fitting actually crimps as it is tightened….one problem may have been that the pipe wasn’t inserted completely into the fitting before it was tightened…..
if you are bringing in new lines i would convert to sweat style fittings……
and not knowing your situation exactly…i would consider using rolled copper pipe under the crawl space, and eliminate any joints all together…….but if you go that route..be careful not to crimp or crease the pipe when installing, as that will surely be a leak..if not imediately in the future…..
and remember if finding your leak…it isnt necessarily where you see the drip…water can travel great distances before it becomes apparent….
good luck
April 3rd, 2011 on 11:53 pm
The time to search for the leak was before disassembly. At this point, all you can do is guess. The leak may not have been from the supply – it could be from the drain, too.
The constant drip you refer to is caused by a leaky main shutoff valve. Probably the washer, or if it’s a gate valve, debris in the seat.
I recommend , at least for any fittings that will be hidden inside walls or elsewhere when you are done, that you use sweat fittings for the joints and get rid of the compression connectors.
April 4th, 2011 on 12:05 am
I agree with Hank and by all means do not use compression fittings when you replumb