DIY advice - Plumbing Zone

tnoisaw · 07-30-2009, 09:02 AM

What have you had to fix that a DIY tried to do?

tnoisaw · 07-30-2009, 09:09 AM

My most serious one was a woman who called in Iowa asking how to put on a compression cap that an Ace Hardware sold here to stop the leak coming from that "thing" on the water heater. After I talked to her I told her that doing what she is trying to do can be VERY dangerous and can turn her water heater into a bomb.

I went out to her house (About a million dollar house at that), and saw what I suspected. The T&P valve was leaking. The butt head salesman at Ace sold her the cap to stop the water leak. I wrote this Ace Hardware and informed them of the dangers of capping the T&P.

(My first week as a plumber dealt with a HO who capped their T&P. It blew up their house and shattered a lot of windows in the neighborhood.)

On a different day I was at Lowes and was listening to a conversation between the salesman and HO. After the salesman walked away I went up to the HO and introduced myself as a plumber and told them that the advice they were given was wrong and I told them what they should do. Ya, I gave free advice but if I remember right they were dealing with gas and I didn't want a mess. I did tell them who I worked for and told them to please give me a call on this problem because working with gas can be dangerous.

rocksteady · 07-30-2009, 01:23 PM

the one that is still stuck in my head is a gas pipe job. I went to fix a leak, i think. the entire house was gas piped with sch 40 pvc and red-hot blue glue/no primer. for gas cocks they had used pvc ball valves. it was one of those things where you don't even know what to say. i don't think i ended up doing anything except looking at it and telling them this needs to be all redone. they didn't like that.

paul

Colgar · 07-30-2009, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rocksteady

the one that is still stuck in my head is a gas pipe job. I went to fix a leak, i think. the entire house was gas piped with sch 40 pvc and red-hot blue glue/no primer. for gas cocks they had used pvc ball valves. it was one of those things where you don't even know what to say. i don't think i ended up doing anything except looking at it and telling them this needs to be all redone. they didn't like that.

paul

I'll raise you a garden hose.

Yup, a garden hose from the furnace room in the middle of the house, through the attic to the garage where it was supplying gas to a ventless wall heater.

tnoisaw · 07-30-2009, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Colgar

I'll raise you a garden hose.

Yup, a garden hose from the furnace room in the middle of the house, through the attic to the garage where it was supplying gas to a ventless wall heater.

Looks like competition for a Darwin Award.

rocksteady · 07-30-2009, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Colgar

I'll raise you a garden hose.

Yup, a garden hose from the furnace room in the middle of the house, through the attic to the garage where it was supplying gas to a ventless wall heater.

DO NOT ANGER TALKY TIKI!!

paul

Bollinger plumber · 07-30-2009, 03:52 PM

this isn't the best one I have been on but I think it comes close to being the funniest. When I was in Maryland I had this guy call me to ask me if I wanted a side job to rough in his new house. I had only been in the trade a little over a year and I told him I was not experienced enough or qualified to do it for him. Well somehow this guy got a master plumber to pull a permit for him and he decided to rough it himself. A few weeks later my boss gets a call from one of the plumbing inspectors and he wants us to come to this house and fix the plumbing that this guy had done hinself. We get over there and it was the guy that had called me. He had run a 3 inch stack straight thru the roof and teed off to catch every fixture individually with no vents on any of it. He had 20 and 30 ft runs turned straight up through the floor and was going to put s traps on all the fixtures.

Even though I was a first year helper I knew enough to know that is in no way a legal plumbing system. We all started laughing so hard and I guess we embarrassed him. He called the boss and told him to get us off the job. The boss told him it was out of his hands that the inspections office had been the one that placed the call to fix the problem and he would have to call them. He called the inspector and the inspector told him to let us work or him and the master plumber that took out the permit would be in front of the plumbing commission the next week for code violations. The master plumber did end up paying a hefty fine for letting someone else work under his license.

**Bill** · 07-30-2009, 08:39 PM

Man, I hate to think!

GREENPLUM · 07-30-2009, 08:56 PM

thats a 5 gallon bucket

he did use a sharpie to keep the pipe lined up

GREENPLUM · 07-30-2009, 08:59 PM

The HO told me if I could use any of this to do it, he wanted to save some $$$

07-30-2009, 09:02 AM	#1
tnoisaw Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Florida Posts: 402 My Photos	DIY advice What have you had to fix that a DIY tried to do? __________________ Being a plumber is often like being the only one on your block that has a pickup.

07-30-2009, 09:09 AM	#2
tnoisaw Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Florida Posts: 402 My Photos	My most serious one was a woman who called in Iowa asking how to put on a compression cap that an Ace Hardware sold here to stop the leak coming from that "thing" on the water heater. After I talked to her I told her that doing what she is trying to do can be VERY dangerous and can turn her water heater into a bomb. I went out to her house (About a million dollar house at that), and saw what I suspected. The T&P valve was leaking. The butt head salesman at Ace sold her the cap to stop the water leak. I wrote this Ace Hardware and informed them of the dangers of capping the T&P. (My first week as a plumber dealt with a HO who capped their T&P. It blew up their house and shattered a lot of windows in the neighborhood.) On a different day I was at Lowes and was listening to a conversation between the salesman and HO. After the salesman walked away I went up to the HO and introduced myself as a plumber and told them that the advice they were given was wrong and I told them what they should do. Ya, I gave free advice but if I remember right they were dealing with gas and I didn't want a mess. I did tell them who I worked for and told them to please give me a call on this problem because working with gas can be dangerous. __________________ Being a plumber is often like being the only one on your block that has a pickup. Last edited by tnoisaw; 07-30-2009 at 09:13 AM..

07-30-2009, 01:23 PM	#3
rocksteady Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Paso Robles, Ca. Posts: 2,510 My Photos	the one that is still stuck in my head is a gas pipe job. I went to fix a leak, i think. the entire house was gas piped with sch 40 pvc and red-hot blue glue/no primer. for gas cocks they had used pvc ball valves. it was one of those things where you don't even know what to say. i don't think i ended up doing anything except looking at it and telling them this needs to be all redone. they didn't like that. paul __________________ Rocksteady Plumbing Serving San Luis Obispo County (805) 237-7625 (ROCK) http://rocksteadyplumbing.com/

07-30-2009, 03:52 PM	#7
Bollinger plumber Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Sedgewickville Missouri Posts: 1,326 My Photos	this isn't the best one I have been on but I think it comes close to being the funniest. When I was in Maryland I had this guy call me to ask me if I wanted a side job to rough in his new house. I had only been in the trade a little over a year and I told him I was not experienced enough or qualified to do it for him. Well somehow this guy got a master plumber to pull a permit for him and he decided to rough it himself. A few weeks later my boss gets a call from one of the plumbing inspectors and he wants us to come to this house and fix the plumbing that this guy had done hinself. We get over there and it was the guy that had called me. He had run a 3 inch stack straight thru the roof and teed off to catch every fixture individually with no vents on any of it. He had 20 and 30 ft runs turned straight up through the floor and was going to put s traps on all the fixtures. Even though I was a first year helper I knew enough to know that is in no way a legal plumbing system. We all started laughing so hard and I guess we embarrassed him. He called the boss and told him to get us off the job. The boss told him it was out of his hands that the inspections office had been the one that placed the call to fix the problem and he would have to call them. He called the inspector and the inspector told him to let us work or him and the master plumber that took out the permit would be in front of the plumbing commission the next week for code violations. The master plumber did end up paying a hefty fine for letting someone else work under his license. __________________ http://alsdrainservice.services.offi...m/default.aspx Only two devining forces have died for you. One is Jesus Christ and the other is the American soldier. One died for your soul the other died for your freedom.

07-30-2009, 08:39 PM	#8
Bill Moderator Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: I have no idea! Posts: 5,867 My Photos	Man, I hate to think! __________________ Virginia Plumbing Codes Virginia Department of Licensing Ones intellect can often be summed up by his own words Everything in the known universe is governed by "Cause and Effect", there is no getting around it. Think about what you do before you do it.

07-30-2009, 08:56 PM	#9
GREENPLUM Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: ... Posts: 2,310 My Photos	thats a 5 gallon bucket he did use a sharpie to keep the pipe lined up Last edited by GREENPLUM; 07-30-2009 at 08:57 PM.. Reason: add comment

07-30-2009, 08:59 PM	#10
GREENPLUM Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: ... Posts: 2,310 My Photos	The HO told me if I could use any of this to do it, he wanted to save some $$$

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