Emergency pipe leak repair
- by Kelly Smith on Apr 25th 2008 2:00PM
- Filed under fix-it, household hacks, plumbing
It's late at night and you're ready for bed. You go out to the washing machine to put the clothes in the dryer before you snooze. All of a sudden you notice water on the floor and a mysterious wet spot on the drywall behind the washer. Doesn't look good.Do you call a plumber and shell out the big bucks for a night call? Heck no! The first thing to do is cut away the drywall where the wet spot is. And there you see it - the water supply pipe has a leak and is spraying a mist out. The next step is to grab the sacrificial garden hose and cut off a piece - just about six inches long.
Now, slice it down one side and place it over the supply pipe where the leak is. To stop the leak you'll need to snug it up. To do this, use a minimum of three hose clamps; put one right over the leak and the other two on either side of it. Presto! Now you can go catch some zzz's!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-25-2008 @ 5:54PM
Sylvia Kimmel said...
You have got to be kidding. Does everyone have the tools? What about electrical wires behind the dry wall? What about seniors like me? Just Turn off the water valve to the washer or go to the basement & turn off the water main.
Leave a note for the rest of the family, first one up calls the plumber.
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4-26-2008 @ 11:44AM
John B said...
"Does everyone have the tools?"
Well, if this was call-the-plumber.com I'd agree with you.
Folks on a DIY site expect tips to do it on their own.
4-25-2008 @ 11:37PM
eric said...
in other words, know where your water shut off valve is! (gas is a good idea too) 8.5x11" signs with big arrows pointing to them is also helpful
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4-27-2008 @ 7:12PM
D-Bo said...
I have to agree the easiest and imo best course of action would be to shut off the water.
Also soldering and basic plumbing repair is well within the scope of a diy'er so no call to the plumber is necessary.
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