Repairing Flex PVC - is it possible?

[uryy4me]

After spending hrs plumbing in a closed loop and waiting for the cement to dry, when I went to check for leaks in the joins I was shocked to find a "pinhole" leak in a piece of the flex PVC.

If I cannot fix this leak, I will need to mail order for 2 more ball valves and A3K connector :(

Any chance that PVC cement can be used to weld this closed?

I guess at this point I am looking for a short term solution, I don't intend to leave it this way for very long, but I would like to be able to use this for about a month while I continue with the tank setup. Got any ideas?

[rbaker]

Cut it in half at the pin hole and glue back together using a union...:) 1 minute repair...

Ryan

[moconet]

Can you better describe the pipe or show a picture?

Flexible PVC to one person may not be what is understood by another. Is it similar to PEX pipe?

[uryy4me]

Originally posted by rbaker
Cut it in half at the pin hole and glue back together using a union...:) 1 minute repair...

Ryan

I am going to give this a shot, but the hole is a 1/4" from a wye so I am a bit concerned that I may not get a good weld there. I should have mentioned this in my posting, sorry.

[uryy4me]

Originally posted by moconet
Can you better describe the pipe or show a picture?

Flexible PVC to one person may not be what is understood by another. Is it similar to PEX pipe?

Home Depot folks refer to this a "Spa Tubing" here is a picture of similar stuff I will have returning water to the top of the tank Sample (http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=1565699) ...I don't think this is the same as PEX, but I could be wrong?

[justgettinstarted]

use a coupling

you can actually cut the coupling so it is shorter... like cut 1/2 the end off... then it will fit tighter and you will get a good seal...

never had a problem doing this... but i only do it on hard PVC

[justgettinstarted]

oooo, i would also reccomend getting the GREY PVC pipe glue... it works better than the clear... even though it is ugly... it is thicker bodied and has a longer working time

[uryy4me]

Originally posted by justgettinstarted
oooo, i would also reccomend getting the GREY PVC pipe glue... it works better than the clear... even though it is ugly... it is thicker bodied and has a longer working time

Makes perfect sense, duh! :p

But now you have raised another concern that may be a bigger conccern? What's this GREY PVC pipe glue and what is the the impact of using the clear?...I'm almost afraid to ask :(

[justgettinstarted]

just the apperance...

there is clear, purple, and grey

clear has the shortest setting time... purple a little longer... and grey the longest... IMO grey is the strongest... but it takes the longest to set up... since it is an ugly color it is usually used for underground piping... it is the same chemicals in it as the clear... but you can easily tell where you applied it

[uryy4me]

Originally posted by justgettinstarted
just the apperance...

there is clear, purple, and grey

clear has the shortest setting time... purple a little longer... and grey the longest... IMO grey is the strongest... but it takes the longest to set up... since it is an ugly color it is usually used for underground piping... it is the same chemicals in it as the clear... but you can easily tell where you applied it

OK, but how relative is "strongest"? Is this the kinda of thing where I now that I know better and should use the cement specifically made for flex for the remainder of the project, or is the strength difference such that I should consider going back and redoing everything already done with the regular PVC cement?

[mhurley]

Home Depot sells silicone sealing tape that is meant for this type of application. It can apply to wet surfaces wraps tight around the tubing and seals up the hole. It's black and about $4 a roll. I used it when I drilled a hole in a 90 elbow incorrectly and had a little fountain going. Just wrapped it around a few times and voila...no leak. At my HD, it's in the PVC aisle.

[uryy4me]

Cool, I'll look for the sealer this afternoon! :-)

[moconet]

The items that have been listed are not for this type of use. They may, in fact, simply eat through the tubing. Repairing this type of tubing with something that hardens up is not advisable.

I use a lot of this tubing and your best is to cut it back from the hole and rejoin.

Using the "Extreme Tape" is only a permanent fix. I have never seen it work for very long.

[justgettinstarted]

i would not redo anything... strength... lol is a relative term i guess..

since it takes longer to set... it actually unravels more of the polymers in the PVC pipe... allowing them to better interconnect when you place the 2 pieces together...

the "melting" that you see when you apply the glue is actually the polymers that make up the PVC pipecoming undone from one another....

the grey will simply give you more time to work with it... aka one the pieces toutch you have more time to play around befre they lock together!

[uryy4me]

Redoing this will be a significant undertaking both in terms of time and labor (good 1-2" ball valves, etc. don't come cheap) so I don't think I want to take this on right away but if it is the right thing to do, I might do this a bit at a time on "rainy days".

If a failure were to begin, would it generally start as a leak or a full blown separation...any tell tale signs to watch for?

[mhurley]

Originally posted by moconet

Using the "Extreme Tape" is only a permanent fix. I have never seen it work for very long.

Huh? Mine didn't "harden" at all. In fact, I can still peel it off if I want too. I'm not sure it's Extreme Tape or what. But it's working for me and for a pin hole type of leak, this might be a better option then tearing down and replumbing. Heck, might be worth reapplying the tape every couple months (if what you say is true) in order to avoid the plumbing rebuild.

[Chris L]

Cut far enough from the wye to get a reasonable fit into the couplng and make sure that the pinhole is far enough into the coupling. When you apply the solvent it should bond around the hole and provide a waterproof seal. If not, you had to redo everything anyway:)

chris

[moconet]

Originally posted by moconet

Using the "Extreme Tape" is only a permanent fix. I have never seen it work for very long. [/B]

Glad to see my english is 'well'! Extreme tape is generally gray in color, comes with plastic in between the layers. It will stick together and will not peel apart. You are correct in the fact that it will not harden. It may, however, allow water to seep under the tape if not pulled very tight.

I think we can all agree that leaky fittings are the last thing we need to worry about. How are you attaching them to your fittings? Are you not using barbed fittings like in the picture that I attached?

[uryy4me]

With 10,000 gph flow in the tank and 8 1-1/2 drains/returns in the bottom of the tank, I really don't want to concern myself with leaks :D

I picked up some of this "repair" tape @ HD last night, black in color, separated w/ plastic layer...didn't work so I am replacing this section of pipe (2 1.5" drains leading to a wye and into an A3K)

[martyharrison]

Originally posted by uryy4me
I picked up some of this "repair" tape @ HD last night, black in color, separated w/ plastic layer...didn't work so I am replacing this section of pipe (2 1.5" drains leading to a wye and into an A3K) [/B]

There is a trick to installing this stuff... You've got to stretch it as you apply it. The bond is formed when you overlap the tape- it sticks to itself really well as it overlaps while you wrap it. But it must be stretched as it is overlapped in order to make the bond. Practice wrapping it onto a scrap piece of pipe. Wrap many layers over and over. When you're done, try cutting that wrap of tape down to the pipe, you'll see that you've pretty much created a solid piece of rubber that's sure not to leak... (Also make sure the pipe is clean and dry before wrapping it) This tape works- that's for sure. You just need to know how to use it! HTH
Regards,
Marty

[uryy4me]

Marty - I'll try it again and at least keep it around for an emergency. I had stretched it out pretty good as I applied it, but the pipe was in a bad spot and that silly plastic wrapper became problematic as it got longer :D Thanks for the tip!

[martyharrison]

Originally posted by uryy4me
Marty - I'll try it again and at least keep it around for an emergency. I had stretched it out pretty good as I applied it, but the pipe was in a bad spot and that silly plastic wrapper became problematic as it got longer :D Thanks for the tip!

Forgot to mention...
I unroll a piece of the tape (for your application, maybe 8") and peel off the plastic wrapper. Then I carefully stretch it out- this stuff should stretch at least double it's original length. If you're not removing the plastic wrapper, you're not using it correctly... Seriously try a practice mend on scrap and cut through it with a sharp knife- you'll have alot more confidence in this repair after you see how it bonds together!
The only thing I would be concerned about if I were you is if the tape is going to be exposed to alot of direct UV lighting (in the path of your MH's) I'm not sure how well it holds up under those conditions. I used this stuff for electronic connections that I want to be water tight... It works. HTH
Regards,
Marty