I'm going to kill this plumber

[jbhenergy]

I don't know who in there right mind thought it was a good idea to run the main cold, hot supply, and hot return in the attic, but the dude should not exist anymore. These lines are wrapped in 1" pipe insulation, covered with blow in, then cover in r19 batts butt yet this happens.



Thank god it's in my garage and not the living area. Well maybe I wish was in the kitchen. Last year it was the hot this year the cold. And we have been running water all day long too.



Happy fricken Sunday to me


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[pecmsg]

Damn........

That Sucks!

[Baloo2327]

Is that a freeze break, or did it just burst? If freeze, then you have a good excuse to get a heated garage

I feel your pain though on a Sunday. I'm watching the record snow fall, and hoping nothing collapses.

[ga-hvac-tech]

IMO... f Builders had to warrant houses for 5 years... rather than one year...
Quality would go WAAAAY up...
Sadly... so would price.

Pex anyone...

[jbhenergy]

Is that a freeze break, or did it just burst? If freeze, then you have a good excuse to get a heated garage

I feel your pain though on a Sunday. I'm watching the record snow fall, and hoping nothing collapses.

I don't know. Low last night was around 0 which I feel is not to terrible. We ran water all yesterday and even today so I find it hard to think it froze in less than 12 hours when insulated. But I'm guessing the pipe in around 50 years old maybe so maybe that has something to with it. Actually busted in two places maybe 6 feet from each other. Ran got 2 sharkbite fittings to get me through till tomorrow, when I plan to replace the lines in pex, insulate them, then insulate again.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jbhenergy]

I had to run the hot water return last year because it was starting to corrode from electrolysis. They laid the copper on the galvanized return and it was getting pin holes. So now it looks like I'll be running the hot and cold now. I think I'm going to get the 2" thick insulation for the lines, then spray foam around that, then do blow in over it all.

This is actually the 4th time this has happened. Once when the house was on the market, but they "fixed it". Once when we were in contract to buy, one line busted in the living area 5 days before closing. Both of those and the one last year were all the return line though. This is a first on the supply side. Grr. Hope service is slow tomorrow!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Juan Madera]

Cannot leave the garage door up in cold weather..... I keep telling my spouse this and will show her the photos of why.

[jbhenergy]

Cannot leave the garage door up in cold weather..... I keep telling my spouse this and will show her the photos of why.

Wish that was the reason why this happened. Garage door was closed most of the day really. Just used it twice to leave for the grocery and once to come home from the grocery.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[hurtinhvac]

Heat tape...small unit heater in the garage for extreme periods?

Is pex immune to freeze bursts?

[jbhenergy]

Heat tape...small unit heater in the garage for extreme periods?

Is pex immune to freeze bursts?

From what I hear it has the ability to expand and contract. That's is what a few plumbers have told me anyhow.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jbhenergy]

I'm wondering too if the copper may have been weakened by other freezes? The house sat empty for a few years with water and heat on but heat only set to 60. The winter before we bought it was down to -15 a few days and that's when a line busted before. So maybe the lines we compromised then. Idk but I know it's getting annoying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[hvacvegas]

I'm wondering too if the copper may have been weakened by other freezes? The house sat empty for a few years with water and heat on but heat only set to 60. The winter before we bought it was down to -15 a few days and that's when a line busted before. So maybe the lines we compromised then. Idk but I know it's getting annoying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

must have been 3 winters ago.

2* weather last night sure didn't help.

[hvacvegas]

I'm wondering too if the copper may have been weakened by other freezes? The house sat empty for a few years with water and heat on but heat only set to 60. The winter before we bought it was down to -15 a few days and that's when a line busted before. So maybe the lines we compromised then. Idk but I know it's getting annoying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

must have been 3 winters ago.

2* weather last night sure didn't help.

[hurtinhvac]

From what I hear it has the ability to expand and contract. That's is what a few plumbers have told me anyhow.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hope so...startin' to see an awful lot of it around here.

I need to squeeze in another shut off for our house as the original no longer shuts off all the way and the outside access hole for the steet valve is no longer lined up with the valve - don't want to dig that mess up. A shark bite valve would be great given the space constraints...but they kinda unnerve me as well.

Good luck with the clean up. I hate when that kind of thing happens and you have to be out taking care of everybody else

[ammoniadog]

If you were to keep the copper I think I would make it just like a walk in freezer's condensate line. Heat tape with armaflex over it. Then wire the heat tape up to a thermostat to turn on at about 30 degrees or so.

The better option probably is to re do it in PEX with some thick pipe insulation over it like you are thinking though, and skip the heat tape. Good luck.

P.S... Were you home when it happened and did you catch it right away? Did that coat your car and driveway in a big icy mess?

[Snaple4]

Can you bring it into the house? Just run it in the corner and tie into existing where it is already in the wall. Little sheetrock work to cover the pipes but keeps it out of the attic. Do the same for the garage but insulate even more.

I say just completely relocate the runs.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk

[pctech]

It is possible to freeze in less then 2 hours under the right conditions.
If you were in my area the pipes would have self regulating heat tapes on them as well.
A staple in certain parts of Maine

[pctech]

It does TO A POINT and even that can split or crack it did it in my own home 2 times.

[jbhenergy]

must have been 3 winters ago.

2* weather last night sure didn't help.

Sure was!!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jbhenergy]

If you were to keep the copper I think I would make it just like a walk in freezer's condensate line. Heat tape with armaflex over it. Then wire the heat tape up to a thermostat to turn on at about 30 degrees or so.

The better option probably is to re do it in PEX with some thick pipe insulation over it like you are thinking though, and skip the heat tape. Good luck.

P.S... Were you home when it happened and did you catch it right away? Did that coat your car and driveway in a big icy mess?

Luckily we were home. I was actually putting my cover on my electrical panel which is about 10 feet from the door to the garage. I thought I was hearing water hitting a floor but since I was close to the laundry room I brushed it off as the washing machine running. Then my wife comes walking by to the laundry room and goes what did you spill here. I said where, turn to look and say nothing. She opens the garage door and we see the water pouring through the drywall seams. About that instance it all came crashing down. All in all about an inch of water in the garage. Even as messing as my garage is, my tools were not on the ground so I was happy about that. My drop cloths and a pair of my good boots are under there though. I debated making a claim but I figured I can get it done for cheaper or the same as my deductible and I know it will be done better then most would do it. My attic is kinda short so I don't want some plumber half adding it just to get out of there quick.

It would be tough to run the lines in the house. It's a long ranch but then at some point someone added a two story addition to the back corner that had a full bathroom. So it my belief the moved the water heater from its central location in the house to its current location in the back corner. So to get the water there they went to the attic, then they had to get the hot water back to the central spot since that is where it went into the slab, and then they also needed to get the hot return back there since the house was piped with a hot water return loop. I would have to run through hallways living room kitchen and the sort.

I got a dump trailer coming this morning to get started. Only have 2 calls pre scheduled for today so hopefully it will stay that way.

If nothing else at least this forces me to clean my garage out lol.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk