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Home and Garden :: Plumbing

How To Repair A Copper Water Pipe

A leak in a copper water pipe can be a pesky problem.

Fortunately, for now, most modern homes are plumbed with copper water pipes. We have not seen too many leaks in copper lines, but they can and will happen as time moves on.

As your home starts to age, there is no doubt that those old copper pipes will corrode. They won't rust, but they will corrode. Copper will also wear away, such as copper run for circulating lines. Eventually that circulating line will wear away the copper and cause a leak. I've witnessed it.

It is important to note the following fact: A leak from a water pipe is different than a leak from a waste pipe. For clarity sake: a water pipe carries the water to your plumbing fixtures and a waste pipe carries the water away from the fixtures. A copper water pipe leak will not stop typically unless it is fixed. A leak from a waste pipe will only leak when the plumbing fixture is used. If you have a continuous leak, (a leak that never stops) you have a water pipe leak. If you have a leak that comes only as a fixture is used, you have a waste pipe leak. DO NOT GET THE TWO CONFUSED!

There are two types of water pipe leaks. The first is on an exposed pipe and the second is on a pipe buried in the wall or ceiling. An exposed pipe is obviously easier to fix and easier to find.

A leak in a copper pipe can only be repaired by cutting and replacing the leaking part of the pipe.

The only way to fix a leak or series of leaks is by cutting out a whole section of pipe or pipe and fittings. If a leak is at a fitting joint or on a fitting itself you must replace at least a small section of the piping and the fitting.

You can cut copper piping with a low priced tubing cutter available at your plumbing supply store or good hardware store. You can also use a hack saw with a good blade, or use an electric sawzall. You can buy a good Milwaukee sawzall for about $150.00. Depending on what you are replacing you may need to cut the pipe once or more times.

Measure the section or sections to be replaced. You will not need a union between any two fittings. If the length of piping is long, you may figure a coupling or couplings. Figure in any fittings you are also replacing.

With your measurements in hand, go over to your plumbing supply house or good hardware store and buy your piping. Buy only type L (Blue streak type) water piping. Copper piping comes in 10 foot sections. Bring a small section of pipe with you if you are unsure of the pipe size.

Load the pipe into your vehicle with care:

1. Cut threads are sharp and could cut your interior or someone in the vehicle.

2. Be careful with any windows in your vehicle. Piping can easily crack a window. I know, I've lost more than one windshield that way.

When installing copper piping you will need the following tools and supplies:

1. A tubing cutter

2. A tape measure

3. A pen or pencil

4. Sand cloth (sand paper that comes in a roll)

5. Flux

6. A very small acid brush

7. Solder

8. A fitting cleaning brush

9. A small propane torch

10. Torch tip

11. Matches

Measure out the exact lengths of piping you will need. Cut and clean the ends of the copper piping with the sand cloth. Use your fitting brush to perfectly clean each fitting joint. Use your acid brush and flux thoroughly the ends of the copper and the inside ends of the fittings. Push the piping into the fittings. After each section of piping is installed light your torch with tip in place. Evenly heat your first joint. Apply solder as the joint is heated. Apply solder all the way around each joint as they are heated. This is called sweating the joint.

Sweating copper is fairly easy to do. There are some cautions and requirements:

1. Be very careful of anything around your piping. If you accidentally touch or apply heat to something other than the piping, you could melt or worse catch something on fire. Never solder around anything flame-able or near plastic piping.

2. Keep your torch away from any children.

3. You cannot sweat piping that has any amount of water in it. The water will keep the piping cool enough so the solder will not melt. You must drain all water out of the piping.

4. Make sure each joint and inside fitting end are cleaned and fluxed. Solder will not stick to a dirty or unfluxed joint

With working with piping that is buried in the ceiling or wall, you have to add time to the job just to find the leak. If you are uncertain of where a leak originates, my best advice is to check up higher. So many times a leak will appear in a lower location and the actual leak is coming from much higher than you can imagine. Water has a mysterious way of traveling. It can travel a long ways in a wall, ceiling or even underground.

Another tip I can give you is this: A mere stain on a ceiling or wall is not an indication of a leak in a water pipe. Unless that stain is actually wet and dripping, it is possible that a stain could have been an old leak. More likely than anything it was caused by a waste pipe leaking, a broken seal on a toilet, water getting out of a bath or shower through the tile, or water getting on the floor.

There is no doubt in my mind, finding a leak can be tough. One other trick that has helped me in the past is a listening device of some kind, if you have one. You can even get primitive with a paper cup method.

If you have any further questions, comments or if you need some personal help please do not hesitate, call me:

Bob Peterson
847-332-1234